Now ye Philippians know also
As well as the apostle did, that they not only communicated now, but also had done formerly, and when none else beside them did; wherefore he not only commends them for their present kindness to him, but for their past favours:
that in the beginning of the Gospel;
of the preaching of it by the apostle in the parts of Macedonia, particularly at Philippi; as soon as ever the Gospel was preached to them, they showed a grateful and beneficent spirit; of which we have an instance in Lydia, the first person we read of converted there, and also in the jailer, who was the next; see ( Acts 16:12 Acts 16:14 Acts 16:15 Acts 16:34 Acts 16:40 ) ; yea, not only while he was with them they communicated to him, but when he was gone from them:
when I departed from Macedonia;
when he went to Corinth and other places, to preach the Gospel in other parts and to other people, they sent the brethren after him with presents which supplied what was lacking to him, and in which other churches were deficient; see ( 2 Corinthians 11:8 2 Corinthians 11:9 ) ; the Ethiopic version reads, "when ye went from Macedonia with me": but is not supported by any copy or other version:
no church communicated with me, as concerning giving and receiving,
but ye only;
the phrase, "giving and receiving", is the same with (Ntmw avm) , which is often used by the Jews for trading and commerce {e}; and the allusion is to the keeping of accounts by men in business, by debtor and creditor, in a book, putting down in one column what is delivered out, and in the other what is received, whereby accounts are kept clear: the apostle's meaning is, that whereas he and his fellow ministers had delivered out spiritual things to this church, they had in return communicated their carnal things; so that there was a proper account kept, which was not observed by other churches, and which was greatly to the commendation of this.