Philemon 1:1-13 ▼

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

2 and to Apphia our sister, and to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to 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 making mention of you in my prayers,

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

6 and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the full knowledge of every good thing which is in you for the sake of Christ.

7 For I have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

8 Therefore, though I have much boldness in Christ to command you to do what is proper,

9 yet for love’s sake I rather plead with you—since I am such a person as Paul, the aged, and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus—

10 I plead with you for my child Onesimus, of whom I became a father in my chains,

11 who formerly was useless to you, but now is useful both to you and to me.

12 I have sent him back to you in person, that is, my very heart,

13 whom I intended to keep with me, so that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel,