Revised by Mary Hinkle Shore (2/25)
From the contents of the letter, it is clear that PaulThe Apostle Paul, originally known as Saul of Tarsus, was the author of several New Testament letters and the founder of many Christian communities. More is in prison when he writes to Philemon. Paul was imprisoned for shorter or longer times on numerous occasions (2 Corinthians 11:23-27). Rome, Ephesus, or Caesarea, places where Paul was imprisoned for longer periods of time, would seem the most likely possibilities. Arguments in favor of any of them are largely based on imagination about which of these locales would most likely fit the events surrounding Paul’s reception of an enslaved person while in prison. Most readers favor Rome, both because Paul speaks of being an “old man” (verse 9) and because Acts tells us that Paul was under house arrest for an extended period of time in Rome. The Roman imprisonment thus would give Paul time and opportunity to befriend OnesimusSlave of Philemon for whom Paul appealed in his Letter to Philemon. More and perhaps participate in his conversion to Christianity. The fact that the letter to the Colossians speaks of an Onesimus sent to Colossae along with Tychicus (Colossians 4:7-9) and also mentions an Archippus (Colossians 4:17), the name of one of the recipients of the letter to Philemon (verse 2), has led many to assume that Philemon and his house churchIn the early days of Christianity, the social and political climate was not always favorable to followers of Jesus and they could not meet publicly. Rather some would gather in homes of fellow Christians to break bread, give thanks to God, and sing psalms and… More must have been located in close proximity to Colossae in Asia Minor. That argument depends on the assumption of Pauline authorship of Colossians, a matter that is questioned by some scholars.
The dating of the letter to Philemon depends on assumptions about the location of Paul’s imprisonment at the time of its writing. If Ephesus is assumed, a date around 55-56 CE is likely. However, if Rome is assumed, then a dating toward the end of Paul’s life, around 60-61 CE, is more likely. We simply do not know for sure where Philemon lived or where Paul was imprisoned when he wrote this letter.
Who was Onesimus?
The letter makes these things clear about Onesimus:
- He lived as an enslaved person in the householdA household is a living unit comprised of all the persons who live in one house. A household would embrace all the members of a family, including servants and slaves. In the book of Acts, stories are told of various persons and their households, like… More of Philemon.
- He was with Paul, either as a fellow prisoner or as an aide, during one of Paul’s imprisonments.
- He is returning to Philemon’s household with the letter from Paul that we are now reading.
The letter hints that some kind of problem existed between Philemon and Onesimus before Onesimus left Philemon’s household. Paul says, “Formerly he was useless to you… (verse 11), a play on words with the man’s name. (“Onesimus” means “useful.”) Paul also says, “If he has wronged you in any way, or owes you anything, charge that to my account” (verse 18). From these comments, many scholars have concluded that Onesimus was a runaway from Philemon’s household who had been arrested as a fugitive slave, after which he met Paul in prison, where Paul converted him to Christianity. However, the letter nowhere speaks of Onesimus in these terms.
In more recent years, alternative theories of what brought Onesimus to Paul have gained support. In the ancient world, it was common for people of lower status to enlist the help of higher status people to intercede for them with an employer or someone else in a station above them. Onesimus may have known Paul from Paul’s visits to Philemon’s household and/or previous letters read aloud to the household. When a problem arose (the problem alluded to in verse 11 and verse 18) , Onesimus may have traveled to Paul to seek help “managing up.”
The second non-runaway theory posits that Philemon sent Onesimus to Paul to assist him in prison. Prisoners would need necessities of life from friends on the outside. Those under house arrest, as LukeThe "beloved physician" and companion of Paul. More reports Paul to be at the end of Acts (Acts 28:30), had a measure of freedom but would also need assistance. Philemon has a reputation for refreshing the hearts of the saints (verse 7), which points to generosity and hospitality. Perhaps Philemon sent Onesimus to offer Paul what he needed while imprisoned. The relationship indeed refreshed Paul and moved Onesimus to become a Christian, or to become a more devout one. Over time, Onesimus confided problems between himself and Philemon. At this, Paul recognized that the two brothers in Christ needed to reconcile, and he sent Onesimus home to initiate such a reconciliation. He writes a letter to voice his support for Onesimus and to urge Philemon toward reconciliation with him.
Whether as a result of Paul’s letter, or some other cause, Onesimus is likely to have become a freedman later in his life. Most enslaved persons in Greco-Roman cities during this period would have been manumitted (or freed from enslavement) by the age of 35.
