Philemon 1:23–25, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Philemon 1:23–25
Coworkers Greet the Church and Grace Closes the Letter
Epaphras and Paul's coworkers greet Philemon, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is invoked upon the recipients' shared spirit.
Why this sits here
The greetings reconnect the personal appeal to coworkers and the house church, while the plural closing blessing gathers all the recipients under grace.
The appeal ends inside a named network rather than as an isolated transaction between Paul and Philemon.
How the passage moves
Epaphras greets Philemon as Paul's fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus.
Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke greet him as Paul's fellow laborers.
The Lord Jesus Christ's grace is invoked with the recipients' plural spirit.
Why this reading fits
Named network
Five named associates stand behind the greetings, reinforcing the communal world in which the appeal is heard.
Plural close
The Greek 'your' in verse 25 is plural, matching the wider audience of verses 2–3.
Grace as final frame
The letter began with grace and peace and closes with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.
A needed correction
Reading Philemon 1:23–25 within the whole appeal rules out these conclusions:
The greeting list does not identify the prison city with certainty.
Epaphras's title does not provide enough detail to reconstruct his exact confinement.
Later statements about Demas do not change what Philemon 24 explicitly says at this point.
What remains true
Christian communication remains accountable within real relationships and closes by depending on Christ's grace rather than the status of its leaders.
How this should shape us
How should this shape us?
Honor the network of people who carry, host, witness, and sustain difficult communication, and let grace—not rumor about people's later stories—govern how they are named.
Teach it back
Explain Philemon 1:23–25 in your own words. Include its place in the appeal, one explicit textual observation, one important uncertainty, and one conclusion the passage does not permit.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Read it sentence by sentenceEach line inside the larger movement
Named network
Five named associates stand behind the greetings, reinforcing the communal world in which the appeal is heard.
Plural close
The Greek 'your' in verse 25 is plural, matching the wider audience of verses 2–3.
Grace as final frame
The letter began with grace and peace and closes with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Original-language wording and grammarTechnical detail appears only where it helps
fellow prisoner
The term associates Epaphras with Paul's captivity in Christ, but the exact circumstances behind the designation are not narrated.
How certain? strongfellow laborers / coworkers
The greeting list identifies a mission network; it does not make every named person a coauthor of the letter.
How certain? strongyour, plural
The final blessing addresses the recipients together, not Philemon alone.
How certain? strongWhat the first readers would have understoodRelevant history and culture
What the first hearers would have recognized
Traveling coworkers, hosted assemblies, letter carriers, and greeting networks made early Christian communication socially visible. Shared names with Colossians support a connection between the letters but do not by themselves settle every circumstance.
How certain? probableWhy translations sometimes differMaterial translation choices
KJV wording and modern clarity
The KJV's final 'your' is plural. 'Fellowprisoner' and 'fellowlabourers' name relationships to Paul without explaining every person's exact location or legal status. The KJV includes 'Amen'; early and diverse witnesses support the shorter ending without it.
How certain? strongHow this connects with the rest of ScriptureThe passage's own meaning remains primary
How this connects with the rest of Scripture
Several names also occur in Colossians, strengthening the probable connection to the Lycus Valley. Later information about an individual, especially Demas, should not be read backward as though this greeting already narrates that later development.
How certain? probableTextual variantsManuscript differences only when they affect meaning
A material textual reading
Many witnesses add 'Amen' at the end, a common scribal closing; several important witnesses omit it, and the SBLGNT follows the omission. The variant does not alter the grace benediction.
How certain? probableWhere careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do careful interpreters disagree?
Best judgment: Interpreters compare the names with Colossians to locate the letter and reconstruct its delivery. The correspondence makes Colossae a strong probability, but Philemon's greeting list alone does not identify the city, date, carrier, or later histories of the named people.
How certain? probableTheology that emerges from this passageConclusions drawn after reading the complete section
Theological contribution
Christian communication remains accountable within real relationships and closes by depending on Christ's grace rather than the status of its leaders.
How certain? strongTheological contribution
This section keeps Christian confession accountable to the treatment of real people in unequal social relationships: Epaphras and Paul's coworkers greet Philemon, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is invoked upon the recipients' shared spirit.
How certain? strongCommon ways this passage gets misusedFair explanation, context check, and stronger reading
The greeting list does not identify the prison city with certainty.
