¹³ I wanted to keep him with me so that he might minister to me in your place during my imprisonment for the gospel,^(A)

⁷ It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart,^[a] for all of you are my partners in God’s grace,^[b] both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.^(A)

Paul’s Ministry to the Gentiles

3 This is the reason that I, Paul, am a prisoner for^[a] Christ Jesus^[b] for the sake of you gentiles,

¹⁷ I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence,^(A)

Salutation

¹ Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,

To our beloved coworker Philemon,^(A)

³⁰ because he came close to death for the work of Christ,^[a] risking his life to make up for those services that you could not give me.

Unity in the Body of Christ

4 I, therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,^(A)