Philemon 1

1

¹Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and the brother Timothy to Philemon, our dear friend and fellow worker,

²and to Apphia our sister, and to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church that meets in your home.

³May grace be to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴I always thank my God. I mention you in my prayers.

⁵I have heard of the love and the faith that you have in the Lord Jesus and for all the believers.

⁶I pray that the fellowship of your faith may be effective for the knowledge of everything good that is among us in Christ.

⁷For I have had much joy and comfort because of your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother.

⁸Therefore, although I have all the boldness in Christ to command you to do what you should do,

⁹yet because of love, I appeal to you instead—I, Paul, an old man, and now a prisoner for Christ Jesus.

¹⁰I am asking you concerning my child Onesimus, whom I have fathered in my chains.

¹¹For he once was useless to you, but now he is useful both to you and to me.

¹²I have sent him back to you, he who is my very heart.

¹³I wish I could have kept him with me, so he could serve me for you, while I am in chains for the sake of the gospel.

¹⁴But I did not want to do anything without your consent. I did not want your good deed to be from necessity but from good will.

¹⁵Perhaps for this he was separated from you for a time, so that you might have him back forever.

¹⁶No longer would he be a slave, but better than a slave, a beloved brother. He is beloved especially to me, and much more so to you, in both the flesh and in the Lord.

¹⁷So if you have me as a partner, receive him as me.

¹⁸If he has wronged you or owes you anything, charge that to me.

¹⁹I, Paul, write this with my own hand. I myself will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your own self!

²⁰Yes, brother, do me a favor in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ.

²¹Confident about your obedience, I am writing to you. I know that you will do even more than I ask.

²²At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I hope that through your prayers I will be given back to you.

²³Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you.

²⁴So do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

²⁵May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.