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Philemon 2-4
New Catholic Bible
Philemon 2-4
New Catholic Bible
2 to Apphia our sister, to Archippus[a] our fellow soldier, and to the Church that meets in your house: 3 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving and Prayer.[b] 4 I always give thanks to my God when I remember you in my prayers,
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Philemon 1:2 Archippus: the apostolic worker mentioned in Col 4:17. Fellow soldier: the only other use of this phrase in the New Testament is in Phil 2:25 concerning Epaphroditus. It exemplifies Paul’s use of military terms to symbolize the service of a Christian (see Rom 6:13; 13:12; 2 Cor 10:3f; Eph 6:10).
- Philemon 1:4 Recalling his friend’s love and faith, Paul prays that Philemon’s active participation in the Christian faith will be increased as a result of the latter’s perception of God’s great goodness to both of them. He is implying what he makes specific elsewhere—that good works are the result of a mature knowledge of the faith (see Col 1:9f). In this case, Philemon’s Christian maturity will lead to the beneficial treatment of Onesimus at his hands.
