Philemon 1:12-16 ▼

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,

14 but without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your goodness would not be, in effect, by compulsion but voluntarily.

15 For perhaps he was for this reason separated from you for a while, that you would have him back forever,

16 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.