Philippians 4:8 - No.5 What is Lovely

 "Fix your thoughts on what is... lovely..."
(Philippians 4:8, New Living Translation, 2015)

This word is not found anywhere else in the New Testament. In this translation, the word 'lovely,' is used but it can also imply "'amiable,' 'attractive,' 'winsome.'" [1] or 'pleasing.' 

When I was single, my dad advised me, "You may find a woman that everyone else thinks is beautiful, or you may be the only one privileged to see it." But Paul is not talking about beauty being in the eye of the beholder. Or even the eye that you behold!

The problem is trying to find a single word in English that translates the original meaning of "lovely" here. It's actually a combination of two words: "toward" and "love." [2] A whole phrase is needed to explain it. 

"It has as its fundamental meaning 'that which calls forth love,'" [1] or "that which provokes love, or moves us towards loving." [3] 

So it does get back to the eye of the beholder--not to define what is lovely merely to one individual, but to focus on what makes the beholder more loving.

God, Distract us from staring at the things that make us grumpy, miserable and self-centered. Help us to fix our eyes on those things that make us more loving people. In Jesus' name, Amen.

[1]  (Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 43 Revised Edition, Gerald F. Hawthorne & Ralph P. Martin)
[2] προσφιλῆ = προσ (toward) + φιλῆ (love) Vine's Dictionary
[3] https://lexicon.katabiblon.com/index.php?lemma=προσφιλής
Photo: An eye that makes me more loving person. September 9, 2015.