Passage Research
Philemon 1 — Sermon Preparation
Paul appeals to Philemon to receive back his runaway slave Onesimus—now a believer—as a beloved brother in Christ rather than merely a slave. Below is a research summary for Philemon 1, drawn from openly licensed scholarly databases — original-language morphology, classic sermons from the church fathers through the Puritans, and ancient geography data.
- 25
- verses
- 334 / 141
- Greek words / lemmas
- 11
- classic sermon excerpts
- 4
- preachers & commentators
Philemon 1 in the Greek
Distinctive vocabulary of this chapter, based on original-language morphology.
| Greek | Transliteration | Strong's | Count | KJV renderings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| σπλάγχνον | splánchnon | G4698 | 3 | bowels, inward affection, tender mercy |
| ἀδελφός | adelphós | G80 | 4 | brother |
| ἀγάπη | agápē | G26 | 3 | charity, dear, love |
| Παῦλος | Paûlos | G3972 | 3 | Paul, Paulus |
| ἀναπαύω | anapaúō | G373 | 2 | take ease, refresh, rest |
| συνεργός | synergós | G4904 | 2 | companion in labour, helper, labourer together with, workfellow |
| δέσμιος | désmios | G1198 | 2 | in bonds, prisoner |
How preachers through history handled this text
11 public-domain excerpts on Philemon 1, from the church fathers to the Puritans.
“When we speak of the nature of any sin or offence against God, the evil of it is not to be lessened; but in a penitent sinner, as God covers it, so must we. Such changed characters often become a blessing to all among whom they reside. Christianity does not do away our duties to others, but directs to the right doing of them. True penitents will be open in owning their faults, as doubtless Onesimus had been to Paul, upon his being awakened and brought to repentance; especially in cases of injury done to others. …”
— Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible (Concise), on Philemon 1:15–22 (Public Domain)
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