2:1 So then, if you have any consolation in unity with the Anointed, any comfort of love, any partnership of spirit, any compassion and pity,

2:2 then complete my joy by having that same love for each other, joining in soul with one attitude.

2:3 Do nothing out of bitter rivalry or selfish ambition, but humbly consider others as your superiors.

2:4 Don’t push your own agenda but be considerate of others.

2:5 Have the same attitude among yourselves that Anointed Jesus had:

2:6 He did not jealously cling to being in the form of God,

2:7 but emptied himself and took on the form of a slave, becoming human.

2:8 And in human form, he humbled himself; he heeded God to the point of death— even death on a cross!

2:9 Therefore God made him great and honored him with the Name above all others,

2:10 so that at the Name of Jesus every knee will bow— those in heaven and earth and under the earth—

2:11 and every tongue will confess that Jesus the Anointed is the Master, to the honor of God the Father.

2:12 With that in mind, my loved ones, take heed as you always have— not only in my presence but now even more so in my absence— with the utmost respect, thereby carrying your salvation to its ultimate conclusion.

2:13 For it is God who is empowering you as he sees fit, in your will and your activities.

2:14 So do everything without whining and arguing,

2:15 so that you will become blameless and un-compromised children of God, flawless in the middle of a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine like stars in the world.

2:16 Hang on to the Word of Life so I can be proud of you on the Day of the Anointed, and so that I will not have labored for nothing.

2:17 For even if I am like a drink offering on the sacrifice— the official service of your faith— I celebrate with all of you.

2:18 Come on, share this with me!

2:19 I hope by Master Jesus to send Timothy to you very soon, so that I will be cheered up by knowing how you’re doing.

2:20 For there is no one else who genuinely cares about you as I do;

2:21 they all are only concerned about themselves and not Jesus the Anointed.

2:22 But you know the kind of person Timothy is, slaving together with me for the Gospel as a child with their father.

2:23 So I definitely hope to send him as soon as I know my situation.

2:24 Even so, I have confidence from the Master that I will come soon myself.

2:25 I also feel it necessary to send Epaphroditus, my brother and co-worker and comrade-in-arms, and at the same time your ambassador and the public servant you sent to meet my needs.

2:26 In fact, he was aching to see you, and even depressed because you heard he was sick.

2:27 And he was, even to the point of death! But God was merciful to him, and not just to him but also to me, so that I wouldn’t have one sorrow piled on top of another.

2:28 So I am all the more determined to send him to you, so you can see him again and celebrate, and I can be relieved.

2:29 So happily accept him as one belonging to the Master, and esteem him highly,

2:30 since he nearly died in his work for the Master, risking his life so he could fulfill your wishes to be my public servant.