Philemon 1:20 — Community Reflections

PHILEMON 1:20 — KING JAMES VERSION 1

“Yea, brother, let me have joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my bowels in the Lord.”

Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ — the term onainēn (benefit/joy) puns on Onesimus's name (onē = benefit/profit), yet invokes spiritual benefit rather than material gain. Refresh (anapaisis) my heart (splanchnoi) reverses the refreshment Philemon has given to saints (verse 7); now Paul's soul depends on Philemon's compassion toward Onesimus. The phrase in the Lord/in Christ grounds the appeal in Christological reality: reconciliation is not sentimental but soteriological.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

Publish a note on this verse

Elena PetrovaNote1mo ago

The character of God - Philemon 1

God is faithful in every circumstance. God is faithful in every circumstance. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. Faith isn't the absence of doubt - it's choosing...