That the Lord is at hand means
he will soon return and his presence is close;
he will soon return; or
his presence is close.
After calling the Philippians to show reasonableness to all, Paul says that the Lord is at hand. That could be taken in either a temporal or spatial sense. That is, the Lord could be at hand in the sense that he will soon return, or in the sense that his presence is not far away. So which does Paul have in mind?
Most likely, Paul uses the clause the Lord is at hand
with a double meaning. That is, he means both that the Lord will soon return and that his presence is close at hand. We can deduce this because he gives us no grammatical connections to connect the clause with what precedes or follows. Further, the clause fits perfectly well with both what precedes and follows. It fits with what precedes in the sense that, because Christ will soon return, the Philippians ought to display reasonableness to all. And it fits with what follows in that the Philippians can bring their anxieties to God in prayer, because the Lord is close at hand.
Some contend that Paul only has a temporal sense in mind. These contend that Paul has already introduced the notion of Christ’s return in Philippians 3:20–21, and that Christ’s return would both motivate the Philippians to display reasonableness and be a comfort in anxiety.
Others argue that Paul has a spatial sense in mind. These point out that there are psalms where the psalmist says that the Lord is near to the broken-hearted. Likewise, while the Philippians face anxieties, the Lord’s nearness means they can bring their concerns to him in prayer.
Both of the above interpretations have merit, but they fail to see that they do not exclude each other. That is, there is strong support for the notion that Paul has a temporal and a spatial sense of nearness in mind. Temporality and spatiality are not incompatible. Further, Paul is writing a letter, and it is not uncommon for a letter writer to use a literary device, such as double meaning, to draw attention to an important point.
Thus, it is most likely that Paul has both a temporal and a spatial meaning in mind. Paul motivates the Philippians behaviour by the Lord’s imminent return, and he comforts them by the fact that Christ’s presence is not far off.
Contents
Interpretation 1:
The Lord is at hand
means the Lord will soon return and his presence is close.
Summary:
Paul expresses the richness of Jesus’ kingship, noting that he will return soon and that his presence is not far from the Philippians. Thus, Paul uses a word with a double meaning, to encourage, comfort, and motivate the Philippians.
When the difficulties of the world around us seem dire, it is a great comfort to remember that the Lord is at hand in two important senses. The Lord is at hand in the sense that he is omnipresent, and therefore not far from any one of us. Further, he is at hand in the sense that he will soon return and transform us.
Advocates:
Walter Hansen
Peter O’Brien
Bonnie Thurston
Minor differences:
Our authors agree that Paul has something like a double meaning in mind in Philippians 4:5. That is, they all agree that when Paul says the Lord is at hand, he likely means this in both a temporal and spatial sense.
Peter O’Brien explicitly suggests that it is unnecessary for us to choose between a temporal and spatial meaning that the Lord is at hand, because Paul likely intended both.1
Walter Hansen, on the other hand, leans toward the notion that Jesus is at hand in that he will soon return, but that the phrase is also meant to remind the Philippians of the closeness of Christ when they pray. Thus, the phrase may be something as close to intentional double entendre as one finds in the apostle.
2
Arguments
Possible weaknesses
Interpretation 2:
The Lord is at hand
means the Lord will soon return.
Summary:
Although the Philippians face suffering, Paul calls them to display reasonableness to all. He motivates this gentle behaviour in the face of suffering by reminding the Philippians that the Lord will soon return.
Advocates:
Charles Cousar
Gordon Fee
Moisés Silva
Marvin Vincent
Minor differences:
Our authors agree that when Paul says the Lord is at hand, he has in mind Christ’s imminent return.
For Gordon Fee, Paul’s comment that the Lord is at hand is connected to what precedes. Paul knows that as Christians, the Philippians will face suffering and persecution, so he calls them to be gentle to all, not just friends and family. It will be difficult for the Philippians to maintain reasonableness in the face of suffering, so he motivates this behaviour by reminding the Philippians that the Lord’s return is at hand.9
Marvin Vincent agrees that the Lord is at hand means that Christ’s return is imminent, but he connects the phrase to what follows. Paul is saying that since the Lord will return soon, the Philippians should not be anxious about anything but should pray to the Lord.10
Arguments
Possible weaknesses
Interpretation 3:
The Lord is at hand
means the Lord’s presence is close.
Summary:
Although the Philippians may have anxieties Paul assures them not to worry, for the Lord’s presence is not far from the believers. Thus, Paul comforts the Philippians by the nearness of the Lord’s presence, who always offers a listening ear in prayer.
Advocates:
Michael Bird
Arguments
Possible weaknesses
5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand;