Philemon 1

¹ Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our beloved fellow worker

² and Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house:

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

⁴ I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers,

⁵ because I hear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and all the saints,

⁶ and I pray that the sharing of your faith may promote the knowledge of all the good that is ours in Christ.

⁷ For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.

⁸ Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required,

⁹ yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you--I, Paul, an ambassador and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus--

¹⁰ I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment.

¹¹ (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.)

¹² I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart.

¹³ I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel;

¹⁴ but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own free will.

¹⁵ Perhaps this is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back for ever,

¹⁶ no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.

¹⁷ So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me.

¹⁸ If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account.

¹⁹ I, Paul, write this with my own hand, I will repay it--to say nothing of your owing me even your own self.

²⁰ Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.

²¹ Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say.

²² At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I am hoping through your prayers to be granted to you.

²³ Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you,

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

²⁵ The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.