Ph1lemon was perhaps a native, and certainly a resident, of the city of Colosse, one of the Colossian Christians, therefore, to whom the Epistle to the Colossians was written. For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave—a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. This however can only be speculative. An Introduction to the Book of Philemon Paul wrote Philemon to implore his friend, and fellow believer, Philemon to forgive his runaway slave, Onesimus. Little is known of this Philemon. New International Version (NIV), Encyclopedia of The Bible – Epistle to Philemon, [http://biblegateway/wiki/Colossians, The Epistle to COLOSSIANS], [http://biblegateway/wiki/Ephesians, Letter of Paul to the EPHESIANS]. The Epistle of Paul to Philemon (otherwise known as Philemon) is a book included in the Christian New Testament. 1 * Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, to Philemon, our beloved and our co-worker, a 2 to Apphia our sister, * to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church at your house. The name Onesimus is not mentioned The most common interpretation of the book was that Paul wrote a letter to Philemon on behalf of Onesimus, who was a runaway slave that had wronged his owner. It was written for the purpose of interceding for Onesimus (q.v. rightly objects that Philemon’s name standing at the head of the persons addressed (v. 1) seems “fatal to the theory that Archippus is primarily the one addressed”; and E. F. Harrison (Introduction to the New Testament, 309) has raised a formidable set of objections to Knox’s entire reconstruction, whereas F. F. Bruce (op. Page 1 of 4 - About 39 Essays Was Christianity Condoned Or Banned Slavery? The time was not ripe for this solution of such difficult questions.” (See also Preiss’s sensitive comments on this matter, loc. The letter is addressed to "Philemon our dearly beloved and fellow-laborer, and to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus, our fellow-soldier, and to the church in thy house," 1, 2. Preiss argues that Paul’s language is insistent that the slave should be welcomed into Philemon’s family, but this conclusion is somewhat strained. In this short letter, St. Paul appeals to Philemon to take back his runaway slave, not just as a slave but as a brother in Christ. To win Philemon's willing acceptance of Onesimus, Paul writes very tactfully The repeated use by Ignatius, c._ a.d. 109 (Ephesians 2, Magn. There is every reason to believe that he did respond; otherwise the letter would not have been preserved. to Philippians: Author, Date and Place of Writing; see also chart, p. 2261). The Epistle to the Philippians, commonly referred to as Philippians, is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible.The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and Timothy is named with him as co-author or co-sender. 20-21). As appears from this epistle, Philemon was his dear and intimate friend (verses 1, 13, 17, 22), and had been converted most probably by him (verse 19) during his long residence at Ephesus (Acts, xix, 26; cf. Purpose of Writing: The letter to Philemon is the shortest of all Paul’s writings and deals with the practice of slavery. See [http://biblegateway/wiki/Colossians, The Epistle to COLOSSIANS]; [http://biblegateway/wiki/Ephesians, Letter of Paul to the EPHESIANS]. California - Do Not Sell My Personal Information, Final Request, Greetings and Benediction (. origin of Philemon (in BJRL, XVIII [1934]), concedes that this is a “real point in favour of the Ephesian hypothesis” (op. ; 1 Pet 2:18-21). This summary of the book of Philemon provides information about the title, author(s), date of writing, chronology, theme, that he be accepted as a Christian brother (see v. 16). It usually is assumed that he had stolen money and then absconded (v. 18). This is confirmed by v. 9 where the tr. PHILEMON, EPISTLE TO fī le’ mən (πρὸ̀ς Φιλήμονα). After he has stated his confidence that Philemon will certainly do what is right (v 21), he announces that he is planning to visit him (v 22). Article Images Copyright © 2021 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. and sent it to Colosse with the same travelers, Onesimus and Tychicus. wrote both letters from prison in Rome, though possibly from Ephesus (see Introduction Departed for a while: It was true that Philemon departed, but Paul would send hi… He had renewed Philemon’s heart when he heard the gospel message and believed. THE EPISTLE TO PHILEMON. The answer to this criticism was given by W. Bousset (in Die Schriften des Neuen Testaments, II [1929], 101): “Christianity would have sunk beyond hope of recovery along with such revolutionary attempts; it might have brought on a new slave rising and been crushed along with it. Please enter your email address associated with your Salem All-Pass account, then click Continue. it gives a fascinating and intimate glimpse both into the personality of the Apostle Pauland the character of Christianity during the final years of Paul's ministry. 80), but postulates a change of plan. Mark is traditionally associated with Rome, not with Ephesus” (BJRL, XLVIII [1965], 87f.). Now he was until the rapport has been built (v. 10), and the appeal itself is stated only provenance of this epistle by drawing attention to the inclusion of Luke and Mark in Paul’s list (v. 24). Philemon is the shortest letter of the Pauline corpus, consisting of 335 words in the original. of “Paul, an ambassador” (Gr. Colosse was a city in the southwest of Asia Minor, upon the banks of the river Lycus. 11-19) and to move the emotions (vv. For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by … Moreover, Paul’s situation as a prisoner may well have drawn Onesimus into his company, as some scholars believe Onesimus had been caught and placed in the same cell with the Christian missionary, and was thus won for Christ. The Tübingen school of F. C. Baur did oppose this letter, followed by the Dutch radical W. C. van Manen (in Encyclopedia Biblica, III [1902]), but these are aberrations. The Epistles to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) [Bruce, F. F.] on Amazon.com. Media in category "Epistle to Philemon" The following 7 files are in this category, out of 7 total. Proud member 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Or it may be that the slave had come on an errand to Paul and had overstayed his time. The key personalities of Philemon are Paul, Philemon, and Onesimus. was a slave owner (cf. Philemon reveals a genuinely caring Paul with a strong pastoral concern. Philemon apparently was a convert of the apostle Paul, though Paul had never made a visit to Colosse. According to Paul, Philemon was a … cit. The Letter to Philemon is one of the 5 Captivity Epistles, along with Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, and Second Timothy in the New Testament of the Bible. One of his slaves, Onesimus, had apparently stolen from him (cf. Philemon, Letter to One of four so-called Prison Letters attributed to the Apostle Paul (the others are Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians). All rights reserved. Occasion and purpose. Copyright 2002 © Zondervan. Unlike other letters of Paul in which he was writing to respond to issues, Philemon is a letter Paul initiated himself. then run away, which under Roman law was punishable by death. Letter of Paul to Philemon, also called Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to Philemon, abbreviation Philemon, brief New Testament letter written by St. Paul the Apostle to a wealthy Christian of Colossae, in the ancient Roman province of Asia (now in western Turkey), on behalf of Onesimus, who was enslaved to Philemon and may have run away from him. The characteristic note is therefore: “for love’s sake” (v. 9)...“Refresh my heart in Christ” (by acceding to this request, v. 20) and “receive” this truant slave “as you would receive me” (v. 17). His chief support is the assumption that Onesimus was more likely to flee to the anonymity of the imperial city where he was brought into touch with the apostle; and F. F. Bruce adds a further pointer in the direction of a Rom. The occasion of this letter may be inferred from its contents, although some details are obscure. But see the article on [http://biblegateway/wiki/Colossians, The Epistle to COLOSSIANS] for alternate views. From Ephesus, where he was imprisoned (c. 53–54), Paul wrote his shortest and most personal letter to a Phrygian Christian (probably from Colossae or nearby Laodicea) whose slave Onesimus had run away, after possibly having stolen money from his master. Col 4:1; for slavery in the NT see note on Eph 6:5). English - Leaf from Rochester Bible - Walters W18220V - Open Reverse.jpg. “Luke was with Paul at Rome; we have no evidence that Luke was with him at Ephesus. English - Rochester Bible - Walters W18 - Reverse Detail.jpg. 4-21) is organized in a way prescribed by ancient Greek The letter suggests that Paul was in prison at the time of the writing. wrote this short letter (see vv. 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