The reading becomes attractive when a familiar reconstruction, spiritual slogan, or authority claim replaces the letter's exact wording and social setting.
Epaphras and Paul's coworkers greet Philemon, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is invoked upon the recipients' shared spirit.
Christian communication remains accountable within real relationships and closes by depending on Christ's grace rather than the status of its leaders.
A responsible application must preserve the text's uncertainty, material power relations, and modern safety boundaries.
Epaphras's title does not provide enough detail to reconstruct his exact confinement.
The reading becomes attractive when a familiar reconstruction, spiritual slogan, or authority claim replaces the letter's exact wording and social setting.
Epaphras and Paul's coworkers greet Philemon, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is invoked upon the recipients' shared spirit.
Christian communication remains accountable within real relationships and closes by depending on Christ's grace rather than the status of its leaders.
A responsible application must preserve the text's uncertainty, material power relations, and modern safety boundaries.
Later statements about Demas do not change what Philemon 24 explicitly says at this point.
The reading becomes attractive when a familiar reconstruction, spiritual slogan, or authority claim replaces the letter's exact wording and social setting.
Epaphras and Paul's coworkers greet Philemon, and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is invoked upon the recipients' shared spirit.
Christian communication remains accountable within real relationships and closes by depending on Christ's grace rather than the status of its leaders.
A responsible application must preserve the text's uncertainty, material power relations, and modern safety boundaries.
Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: The exact KJV wording and immediate English context for Philemon 1:23–25.
eBible/CrossWire eng-kjv2006 USFM, source files dated 2026-08-19, Philemon 1:23–25; archive and normalized-corpus SHA-256 values are recorded in the library policy.
Supports: The critically edited Greek wording, pronoun number, connective structure, and relevant lexical forms.
Official SBLGNT repository, data/sblgnt/text/Phlm.txt, Phlm 1:23–25.
Supports: Material translation choices, difficult syntax, and textual variants checked at the cited verses.
NET Bible, Philemon 1, translator, study, and textual notes attached to verses 23–25.
Supports: Modern historical and verse-level checks on authorship, setting, slavery, rhetoric, reconstruction limits, and interpretive alternatives.
Barbara Geller, Philemon introduction and annotations in The Jewish Annotated New Testament, 2nd ed., print p. 405.
Supports: Greek syntax, historical parallels, older interpretive options, and commentary checked selectively against primary evidence and newer scholarship.
J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 8th ed., commentary pp. 345–346.
Supports: A morphology and lexical-range cross-check for the reader-facing original-language notes.
STEP Bible Data repository, TAGNT and Greek lexical records, Philemon 1:23–25.
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: The exact KJV wording and immediate English context for Philemon 1:23–25.
Exact location: eBible/CrossWire eng-kjv2006 USFM, source files dated 2026-08-19, Philemon 1:23–25; archive and normalized-corpus SHA-256 values are recorded in the library policy.
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: The critically edited Greek wording, pronoun number, connective structure, and relevant lexical forms.
Exact location: Official SBLGNT repository, data/sblgnt/text/Phlm.txt, Phlm 1:23–25.
Open the Philemon Greek text file ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Philemon with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Material translation choices, difficult syntax, and textual variants checked at the cited verses.
Exact location: NET Bible, Philemon 1, translator, study, and textual notes attached to verses 23–25.
Open NET Philemon 1 ↗modern annotated new testament
Philemon introduction and annotations in The Jewish Annotated New Testament, second edition
Barbara Geller; edited by Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler
Oxford University Press, 2017
Supports: Modern historical and verse-level checks on authorship, setting, slavery, rhetoric, reconstruction limits, and interpretive alternatives.
Exact location: Barbara Geller, Philemon introduction and annotations in The Jewish Annotated New Testament, 2nd ed., print p. 405.
Open source ↗public domain critical commentary
Saint Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, eighth edition
J. B. Lightfoot
Macmillan, 1886
Supports: Greek syntax, historical parallels, older interpretive options, and commentary checked selectively against primary evidence and newer scholarship.
Exact location: J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, 8th ed., commentary pp. 345–346.
Open source ↗Lexical and grammatical evidence
STEP Bible Data
Tyndale House Cambridge
Tyndale House Cambridge, repository snapshot verified 2026
Supports: A morphology and lexical-range cross-check for the reader-facing original-language notes.
Exact location: STEP Bible Data repository, TAGNT and Greek lexical records, Philemon 1:23–25.
Open source ↗