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Philippians 3 General Notes
Structure and formatting
In verses 4-8, Paul lists how he qualifies for being considered a righteous Jew. In every way, Paul was an exemplary Jew. But he contrasts this with the greatness of knowing Jesus. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/righteous)
Special concepts in this chapter
Dogs
The people of the ancient Near East used dogs as an image to refer to people in a negative way. Not all cultures use the term "dogs" in this way.
Resurrected Bodies
We know very little about what people will be like in heaven. Paul teaches here that Christians will have some kind of glorious body and will be free from sin. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/heaven and rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/sin)
Important figures of speech in this chapter
Prize
Paul uses an extended illustration to describe the Christian life. The goal of the Christian life is attempting to grow to be like Christ until a person dies. We can never achieve this goal perfectly, but we must strive for it.