More from St. Paul

The Little Chapter from vespers tonight had another of those twisty passages from St. Paul:

Philippians 2:12-15:

Work with anxious concern to achieve your salvation.
It is God who, in his good will toward you, begets in you any measure of desire or achievement. In everything you do, act without grumbling or arguing; prove yourselves innocent and straightforward, children of God without reproach.

You know maybe it is not always St. Paul who is the PUTZ, but the boys and girls that are responsible for the translation. Compare the following alternative NRSV translation:

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Do all things without murmuring and arguing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world.

There are days when I downright sympathize with Martin Luther!