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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Philemon 1:8 - 1:14
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Paul's Intercession for Onesimus.
v. 8. Wherefore, though I might be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is convenient,
v. 9. yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ.
v. 10. I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds;
v. 11. which in time past was to thee unprofitable, but now profitable to thee and to me;
v. 12. whom I have sent again. Thou, therefore, receive him, that is, mine own bowels;
v. 13. whom I would have retained with me, that in thy stead he might have ministered unto me in the bonds of the Gospel;
v. 14. but without thy mind would I do nothing, that thy benefit should not be as it were of necessity, but willingly.
Having prepared the way for his request with all gentle delicacy, the apostle now voices his intercession; and pet not abruptly, but with its own little introduction: Therefore, though I might have great boldness in Christ to command thee that which should be done, yet for love's sake I rather beseech, being in such a condition, Paul, the old man, but now also the prisoner of Christ Jesus. Since Paul was sure in advance of the heart and mind of the man to whom he was addressing this letter, he had no hesitation about voicing his request. He might even have been quite bold and frank about the matter, he might have made use of the joyous confidence which he had in the Lord, based upon his apostolic authority and upon the fact of his inward personal communion with Him through faith; he might simply have called Philemon's attention to a duty which he should perform in agreement with God's will, of a moral obligation which rested upon him by virtue of his Christian profession. Instead of that, however, and for the sake of the love which he bore him, he preferred this method of beseeching Philemon, of making an appeal to him. This made the granting of his request on Philemon's part a matter of piety. The persuasive, the appealing character of the entire letter is apparent especially in Paul's reference to himself as the aged Paul and now also the prisoner of Christ Jesus. The authoritative teacher steps back to make way for the warmhearted, affectionate friend interceding with an absent friend for a beloved convert. Paul was at this time an elderly man and bore the designation which he applied to himself properly. And he was feeling the weight of his age especially in his imprisonment, in which he was bearing the reproach of his Master, since it was for His sake that he had been arrested and brought before the emperor's court. Thus Paul brought his own person as concretely and as vividly as possible before the eyes of Philemon, in order to screen the figure of Onesimus from the anger of his master.
The apostle now states his request: I beseech thee with regard to my son, whom I have begotten in my bonds, Onesimus, who formerly was useless to thee, now, however, is very useful both to thee and to me, whom I have returned to thee. The very words are here chosen with such careful regard for the situation that they cry out their appeal. Thus the repetition of the word "beseech" stands out strongly in opposition to Paul's right to command. Then, also, he does not refer to Onesimus as the runaway slave, but as his son, whom he has begotten in his bonds, his spiritual child, whom the Lord led to him in Rome, and whose heart had been renewed by the power of the Gospel as proclaimed by Paul. It certainly was a strange dispensation of the Lord according to which the slave from Colossae met the imprisoned apostle at Rome. In a fine play upon the meaning of the word Onesimus, which is "profitable. " St. Paul tells his friend that his slave has indeed, since leaving his service in such an unceremonious manner, been unprofitable, useless, to him; now, however, he was useful, very valuable, not only to Philemon, but also to Paul, who was sending him back to his master. Onesimus had been of great service to the apostle, trying to further his convenience and happiness in many ways. But having, under Paul's faithful instruction, realized his wrong, he was ready, more than ever, to serve his old master for conscience' sake.
Paul, sending, or having sent, Onesimus with this letter, pleads for him as he might for himself: Thou, however, receive him, that is, mine own heart. Luther remarks: "Here we see how Paul takes to himself poor Onesimus, and makes his case his own, as if he himself were Onesimus. " He refers to the slave with an expression of the most tender love, as his own flesh, his own heart, with whom he is connected by the bonds of the most tender affection. And in order to remove all unwillingness, the last vestige of resentment, from the heart of Philemon, Paul adds: Whom I would have kept back in my own company, that in thy stead he might serve me in the bonds of the Gospel, but without thy knowledge I wanted to do nothing, lest that which is good for thee come from restraint rather than from thy own free mill. It had really been the purpose of Paul to have Onesimus stay in Rome for a while, to take the place of his master in serving the apostle; for Philemon was deeply indebted to Paul for the spiritual blessings which he now enjoyed. It stood to reason, also, that, so long as the apostle was hindered in moving about freely, a service such as the slave had given him was in the interest of the Gospel. It was not only the fact that he could perform many little forms of ministry for Paul, whose place of lodging required some care and attention, but also that he could do many errands for him in keeping up the communication with the members of the congregation at Rome. Thus Paul had regarded Onesimus as Philemon's substitute. This inclination of Paul's mind was changed, however, when he considered the prior and weightier claims which the master had upon his slave; he wanted to do nothing without Philemon's knowledge and consent. Any service which the latter might undertake in his behalf, whether personally or through his slave, was to be a voluntary service, flowing from his own free will and desire, and not in any way forced upon him by a constraint suggested by Paul.