Philemon 1:17

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

Philemon 1:13-15

1:13 I wanted to keep him so that he could serve me in your place ¹  during ²  my imprisonment for the sake of the gospel. ³  1:14 However, ⁴  without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your good deed would not be out of compulsion, but from your own willingness. 1:15 For perhaps it was for this reason that he was separated from you for a little while, so that you would have him back eternally, ⁵ 

Philemon 1:21

1:21 Since I was confident that you would obey, I wrote to you, because I knew that you would do even more than ⁶  what I am asking you to do.

Philemon 1:9

1:9 I would rather appeal ⁷  to you on the basis of love – I, Paul, an old man ⁸  and even now a prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus ⁹  –

[1:13]  ¹ tn This is one of the clearest texts in the NT in which ὑπέρ is used for substitution. Cf. ExSyn 387.

[1:13]  ² tn Grk “in my imprisonment.” Paul seems to expect release from his imprisonment after some time (cf. v. 22), but in the meantime the assistance that Onesimus could provide would be valuable to the apostle.

[1:13]  ³ tn Grk “in the chains of the gospel.” On the translation “imprisonment for the sake of the gospel,” cf. BDAG 219 s.v. δεσμός 1.a where it says: “Oft. simply in ref. to the locale where bonds or fetters are worn imprisonment, prison (Diod. S. 14, 103, 3; Lucian, Tox. 29; Jos., Ant. 13, 294; 302, Vi. 241; Just., A I, 67, 6 al.) Phil 1:7, 13f, 17; Col 4:18; Phlm 10. μέχρι δεσμῶν 2 Ti 2:9. ἐν τοῖς δ. τοῦ εὐαγγελίου in imprisonment for the gospel Phlm 13; cf. ISm 11:1; Pol 1:1.”

[1:14]  ¹ tn Though the Greek text does not read the term “however,” it is clearly implied and thus supplied in the English translation to accent the contrastive nature of Paul’s statement.

[1:15]  ¹ sn So that you would have him back eternally. The notion here is not that Onesimus was to be the slave of Philemon eternally, but that their new relationship as brothers in Christ would transcend the societal structures of this age. The occasion of Onesimus’ flight to Rome would ultimately be a catalyst in the formation of a new and stronger bond between these two men.

[1:21]  ¹ tn Grk “that you would even go beyond.”

[1:9]  ¹ tn Or “encourage.”

[1:9]  ² tn Or perhaps “an ambassador” (so RSV, TEV), reading πρεσβευτής for πρεσβύτης (a conjecture proposed by Bentley, cf. BDAG 863 s.v. πρεσβύτης). NRSV reads “old man” and places “ambassador” in a note.

[1:9]  ³ tn Grk “a prisoner of Christ Jesus.”