Q: In Phm 1, how do you pronounce "Philemon?
A: People pronounce it two different ways: with the accent on the first syllable and the accent on the second syllable. Cruden’s Concordance, The Wycliffe Bible Dictionary, Strong’s Concordance, the KJV, and the Funk and Wagnall’s Standard Desk Dictionary unanimously say it is pronounced as "phil-E-mon" with the accent on the second syllable.

Q: In Phm 1, what value does the short book of Philemon have in the Bible?
A: Given that this is a letter from the apostle Paul, and was accepted as Scripture by the early church, we should cherish Philemon as God’s word, even if (hypothetically speaking) we could not see any value at all in Philemon.
Yet we can see great value in this brief book. While many other books discuss doctrine and practice, Philemon gives us a good example of one way to relate to fellow Christians on sensitive issues.
Though the Greek words Paul used for useless and useful are not related to the name Onesimus, the ideas embodied in those words are.  Paul stated that this slave, who formerly had been useless to Philemon, had since become useful both to Philemon and to Paul.  The key factor behind this change from uselessness to usefulness was the spiritual transformation that had occurred when Onesimus accepted Christ as Savior.
The book of Philemon also shows that while God tolerated slavery back then, that was not His perfect will.

Q: In Phm 1 and 2 Tim 1:8, how did the Lord take Paul as a prisoner?
A: Paul was not imprisoned by Jesus; Paul was imprisoned on account of Jesus, as 2 Timothy 1:12 shows.

Q: In Phm 10, how do you pronounce the name "Onesimus?
A: The New International Bible Dictionary p.735 and Cruden’s Concordance both say o-NES-i-mus, with all vowels short except the first o, and the accent on the second syllable.

Q: In Phm 10, 2 Tim 1:2, Tt 1:4, and 1 Cor 4:17, why did Paul call Onesimus, Timothy, and Titus his sons, since Jesus said in Mt 23:9 to call no man your father?
A: Philippians 2:22 shows that Paul called Timothy his son, not because of a biological relationship, but because Timothy was as close as a son in serving the Gospel.
Onesimus was a useful as a son, and as dear as a son to Paul, while Paul was in Rome.
It is not a lie to use a metaphor that is not literally true, when the speakers and hearers realize it is a metaphor.

Q: In Phm 10, is there any extra-Biblical evidence for Onesimus?
A: There may be, actually. Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History 3:36, mentions letter of Ignatius to the Ephesians (ch.1). Ignatius mentions Onesimus as the pastor there. It does not explicitly say it was the same Onesimus, though.

Q: In Phm 10-15, why does Paul tolerate slavery?
A: Paul is indirectly telling Philemon to free Onesimus. As to why Paul did not prohibit slavery altogether, see the discussion on Ephesians 6:5-8 and Ephesians 6:9. See When Critics Ask p.509-510, When Cultists Ask p.281-282, and Hard Sayings of the Bible p.642-644 for more info.

Q: In Phm 11, why is Paul calling Onesimus formerly unprofitable?
A: In Greek, the name Onesimus means "useful". Paul is making a pun here, as Onesimus was Philemon’s runaway slave. A slave that ran away is not very profitable.

Q: In Phm 12 (KJV), what does "bowels" mean here?
A: The King James Version accurately translated the Greek word splagchna. The modern equivalent is that Paul is sending his "very heart" back to Philemon.

Q: In Phm 12-15, what is Paul basically saying?
A: There are four things.
1. Paul is asking something of Philemon, which he will explain. (Philemon 8)
2. Onesimus became Paul’s son in faith, a Christian. (Philemon 10)
3. Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon. (Philemon 12)
4. Paul is asking Philemon to free Onesimus, his runaway slave Paul sent back to Philemon.

Q: In Phm 16, what does "in the flesh" mean?
A: The literal words are "in flesh" as Jay P. Green’s Literal Translation says. "In the flesh" is what the KJV, NKJV, NASB, uNASB, and NRSV translate. There are three interpretations.
Friend: "in the flesh and in the Lord" means that Onesimus would serve him in a physical way, and give him fellowship as a believer. This is probably why the NIV translates this "as a man". (The Believer’s Bible Commentary p.215)
Perhaps still a slave: "in the flesh" refers to a person-to-person relationship, but that it could also mean retaining the master-slave relationship. (The Bible Knowledge Commentary : New Testament p.773)
Brother: Philemon and Onesimus were physically brothers. In other words, Philemon had enslaved his own brother. 1001 Bible Questions Answered p.314 has this view.
In common with all interpretations, is that there is the restoring of some kind of natural relationship
Williams translation has rather paraphrased here: "both as a servant and as a Christian"

