Philemon - IntroductionTo: Philemon Main MenuTo: Grace Notes Home Page Authenticity of the LetterThe two earliest extant lists of Paul's letters hold Philemon as part of the Canon of Scripture. These two lists are Marcion's Canon and the Muratorian Fragment. As stated, they both contain Philemon, yet interestingly enough, they both omit the other Pastoral Epistles. Philemon's place in the Canon was disputed in the 4th century AD; however, its authenticity was not doubted, but it was condemned for being frivolous and inconsequential. "Most scholars, however, have placed a high value on the tact, grace, delicacy of feeling, and Christian affection which adorn this letter, and have regarded it worthy of canonicity in the highest sense." [1] Author, Date, and Occasion of the LetterThe date of the letter is 62 AD, and the author is the Apostle Paul. Paul is immured in his first Roman imprisonment. Thus Paul is in Rome, having been imprisoned by Nero at the behest of Felix. With Paul in Rome are Tychicus, Timothy and Onesimus. Tychicus will soon be leaving Rome and traveling to Colossae to fill-in for Epaphras, who is the Pastor of the church in Colossae. Accompanying Tychicus will be Onesimus; they will deliver the Colossians Epistle (Col. 4:9) to the church, the letter to the church in Ephesus, and the personal letter to Philemon. Philemon was a wealthy believer in Colossae. In fact, the church in Colossae met in Philemon's home. Onesimus was Philemon's slave; Onesimus stole money from Philemon, and fled to Rome. In Rome, Onesimus quickly ran out of money and began to starve to death. At some point he recalled the name of Paul, who, being an Apostle, would have been mentioned frequently in the home of Philemon, and sought him out in Rome. The great Apostle led Onesimus to the Lord. And the intimation is, that for approximately a year or two, Onesimus voluntarily functioned as Paul's servant while Paul was imprisoned. During this period Onesimus was daily exposed to the doctrinal expositions of Paul with the result that he soon attained spiritual maturity. And the moment arrived when Paul deemed it necessary to return Onesimus to Philemon. Regarding the date of the letter, it should be noted that some theologians prefer Ephesus as the place of origin, in contrast to Rome, and date the letter circa 55 AD. The argument opposing this period of time and location is eloquently propounded by Dr. Unger, "It is very unlikely that Onesimus would have stayed in proconsular Asia, knowing the stiff penalty which his defection as a slave involved." [2] Onesimus means "useful," and Philemon means "beloved." Outline and Structure of the LetterThe letter to Philemon is beautifully constructed; it is an example of "introverted correspondence." The Greeks called this structure chiasmos or chiaston because of its resemblance to the letter X (chi). And for similar reasons, the Latins called this structure chiasmus or decussata oratorio, which means "to divide cross-wise," i.e., in the form of an X. "This is by far the most stately and dignified presentation of a subject; and is always used in the most solemn and important portions of the Scriptures. Bengel observes with regard to this form of the Figure, that 'its employment is never without some use: viz., in perceiving the ornament and in observing the force of the language; in understanding the true and full sense; in making clear the sound interpretation; in demonstrating the true and neat analysis of the sacred text.'" [3] Dr. Bullinger's presentation of the structure is offered herein: A/ 1-3, Epistolary {a/ 1,2. Names of those with Philemon. b/3. Benediction. B/4-7. Prayers of St. Paul for Philemon. Philemon's hospitality. C/8. Authority. D/9,10-. Supplication. E/-10. Onesimus, a convert of St. Paul's. F/11,12-. Wrong done by Onesimus. Amends made by St. Paul. G/-12. To receive Onesimus the same as receiving Paul. H/13,14. Paul and Philemon. I/15. Onesimus. I/16-. Onesimus. H/-16. Paul and Onesimus. G/17. To receive Onesimus the same as receiving Paul. F/18,19-. Wrong done by Onesimus. Amends made by St. Paul. E/-19. Philemon a convert of St. Paul's. D/20. Supplication. C/21. Authority. B/22. Philemon's hospitality. Prayers of Philemon for Paul. A/23-25. Epistolary. {a/23,24. Names of those with Paul. b/25. Benediction. [4] In this structure the beauty of the ancient letter is seen, and the genius of the Apostle Paul is evident. ColossaeIn the Greek the word is KOLOSSAI, and is defined as "punishment." The city was situated on the Lycus River in Phrygia. From its inception, the city was important according to Herodotus and Xenophon. Xerxes halted at Colossae in 481 BC. [5] And Cyrus the Younger passed through it in 401 BC. [6]It is apparent that the Apostle Paul never visited Colossae in person. The church's place there was due to Epaphras and Timothy, according to Colossians 1:17, and the church in Colossae was located in the home of Philemon, and Epaphras was the Pastor. Documentation that a church was established in Colossae is found in Colossians 4:12,13; Revelation 1:11; 3:14. Colossae was the home of many Jews, and the major industry in Colossae revolved around collossinus, a type of wool which was purple in color. The religious trend in the city was Gnosticism, and it was this problem that prompted the writing of the Colossians Epistle by the Apostle Paul. In the 7th and 8th centuries Colossae was occupied by the Saracens, who were a North Arabian Muslim tribe. In the 12th century, the Turks destroyed the city. The ruins of the city have been excavated. During the Middle Ages the city was known as Chonae and is presently called Chonas. Phrygia was called Asia Minor by the Romans. For purposes of administration the Romans divided Phrygia into two parts: the northeastern portion to the Galatian Province, the western part to the Province of Asia. Under the Romans, grapes were cultivated extensively in the area, and Phrygian marble was quarried. And from this area originated the 'Phrygian Cap,' which was a cloth head-covering adopted by freed-slaves during Roman rule; it was a symbol of emancipation. The Issue Behind The LetterAs has already been stated, one