God’s Word Translation
Philemon 1:23
23Epaphras, who is a prisoner because of Christ Jesus like I am,
Philemon 1:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)There salute thee Epaphras, my fellowprisoner in Christ Jesus;
- New International Version (NIV)Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you,
Context of Philemon 1:23
21I am confident as I write to you that you will do this. And I know that you will do even more than I ask. 22One more thing—have a guest room ready for me. I hope that, because of your prayers, God will give me back to you. Epaphras, who is a prisoner because of Christ Jesus like I am, 24and my coworkers Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke send you greetings. 25The good will of our Lord Jesus Christ be yours.
Read all of Philemon 1Philemon 1:23 word by word
Ἀσπάζεταί σε Ἐπαφρᾶς ὁ συναιχμάλωτός μου ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ,Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- There saluteἀσπάζομαιaspazomai · to pay respects toG782
- theeσύsu · youG4771
- EpaphrasἘπαφρᾶςEpaphras · EpaphrasG1889
- myἐγώegō · I/weG1473
- fellowprisonerσυναιχμάλωτοςsunaichmalōtos · fellow prisonerG4869
- inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547
- JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
Cross-references for Philemon 1:23
- Colossians 1:7You learned about this Good News from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant. He is taking your place here as a trustworthy deacon for Christ
- Colossians 4:12Epaphras, a servant of Christ Jesus from your city, greets you. He always prays intensely for you. He prays that you will continue to be mature and completely convinced of everything that God wants.
- Romans 16:7Greet Andronicus and Junia, who are Jewish by birth like me. They are prisoners like me and are prominent among the apostles. They also were Christians before I was.
- Colossians 4:10Aristarchus, who is a prisoner like me, sends greetings. So does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. You have received instructions about Mark. If he comes to you, welcome him.
Commentaries on Philemon 1:23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23Epaphras, my fellow prisoner - Epaphras was a Colossian, as we learn from Colossians 4:12; : Epaphras, who is one of you. But there is no account there of his being in prison, though the not mentioning of it does not necessarily imply that he was not. Some time or other he had suffered imprisonment for the truth of the Gospel; and on that account St. Paul might, in a general way, call him his fellow prisoner.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23There salute thee Epaphras - The same persons who are here mentioned as greeting Philemon, are mentioned in the close of the Epistle to the Colossians - furnishing a high degree of evidence that Philemon resided at Colosse. Epaphras was a member of the church there; the notes at Colossians 4:12. My fellow-prisoner in Christ Jesus - In the cause of Christ; Notes, Philemon 1:1. The circumstance of his being a prisoner is not mentioned in the parallel place…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-25Verses 23-25 Never have believers found more enjoyment of God, than when suffering together for him. Grace is the best wish for ourselves and others; with this the apostle begins and ends. All grace is from Christ; he purchased, and he bestows it. What need we more to make us happy, than to have the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ with our spirit? Let us do that now, which we should do at the last breath. Then men are ready to renounce the world, and to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23Epaphras was a native of Colossae who first brought the good news to Philemon and his family (Colossians 1:7; 4:12).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. The same persons send salutations in the accompanying Epistle, except that "Jesus Justus" is not mentioned here. Epaphras, my fellow prisoner--He had been sent by the Colossian Church to inquire after, and minister to, Paul, and possibly was cast into prison by the Roman authorities on suspicion. However, he is not mentioned as a prisoner in Col 4:12, so that "fellow prisoner" here may mean merely one who was a faithful companion to Paul in his…Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Philemon 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
Commentaries