Q: In Phm 17-18, is this a perfect example of the doctrine of imputed righteousness?
A: 1001 Bible Questions Answered p.67-68 says yes. Just as our sins were charged to Christ’s "account" Paul offered to pay everything Onesimus owed Philemon.
There are three similarities between this and Christ’s atonement.
1. It is not unjust for Paul to pay Onesimus’ bills. Paul volunteered to do it for him, just as Christ volunteered for us.
2. There is no record of whether Paul paid this, or Onesimus paid it, or Philemon forgave any debts. Likewise Christ’s offer is for all, but the payment is not made for those who do not wish to accept Christ.
Differences: Most analogies are not perfect, and neither is this one. It was up to Philemon whether to take Paul up on his offer. Onesimus did not have a lot of say here. In contrast, we are saved by grace "through faith", and as Hebrews 4:2 shows, the gospel message was of no value to some, because it was not combined with faith.

Q: In Phm 19, why is Paul reminding Philemon that he owes Paul his own soul?
A: For Onesimus’ sake, Paul is being heavy-handed here. Paul is in effect saying, "if you, Philemon are grateful to me for sharing the Gospel with you to save your soul, show your gratitude by freeing Onesimus from slavery."

Q: In Phm 19, was it wrong for Paul to be so assertive and heavy-handed?
A: No. Paul loved both Philemon and Onesimus. Paul knew freeing a slave was a financial sacrifice, and though difficult, Philemon should do it. Sometimes Christians should be more assertive about good things, for the sake of others.

Q: In Phm 24 and Col 4:14, why is Paul with Demas, since Demas turned away because Demas loved this world in 2 Tim 4:10?
A: Like others, Demas first helped in the ministry and then later turned away. Did Demas ever come back and was Demas saved? We can hope so, but we have no record either way.

Q: In Phm, what evidence do we have that this book should be in the Bible?
A: Frankly, since Philemon is such a short book, we do not have as many references to Philemon as the other books. Here are three reasons we know this should be in the Bible.
1. Paul wrote it, and he was an apostle. Peter attested that Paul’s words were scripture in 2 Peter 3:15-16.
2. Paul himself said he was apostle in 1 Timothy 1:1; 2:7, Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:1; 9:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1, 11:5; Galatians 1:1, Ephesians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; 1 Timothy 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:1; Titus 1:1.
3. Early church evidence
The Muratorian Canon (c.170 A.D.) mentions Paul’s letter to Philemon, as well as Paul’s other 12 letters.
After Nicea
Athanasius (367 A.D.) lists the books of the New Testament in Festal Letter 39 p.552
Ambrosiaster 4th century
John Chrysostom (396 A.D.) wrote down three sermons on Philemon. He says that Paul wrote this letter to Philemon, an admirable man, in homily1.
Jerome 420 A.D.
Augustine c.400 A.D.
We still have all of these today.

Q: How do we know that Phm today is a reliable preservation of what was originally written?
A: There are at least three good reasons.
1. God promised to preserve His word in Isaiah 55:10-11; Isaiah 59:21; Isaiah 40:6-8; 1 Peter 1:24-25; Matthew 24:35.
2. Evidence of the early church. See the previous question for a few of the writers who referred to verses in Philippians.
3. Earliest manuscripts we have of Philemon show there are small manuscript variations, but zero theologically significant errors.
p87 contains Phm 13-15, 24 (partial) ,25b with gaps (c.125 A.D.) Handwriting is nearly identical to p46. The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts has a photograph of p87 on p.607.
The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts has a photograph of p87 on p.608 says the original editors dated p87 to "early third century" because the handwriting is nearly identical to p46, and p46 used to be thought third century. Since 046 is now known to be earlier this is redated to dated middle to late 2nd century. A second line of evidence is that the letters of both p46 and p87 are nearly identical to Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 841 ( second hand 120-130 A.D.). A third line of evidence is that p87 has "startling similarities" to p52, dated early second century.
p61 Romans 16:23,25-27; 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, 2-6; 5:1-3, 5-6, 9-13; Philippians 3:5-9, 12-16, Colossians 1:3-7, 9-13, 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; Titus 3:1-5, 8-11, 14-15 Philemon 4-7. c.700 A.D.
c.700 A.D. - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
About 700 A.D. - 1975 - Aland et al. Third edition.
About 700 A.D. - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth revised edition.
Sinaiticus [Si] 340-350 A.D.
Philemon was not preserved in Vaticanus [B]
Alexandrinus [A] c.450 A.D.
Bohairic Coptic [Boh] 3rd/4th century
Sahidic Coptic [Sah] 3rd/4th century
Ephraemi Rescriptus [C] 5th century
I Washington D.C. 5th century (Phm 2, others?)
Claromontanus [D] 5th/6th century
The Text of the New Testament p.167, written back in 1968, says there are at least 10 uncial manuscripts (with four correctors) and 42 miniscule manuscripts.

See www.BibleQuery.org/phmMss.htm for more on early manuscripts of Philemon.