You may recognize the name Philemon from the table of contents in your Bible. Perhaps you have read the very short New Testament book by the apostle Paul. If you have read it, you probably know that it tackles a very hot-water issue that has plagued the church for ages: slavery. Philemon has a slave named Onesimus. When Onesimus runs away and finds Christ after meeting Paul, the apostle implores Philemon to see Onesimus as a brother in Christ instead of a runaway slave.
Today’s article will look at the person of Philemon in the Bible, why his book matters, and what we can learn from his life.
What Happened to Philemon in the Bible?
We can’t address the whole Onesimus issue before we understand what the Bible tells us about Philemon.
Philemon is a believer in Colossae. If that name sounds familiar, you may have read Paul’s letter to the church where he came from, the Book of Colossians. Philemon would’ve been wealthy, and some church historians had mentioned that he may have been a bishop in Colossae. In other words, he perhaps was in a church leadership role.
Something else we know about Philemon is that he’s a slave owner.
Now, the practice of slavery was a weird, muddied topic in the New Testament world. Certain slaves operated in an indentured servitude. They had a debt, would work off it, and then would be freed—unless they chose to continue serving the family after that.
We also had other types of slavery that are more familiar to us. Many slaves were prisoners of war or trafficked from other lands. We don’t know which camp Onesimus fell into, but considering he’d run away, he probably had good reason to. The Bible seems to hint that Onesimus did something wrong to Philemon, and in a panic, he left.
Something else we should also note was that Greco-Roman laws treated people running away from slavery as a capital offense. If anyone found them, they were caught and killed. People who harbored runaway slaves presumably faced other harsh penalties. Knowing these strict legal issues, we can see why Paul wrote his letter to Philemon so gently.
It seems that Philemon takes Paul’s words seriously and accepts Onesimus back as a brother instead of a slave. According to church tradition, they both go on to be bishops: Philemon over Colossae and Onesimus over Ephesus.
They seem to stick together until—according to church tradition—the persecution of the emperor Nero in 68 AD. According to Orthodox tradition, both men were tortured before being stoned or stoned and beheaded. The Romans had a habit of being overkill with how they martyred the early Christians.
In certain church traditions, Philemon is the patron saint of dancers. Onesimus is well-regarded but not a patron saint of anything in particular.
What Is the Main Point of Philemon?
Now, referring to the Book of Philemon. As we said, it’s one of the shortest books in the Bible. One chapter, in fact.
The book features Paul greeting Philemon, explaining why Philemon should see Onesimus as a brother, and sending his regards in his conclusion.
This may make us wonder why the Book of Philemon is in the Bible if it was a personal matter between the three men: Paul, Onesimus, and Philemon. Here are a few reasons as to why it probably was included.
Novel view of slaves: In the ancient world, enslaved people were property. And if they ran away, they were dead-on-sight property. Paul has a radical charge to Philemon. There is neither an enslaved person nor a free in Christ, and we should view one another as equals. Some people criticize Paul for not being severe enough to Philemon for enslaving a person in the first place. But in the ancient world, it would’ve been commonplace. And to suggest someone give up their slaves would’ve been seen as extremely offensive. Hence Paul’s gentle tone in the letter.
Equality in the sight of God: The church was novel in the Ancient World. Its treatment of women, different races, slaves, and disabled people was far beyond what their ancient counterparts were doing. The Book of Philemon emphasizes that we are all the same under God. Status and wealth cannot place us a step ahead of others. Therefore, if we understand the grace God has given us and the justice, he has equally treated us—we should do the same unto those around us.
Forgiveness: Perhaps the biggest tie to why Philemon is in the Bible is its heavy emphasis on forgiveness. Onesimus had wronged Philemon in some way. Paul encourages Philemon to let whatever the “wrong” is going and to embrace Onesimus as his brother in Christ. Paul often encourages Christians in the letters in the New Testament to settle differences, avoid taking things to court, and, if possible, do so as soon as one can.
We often skip over the Bible's one-chapter books, wondering how those made it into the canon. But the early church deemed it important enough for our eyes. If all Scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, Philemon’s story and book should be included. Even if we don’t go based on what church tradition said happened between the two, we can see that Paul writes with compelling words—perhaps challenging our assumptions regarding the hierarchies we establish amongst ourselves.
What Is the Life Lesson of Philemon?
When someone has a whole book written about them in the Bible, we can imagine that we can glean a great deal from the life and book of Philemon. Today, we will break down three possible life applications from what we hear in Paul’s words. No matter how small the book is, we can learn some lessons from it.
1. We are all equal. In Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek. Male nor female. Slave nor free. And although we may know these words by heart, we can have a harder time putting them into practice. Cultural sways will often lead us to decide, “Men and women are equal, but men are more equal than women.” Or “All denominations are equal, but some are more equal than others,” etc. As we see in Philemon and the Book of Acts, the early church wrestled with it. As long as we are human, we are prone to sin and prone to exclude. But the Book of Philemon encourages us to look past our prejudices and embrace one another in the church as God’s children.
2. We are all not deserving of forgiveness. But God gives it to us anyway. And if we take a tip from the parable of the unforgiving servant if we don’t forgive others…God will withhold forgiveness from us. Onesimus had somehow wronged Philemon. But Paul encourages him to look past the offense and to forgive. In the same way, we need to see the minor offenses that people have committed in our lives and seek reconciliation where possible.
3. We all have more to our stories. I certainly hope church tradition holds up regarding Philemon and Onesimus. Although I am deeply saddened if they had to die in the way that tradition tells us, it does warm my heart that both ended up being bishops. They were equal in every regard, stirring up the ancient world’s expectations for how they should’ve assimilated into their social class. In the same way, our stories are not done yet. God has a way of tearing us down to build us up. Philemon may have felt momentarily put out when he received the letter from Paul. But he took his words to heart, and we see an incredible life change in him. May we experience the same when God corrects us.
Photo Credit:©GettyImages/SvetaZi
Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
This article is part of our People of Christianity catalog that features the stories, meaning, and significance of well-known people from the Bible and history. Here are some of the most popular articles for knowing important figures in Christianity:
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