of the major problems facing the church at Colossae was Gnosticism; the other problem was a social problem, that of slavery; and the issue of slavery was not unique to Colossae only. Slavery was a major dilemma of the Roman Empire in the year 62 AD. At the time of writing, it is estimated that the number of slaves in the Roman Empire was 60 million. And Roman law asserted that slaves were private property, and as any type of property, were disposable. Additionally, the punishment for run-away slaves was torture and, with governmental permission, death. Slavery, though, was an accepted feature of all ancient civilizations and was usually essential to the economic health of a nation. For slaves were used domestically, in construction, and in agriculture. And slavery or death was the common destiny of prisoners of war. In the Roman Empire, slavery was vital to both the economic and social systems. For the educational system of the Romans was operated by slaves, as were most business accounts and most of the administrative functions. Indeed, Imperial conquests and expansion of the Empire so strained the native work force that literally millions of slaves had to be imported just to implement the agricultural needs of the Empire. And the normal method of procurement was war. Another source of slaves was bankruptcy or the Roman version of 'debtors prison.' Debtors would sell themselves or members of their families into slavery. And, of course, criminals were a further, yet minimal, source of slaves. The Aim of the LetterThe aim of Paul's letter is quite simple: to return Onesimus to Philemon and to ask Philemon to forgive Onesimus' transgressions, all based on an appeal to Philemon's faith, love and grace in Christ. The ultimate aim is to gain not just the forgiveness of Onesimus, but his freedom. But, as will be seen, the appeal is to grace, and coercion is eschewed as the completion backward principle: slavery cannot be removed by bypassing the free-will of others, because this method is precisely the same as that which it results in: more slaves.The Pauline PrincipleThe Apostle's presentation provides the following principle: that social problems cannot be solved by force or coercion. Why? Because in seeking to solve problems by coercion, more and greater problems are produced. Remember, legislation and laws are designed to protect and sustain freedom, not destroy it. Paul's stance is this, that neither violence nor legislation can solve the problem of evil. The solution to evil, to life and the problems of life is the use of personal freedom and free will. So Paul's thesis is that the solution resides in mankind's soul in the form of free will. For if Paul commands or coerces Philemon into forgiving and freeing Onesimus, then Paul has freed Onesimus but made a slave of Philemon. The problem persists. So Paul recognizes that Philemon must decide on his own, through his own free will, what is right to do.EvilThis, then, conjures up the concept of evil. "Two things were here before we were; and two things will still be here after we leave. The Word of God or Bible doctrine and evil. Both can change you, but you cannot change them." [7] And both sin and slavery are part of evil. Slavery is a social problem; it is evil; it denies free will. The question, then, as posed by the Apostle Paul is, how do you fight evil? And the answer is: with God's Word. Evil is opposed by salvation and growth in grace; and both these ideas require free will. So the solution to evil is the gospel and doctrine. Paul discusses slavery in I Corinthians 7:20-22, "Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you--although if you can gain your freedom, do so. For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord's freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ's slave." In Ephesians 6:5-8 and Colossians 3:22, the Apostle Paul says that believer's should not seek freedom from slavery but do the Lord's will. "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey then not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but live as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free." (Eph. 6:5-8) "Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord." (Col. 3:22) In other words, no matter what your circumstances, slave or free, live your life as unto the Lord, and He will set you free if He so wills it. And Paul expands on the subject in I Timothy 6:1-2, "All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of respect, so that God's name and our teaching may not be slandered. Those who have believing masters are not to show less respect for them because they are brothers. Instead, they are to serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers, and dear to them. These are the things you are to teach and urge on them." So Scripture's stance on slavery is evangelize and grow in grace. This attitude demands complete and total faith and trust in God; otherwise, admittedly, it is a difficult concept to grasp. "The church issued no edict sweeping away this custom of the old Judaism, but the gospel of Christ with its warm, penetrating love-message mitigated the harshness of ancient times and melted cruelty into kindness. The equality, justice and love of Christ's teachings changed the whole attitude of man to man and master to servant. The Christian slaves and masters are both exhorted in Paul's letters to live godly lives and make Christlike their relations one to the other -- obedience to masters and forbearance with slaves. Christ was a reformer, but not an anarchist. His gospel was dynamic but not dynamitic. It was leaven, electric with power, but permeated with love. Christ's life and teaching were against Judaistic slavery, Roman slavery and any form of human slavery." [8] Notes: [1] Unger, Merrill F. Survey of the Bible; page 335. [2] Ibid; page 337. [3] Bullinger, E.W. Figures of Speech Used In The Bible; page 374. [4] Ibid. page 379. [5] Herodotus. vii.30. [6] Xenophon. Anabasis; i.2.6. [7] Thieme, Robert. Colossians; 1972. [8] Rafferty, William Edward. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia; volume 4, page 2817 |
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