Everything to Know About the Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians
Polycarp was the Bishop of Smyrna from the early to middle second century AD. He had a good relationship with leaders and members of other churches in the region. This was common among the Apostolic Fathers, that is, those who personally had been taught by the Apostles. In about AD 98, Clement of Rome wrote an epistle to the church in Corinth on behalf of his church, and Ignatius of Antioch wrote epistles to six other churches in 107 in addition to his epistle addressed to Polycarp. These eight epistles are still extant, that is, still in existence, but there are many epistles referred to by ancient writers that have been lost.[1] Writing epistles to other churches was a common practice among the Apostolic Fathers, and they normally emphasized good behavior, church unity, and correct doctrine—especially about who Jesus Christ is.
We do have copies of an epistle that Polycarp wrote to the Church of Philippi in Macedonia. The date of its writing is difficult to discern, but scholars believe it may have been written shortly after the death of Ignatius, which was in AD 107, and circulated among the churches with Ignatius’s epistles.[2] Polycarp’s epistle was first mentioned by Irenæus and was still in use among the eastern churches in Jerome’s day.[3] It contains many allusions to Scripture, especially from the Gospel of Matthew, Acts, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Hebrews, 1 Peter, and 1 John.
The most remarkable feature of Polycarp’s epistle is not what it contains but what it does not contain. There is no mention in the epistle of a single bishop or overseer of the Church in Philippi, nor does Polycarp refer to himself as one.[4] Polycarp explicitly addresses the presbyters or elders, deacons, husbands, wives, widows, young men, young women, a few specific people who are not leaders in the church, and the members of the church in general. However, there is no mention of a specific bishop of the church at the time of the epistle’s writing.
As was the case with other epistles written by the Apostolic Fathers, Polycarp’s Letter to the Philippians contains exhortations for Christians to behave well. Polycarp encouraged all the Philippian Christians to exercise faith, hope, and especially love toward God and their neighbors.[5] He exhorted them to be good, truthful, knowledgeable of God, pure and blameless, compassionate, patient, sober, and to fear God.[6] He emphasized the traits of faith, love, truth, and purity to the women, deacons, young men, and young women in the church. Widows were to be people of noble character, avoiding slander, lying, and greed.[7] He also publicly rebuked a former elder named Valens by name.[8] Apparently Valens and his wife became greedy and turned their backs on purity and the truth for their own selfish ends. Even then, Polycarp called on the members of the church to appeal to Valens and his wife back to repent and return to the church, so at worst, they would be considered church members who suffered and strayed but hopefully in the end would reconcile with the church. Good behavior was not only good for relationships within the church but the church’s reputation with outsiders as well.[9]
A second emphasis in the epistle was church unity. Polycarp encouraged the elders, for example, to attempt to bring back those who strayed from the church; and not to neglect the widows, orphans, or poor within the church.[10] He also enjoined the Christians in general to love the family of God, join together in pursuit of the truth, to be gentle in their conversations toward one another, to be subject to one another, and to despise no one.[11] These practices, again, are profitable not only for relationships within the church but the church’s reputation with outsiders.
A third emphasis in the epistle is a proper understanding of who Jesus Christ is. Polycarp reserved his sternest speech for heretics who claimed “Jesus Christ has not come in the flesh.”[12] Polycarp is likely referring to a group of Gnostics who denied the full humanity of Jesus.[13] Polycarp warned, “whoever does not confess that Jesus Christ came in the flesh is an antichrist; whoever does not confess the testimony of the cross is of the devil, and whoever perverts the words of the Lord for their own desires and says that there is neither a resurrection nor a final judgement is the firstborn child of Satan.”[14] Proper behavior and proper doctrine should lead to church unity and an effective Christian testimony. This is a good reminder even for Christians today.
[1] Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church: Volume Two—Ante-Nicene Christianity, A.D. 100-325 (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1910), 666. Johnannes Quasten, Patrology: Volume 1—The Beginning of Patristic Literature from the Apostles Creed to Irenaeus (Westminster, MD: Christian Classics, 1990), 79.
[2] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 13-14. Johnannes Quasten, Patrology: Volume 1—The Beginning of Patristic Literature from the Apostles Creed to Irenaeus (Westminster, MD: Christian Classics, 1990), 79. Everett Ferguson, Church History: Volume One—From Christ to the Pre-Reformation, second edition (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013), 57.
[3] Irenæus, Against Heresies, 3:3:4. Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church: Volume Two—Ante-Nicene Christianity, A.D. 100-325(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1910), 666.
[4] Andrew Louth, Early Christian Writings: The Apostolic Fathers (New York: Penguin Books, 1987), 116.
[5] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 3, 8, 10.
[6] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 4-6, 8, 10.
[7] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 4.
[8] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 11.
[9] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 6.
[10] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 6, 11.
[11] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 10.
[12] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 7.
[13] David Christie-Murray, A History of Heresy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1976), 25.
[14] Polycarp, Epistle to the Philippians, 7.
