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Philemon
Expanded Bible
Philemon
Expanded Bible
1 From Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and from Timothy [Acts 16:1–5; 1 Cor. 16:10–11; Phil. 2:19–24], our brother.
To Philemon, our ·dear friend [brother] and ·worker with us [coworker]; 2 to Apphia [C perhaps Philemon’s wife], our sister; to Archippus [C possibly Philemon’s son], ·a worker with us [L our fellow soldier]; and to the church that meets in your home:
3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Philemon’s Love and Faith
4 I always thank my God when I ·mention [remember] you in my prayers, 5 because I hear about the love you have for all ·God’s holy people [T the saints] and the faith you have in the Lord Jesus. 6 I pray that the ·faith you share [the sharing/fellowship of your faith] may ·make you [enable/empower you to] understand every blessing we have in Christ. 7 I have great joy and comfort, my brother, because the love you have shown to ·God’s people [T the saints] has refreshed ·them [their hearts; L their inward parts; C the seat of emotions].
Accept Onesimus as a Brother
8 So, in Christ, I could be bold and order you to do what is ·right [required; proper; your duty]. 9 But because I love you, I am ·pleading with [appealing to; urging; encouraging] you instead. I, Paul, an old man now and also a prisoner [C in Rome, about ad 60; Acts 28:16–31; Phil. 1:7] for Christ Jesus, 10 am ·pleading with [appealing to; urging; encouraging] you for my child Onesimus, ·who became my child [L whom I begat/fathered; C Paul evidently led Onesimus to Christ in Rome] while I was in prison. 11 In the past he was ·useless [unprofitable; worthless] to you, but now he has become ·useful [helpful; valuable] for both you and me [C a play on words, since Onesimus means “useful” or “helpful”].
12 I am sending him back to you, and ·with him I am sending my own heart [or he is my very heart]. 13 I wanted to keep him with me so that ·in your place [or on your behalf] he might ·help [serve] me while I am in prison for the ·Good News [Gospel]. 14 But I did not want to do anything without ·asking you first [your consent] so that any good you do for me will be because you want to do it, not ·because I forced you [out of compulsion]. 15 [L For] Maybe Onesimus was separated from you for a short time so you could have him back forever— 16 no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a loved brother. ·I love him very much, but you will love him even more [L …especially to me, but more so to you], both ·as a person [or in the natural realm; L in the flesh] and ·as a believer in the Lord [or in the spiritual realm; L in the Lord].
17 So if you consider me your partner, ·welcome [receive; accept] Onesimus as you would ·welcome [receive; accept] me. 18 If he has ·done anything wrong to [defrauded; harmed] you or if he owes you anything, charge that to me. 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand [C contrary to his usual practice of using a scribe, or amanuensis; Rom. 16:22]. I will pay it back, and I will ·say nothing about what [make no mention that] you owe me for your ·own life [very self; C Paul had evidently led Philemon to Christ]. 20 ·So [L Yes], my brother, I ask ·that you do this for me [for this benefit/favor from you] in the Lord: Refresh my heart in Christ. 21 I write this letter, ·knowing [L confident of your obedience/compliance, knowing] that you will do what I ask you and even more.
22 One more thing—prepare a ·room [guest room] for me in which to stay, because I hope God will answer your prayers and I will be ·able to come [restored; L granted] to you.
Final Greetings
23 Epaphras [Col. 1:7; 4:12], a prisoner with me for Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you. 24 And also Mark [Acts 12:25; 13:13; 15:37–39; Col. 4:10], Aristarchus [Acts 19:29; Col. 4:10], Demas [Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:10], and Luke [Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11], ·workers together with me [my coworkers], send greetings.
25 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Philemon
New International Version
Philemon
New International Version
1 Paul, a prisoner(A) of Christ Jesus, and Timothy(B) our brother,(C)
To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker(D)— 2 also to Apphia our sister and Archippus(E) our fellow soldier(F)—and to the church that meets in your home:(G)
3 Grace and peace to you[a] from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.(H)
Thanksgiving and Prayer
4 I always thank my God(I) as I remember you in my prayers,(J) 5 because I hear about your love for all his holy people(K) and your faith in the Lord Jesus.(L) 6 I pray that your partnership with us in the faith may be effective in deepening your understanding of every good thing we share for the sake of Christ. 7 Your love has given me great joy and encouragement,(M) because you, brother, have refreshed(N) the hearts of the Lord’s people.
Paul’s Plea for Onesimus
8 Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, 9 yet I prefer to appeal to you(O) on the basis of love. It is as none other than Paul—an old man and now also a prisoner(P) of Christ Jesus— 10 that I appeal to you for my son(Q) Onesimus,[b](R) who became my son while I was in chains.(S) 11 Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.
12 I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. 13 I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains(T) for the gospel. 14 But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do would not seem forced(U) but would be voluntary. 15 Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever— 16 no longer as a slave,(V) but better than a slave, as a dear brother.(W) He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord.
17 So if you consider me a partner,(X) welcome him as you would welcome me. 18 If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me.(Y) 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand.(Z) I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self. 20 I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh(AA) my heart in Christ. 21 Confident(AB) of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask.
22 And one thing more: Prepare a guest room for me, because I hope to be(AC) restored to you in answer to your prayers.(AD)
23 Epaphras,(AE) my fellow prisoner(AF) in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings. 24 And so do Mark,(AG) Aristarchus,(AH) Demas(AI) and Luke, my fellow workers.(AJ)
25 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.(AK)
Footnotes
- Philemon 1:3 The Greek is plural; also in verses 22 and 25; elsewhere in this letter “you” is singular.
- Philemon 1:10 Onesimus means useful.
Expanded Bible (EXB)
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.