““ Peace ” is also finally an apocalyptic concept . It cannot be separated from conflict . Peace with God means conflict with the world , even as peace with the world means conflict with God . The peace that passes all understanding is a peace that remains restless until the end. It is a peace that opposes death and the things that make for death . It is a peace that enters into death and in the midst of death perseveres. It is a peace that has the wisdom to change what can be changed while refusing to accept the things that cannot be changed ( pace Reinhold Niebuhr ). It seeks instead to oppose the unacceptable in the mode of a revolutionary patience. It is a peace that transcends every affliction. It is not such a peace as the world gives, nor a serenity indistinguishable from weak resignation . It is a peace that embraces the cross, yet is never without a lively hope. It is the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ , crucified and risen from the dead .”

•  George Hunsinger, Philippians, Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible (Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2020), pg. 6, loc. 483.