Philippians 4:7
4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
KJV
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
What does Philippians 4:7 mean?
Paul promises that when anxiety is turned into prayer, God's own peace — beyond our understanding — will stand guard over heart and mind in Christ.
"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." This is the promise attached to the command of the previous verse.
Context
In Philippians 4:6 Paul tells believers not to be anxious but to bring everything to God in prayer. Verse 7 is the result: not necessarily changed circumstances, but a guarding peace. It flows directly from prayer, not from getting what we asked.
Key words
"The peace of God" is God's own settledness given to us, distinct from mere calm. It "passeth all understanding" — it both surpasses our ability to comprehend it and outlasts our attempts to reason our way to calm. "Keep" (phroureo) is a military word: peace posts a garrison around "your hearts and minds."
How it has been read
Christians have treasured this as the companion to verse 6: we do the praying; God gives the peace. The guard is set "through Christ Jesus" — the peace is not a technique but a gift rooted in our union with him, who is himself "our peace" (Ephesians 2:14).
Greek interlinear
Full chapter interlinear →Commentary on Philippians 4:7
HENRY_FULL · Philippians 4:7
Cross-references
Related passages from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
Deuteronomy 27:16Cursed be he that setteth light by his father or his mother. And all the people shall say, Amen.
Proverbs 20:20Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness. lamp: or, candle
Jeremiah 35:18And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you:
Ezekiel 22:7In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow. oppression: or, deceit
Malachi 1:6A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?
Matthew 15:4For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.
Mark 7:9And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. reject: or, frustrate
Romans 13:7Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.
Topics
People & places in this verse
People
Verses like this
Other verses that share key original-language words with Philippians 4:7.
So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.
Matthew 1:23Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. they: or, his name shall be called
Matthew 10:32Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 2:15And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
Matthew 2:16Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
Matthew 2:20Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
Matthew 2:23And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets He shall be called a Nazarene.
Matthew 2:3When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Frequently asked questions
What does Philippians 4:7 say?
Philippians 4:7 (King James Version) reads: "And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Is Philippians 4:7 in the Old or New Testament?
Philippians 4:7 is in the New Testament of the Bible, in the book of Philippians.
Reflect
As you read Philippians 4:7, what is one truth here you can carry into today?
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