Salutation

1 aPaul, ba prisoner of cChrist Jesus, and dTimothy 1our brother,

To Philemon our beloved brother and efellow worker,

2 and to Apphia 1aour sister, and to bArchippus our cfellow soldier, and to dthe church in your house:

3 aGrace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philemon’s Love and Faith

4 aI thank my God always, making mention of you in my prayers,

5 because I ahear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the 1saints;

6 and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective 1through the aknowledge of every good thing which is in you 2for Christ’s sake.

7 For I have come to have much ajoy and comfort in your love, because the 1hearts of the 2saints have been brefreshed through you, brother.

8 Therefore, athough I have 1enough confidence in Christ to order you to do what is bproper,

9 yet for love’s sake I rather aappeal to you—since I am such a person as Paul, 1the baged, and now also ca prisoner of dChrist Jesus—

Plea for Onesimus, a Free Man

10 I aappeal to you for my bchild 1cOnesimus, whom I have begotten in my 2imprisonment,

11 who formerly was useless to you, but now is useful both to you and to me.

12 I have sent him back to you in person, that is, sending my very heart,

13 whom I wished to keep with me, so that on your behalf he might minister to me in my 1aimprisonment for the gospel;

14 but without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your goodness would anot be, in effect, by compulsion but of your own free will.

15 For perhaps ahe was for this reason separated from you for a while, that you would have him back forever,

16 ano longer as a slave, but more than a slave, ba beloved brother, especially to me, but how much more to you, both cin the flesh and in the Lord.

17 If then you regard me a apartner, accept him as you would me.

18 But if he has wronged you in any way or owes you anything, charge that to my account;

19 aI, Paul, am writing this with my own hand, I will repay it (bnot to 1mention to you that you owe to me even your own self as well).

20 Yes, brother, let me benefit from you in the Lord; arefresh my heart in Christ.

21 aHaving confidence in your obedience, I write to you, since I know that you will do even more than what I say.

22 At the same time also prepare me a alodging, for bI hope that through cyour prayers dI will be given to you.

23 aEpaphras, my bfellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you,

24 as do aMark, bAristarchus, cDemas, cLuke, my dfellow workers.

25 aThe grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be bwith your spirit.1