The Letter to the Phillippians
The Apostle Paul in Prison by Rembrandt
There is a scholarly consensus that Paul is the author of the Letter to the Phillippians. Paul writes this letter from prison (Phil 1:7, 1:12-14). Although Paul was imprisoned for short durations during his missionary journeys, this particular imprisonment is one that is of an extended duration, since the Phillipians have heard of it, sending Epaphroditus to Paul, with Epaphroditus getting sick, nearly dying and now returning as the letter is being written (Phil 2:25-30).
Although some have argued that the letter was written from Caesarea during Paul's two year imprisonment there, the better evidence supports a writing from Rome. Paul says that his bonds are known "in all the praetorio", a word that implies a palace in Rome with Praetorian guards. Paul mentions further "Caesar's household" (Phil 4:22), a phrase virtually requiring a Roman origin. Paul is therefore writing from a Roman prison, but he does not yet seem to anticipate his imminent death like he does in his letters to Timothy. The most likely date for Phillippians therefore falls in the range 61-62 A.D., with Paul having been in prison in Rome for a least some time, but still not too near to the end of his life.