Philemon 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ¹  a prisoner of Christ Jesus, ²  and Timothy our ³  brother, to Philemon, our dear friend ⁴  and colaborer,

Philemon 1:20

1:20 Yes, brother, let me have some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ. ⁵ 

Philemon 1:7

1:7 I ⁶  have had great joy and encouragement because ⁷  of your love, for the hearts ⁸  of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

Philemon 1:16

1:16 no longer as a slave, ⁹  but more than a slave, as a dear brother. He is especially so to me, and even more so to you now, both humanly speaking ¹⁰  and in the Lord.

Philemon 1:23-24

Concluding Greetings

1:23 Epaphras, ¹¹  my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you. 1:24 Mark, Aristarchus, ¹²  Demas ¹³  and Luke, my colaborers, greet you too.

Philemon 1:2

1:2 to Apphia ¹⁴  our sister, ¹⁵  to Archippus our ¹⁶  fellow soldier, and to the church that meets in your house.

Philemon 1:17

1:17 Therefore if you regard me as a partner, accept him as you would me.

[1:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ² sn The phrase a prisoner of Christ Jesus implies that Paul was being held prisoner because of his testimony for Christ Jesus. Paul’s imprisonment was due to his service to Christ, in the same manner as John was exiled to the Isle of Patmos because of his testimony (Rev 1:9).

[1:1]  ³ tn “our” is not present in the Greek text, but was supplied to bring out the sense in English.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “dear.” The adjective is functioning as a substantive; i.e., “dear one” or “dear friend.”

[1:20]  ⁵ sn Refresh my heart in Christ. Paul desired that Philemon refresh his heart in the same way that he [Philemon] had refreshed the hearts of other believers (cf. Phlm 7), that is, by forgiving and accepting Onesimus. In this way the presence and character of Jesus Christ would be vividly seen in Philemon’s attitude toward his runaway slave.

[1:7]  ⁹ tn Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and contemporary English style.

[1:7]  ¹⁰ tn The Greek preposition ἐπί (epi) is understood here in a causal sense, i.e., “because.”

[1:7]  ¹¹ tn The word translated “hearts” here is σπλάγχνα (splancna). Literally the term refers to one’s “inward parts,” but it is commonly used figuratively for “heart” as the seat of the emotions. See BDAG 938 s.v. σπλάγχνον 2 (cf. Col 3:12, Phil 2:1).

[1:16]  ¹³ tn Although the Greek word δοῦλος (doulos) is sometimes translated “servant” here (so KJV), the word “slave” is a much more candid and realistic picture of the relationship between Philemon and Onesimus. In the Greco-Roman world of the 1st century the slave was considered a “living tool” of the master. The slave was “property” in every sense of the word. This understanding heightens the tense scenario that is in view here. It is likely that Onesimus may have even feared for his life upon returning to Colossae. Undoubtedly Paul has asked this runaway slave to return to what could amount to a potentially severe and life-endangering situation.

[1:16]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “in the flesh.”

[1:23]  ¹⁷ sn Epaphras is probably a shortened form of the name Epaphroditus. This is probably the same individual whom Paul spoke of as “my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier” in Phil 2:25 (see also Phil 4:18). He is also mentioned in Col 1:7 and 4:12, where he is a founder of the church in Colossae (BDAG 360 s.v. ᾿Επαφρᾶς).

[1:24]  ²¹ sn Aristarchus accompanied Paul on his collection-journey when Paul left for Rome in Acts 27:2. He is also mentioned as a fellow prisoner in Col 4:10.

[1:24]  ²² sn Demas is most likely the same individual mentioned by the Apostle Paul in 2 Tim 4:10. Apparently, he later on abandoned the faith because of his love of the world.

[1:2]  ²⁵ sn Apphia is thought to be the wife of Philemon.

[1:2]  ²⁶ tc Most witnesses (D² Ψ Ï) here read τῇ ἀγαπητῇ (th agaphth, “beloved, dear”), a reading that appears to have been motivated by the masculine form of the same adjective in v. 1. Further, the earliest and best witnesses, along with a few others (א A D* F G I P 048 0278 33 81 104 1739 1881 pc), have ἀδελφῇ (adelfh, “sister”). Thus on internal and external grounds, ἀδελφῇ is the strongly preferred reading.

[1:2]  ²⁷ tn Though the term “our” does not appear in the Greek text it is inserted to bring out the sense of the passage.