When Ignatius of Antioch writes his “Letter to the Ephesians,” in the second century CE, he greets an “Onesimus,” naming him bishop in Ephesus. If that Onesimus is this letter’s Onesimus, he would have been over 70 years old at the time he was bishop.
The person of Paul
This letter reveals a Paul who is a consummate pastoral caregiver. His compassion for both Philemon and Onesimus comes through in frequent personal expressions of his thankfulness for the love, consolation, and joy that he has experienced in their partnership in faith in Christ JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God’s saving act for humanity. More. At the same time we see a kind of tough love that holds Philemon accountable both to the standard of his own previous actions on behalf of the Christian community and to standards of the potential for good actions that are within people of faith who act as brothers and sisters for the sake of Christ (see especially verses 4-7, 16, 21)
The Greco-Roman household
During the time the New Testament was written, households in the Greco-Roman world were hierarchical structures led by a pater familias, or “father of the family.” The household included family members and others who worked for the household or for its business. Extended family, free people, freed people, and enslaved people were all part of the household and all existed along levels of hierarchy. Money, status, and resources were handed down the hierarchy. Labor was handed up the hierarchy, as well as honor (or shame) for those above one’s station.
The letter to Philemon is addressed to a pater familias, two other named members of his household, and “to the church in your house” (verse 2). The ApostleDerived from a Greek word meaning “one who is sent,” an apostle is a person who embraces and advocates another person’s idea or beliefs. At the beginning of his ministry Jesus called twelve apostles to follow and serve him. Paul became an apostle of Jesus… More Paul thus addresses himself to people who live at each level of hierarchy. This has the effect of making Paul’s request public and making Philemon’s response to it public as well.
Paul’s use of language introduces “play,” or flexibility, into the household hierarchy at points. For instance, in verse 9, Paul calls himself an “old man,” and in verse 10 he names himself as Onesimus’ father. Both of these descriptors have the effect of placing Paul alongside Philemon at the top of the household structure. Both men, then, are worthy of the respect afforded an elder and a father.
Persuasion and practical imagination
The letter to Philemon exhibits one of the most effective demonstrations in all of Paul’s letters of his ability to use persuasive rhetoric to encourage responsible action in service of Christ. The second word in the Greek text of the letter–“prisoner”–already plays on Philemon’s sympathy for Paul’s imprisonment for the sake of Christ, a matter that is brought up at least five times in this brief letter (see verses 1, 9, 13, 22, 23). In the letter’s every word, the sequence of thought is calculated to persuade Philemon to do the right thing. For example, when giving thanks for Philemon’s love and faith, Paul expresses that thanksgiving to God right up front (verse 4). But when it comes to broaching the topic at hand, he delays mention of the name of Onesimus until the last possible moment, and even then, in the middle of one long Greek sentence (verses 8-14) that allows Philemon no chance for a word of rebuttal. And when that chance comes, Paul immediately anticipates each of Philemon’s objections with commonplaces of rational argument (verses 15-20).
A slave and slavery
In its appeal to a Christian enslaver for the appropriate treatment of an enslaved person who has now also become a Christian, this letter raises the issue of attitudes and responses to slavery. Paul seeks to persuade Philemon to do willingly a “good deed” that encompasses at least the welcoming of his slave “no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother…in the Lord” (verse 16). Some readers interpret verses 12-14 as Paul asking not that Onesimus be manumitted but rather that Philemon send Onesimus back to assist the imprisoned Paul on Philemon’s behalf. Paul never spells out just what that “good deed” he is urging on Philemon might be.
Neither does Paul go beyond the particular instance of this Onesimus to address the broader question of slavery. We are left to speculate both about the particular circumstances that brought Onesimus to Paul in prison and about what action Philemon may have taken in response; we can then reflect on a proper Christian response to the institution of slavery in the social setting of the Roman EmpireThe region we today call Palestine and Israel was under Roman rule during the time of Jesus and the early church. The Roman Empire was in its ascendancy during the first century, making it the most powerful political and military force on earth. More during the first century or a proper Christian response in our own contemporary context. As with all biblical material, one’s own social setting and attitudes will play a great part in how one reads this letter, a point that is underscored by the fact that this letter’s ambiguity and the authority of Paul have been used by Christians through the centuries both to support and to argue against slavery.
