In a number of languages, it is not possible to speak of oneself in the third person, and therefore it may be necessary to employ a first person pronoun, together with the name “Paul”; hence, “from me, Paul” or “I Paul write to…”

Paul begins this letter by identifying himself as a prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus (also verse 9), which means be was in jail because of his Christian work (verses 10, 13), or, in a figurative sense, that he was “a prisoner of Christ Jesus,” that is, he was held captive by him. The latter is possible, but not very probable, since Paul usually identifies himself as an apostle of Christ (Rom 1.1, 1 Cor 1.1, 2 Cor 1.1, Gal 1.1, Eph 1.1, Col 1.1) or as a slave of Christ (Rom 1.1, Phil 1.1). The phrase a prisoner for the sake of Christ Jesus must often be made into an entire clause, for example, “I am now in prison for the sake of Christ Jesus.”

A literal rendering of the phrase for the sake of Christ Jesus might be understood in the sense of Paul being a prisoner in order to advance the cause of Christ Jesus, but what is meant is that he became a prisoner because of what he had already done to advance the cause of Christ Jesus. Therefore, it may be necessary to introduce a more explicit statement concerning the reasons for Paul being in prison, for example, “I am in prison because of what I have done for the sake of Christ Jesus” or “… to serve Christ Jesus.”

Brother is used of Timothy in the Christian sense of a fellow believer in Christ. Paul associates Timothy with himself in writing the letter, but in the letter itself Paul speaks for himself alone. Since the role of Timothy in the sending of this letter is secondary, it may be important to indicate this fact by translating “our brother Timothy joins me in sending greetings” or “… in sending this letter.” In this way one may indicate that Paul is the principal author of the letter.

In a number of languages, it is impossible to use a term meaning literally “brother,” since this would refer only to an individual who is a member of the same family. Therefore, “fellow believer” may be the most satisfactory equivalent. In certain instances, this relationship of Timothy to the Christian faith can only be expressed by a relative clause, “who also believes in Christ Jesus” or “… has put his trust in Christ Jesus.”

Philemon is addressed as our friend and fellow worker (Good News Translation) or “our beloved fellow worker” (Revised Standard Version). Either translation of the phrase is possible.

It may be necessary to introduce a second person singular pronoun in order to identify the relationship of Paul to Philemon, for example, “to you, Philemon, our friend and fellow worker.”

Fellow worker must not, however, be translated in such a way as to suggest that Paul and Philemon were both day laborers. What is meant is that Philemon also helped in advancing the cause of Christ. Therefore, one may translate “one who works with us to help Christ,” or “… to serve Christ,” or “… to make Christ known.”

And the church that meets in your house (on which see Col 4.15) is placed by Good News Translation (also Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Bible en français courant Barclay) immediately following Philemon’s name in order to make it clear that your refers to Philemon and not to Archippus, as might be understood when placed at the end of verse 2. Although some believe that Archippus is the main addressee of the letter, the vast majority hold that the first-named of the three persons is the main recipient of the letter, and that the person addressed by the second person singular pronoun in all the requests in verses 4-23 is in fact Philemon, even though his name as such does not appear. If it is judged better to keep the church in your house at the end of verse 2, in order to avoid misunderstanding, it might be well to say, as do Twentieth Century New Testament Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch Translator’s New Testament, “in Philemon’s house.”

In the same way that Philemon must be identified in some languages with a second person singular pronoun, it may also be necessary to use a similar pronoun in speaking of the church, for example, “and to you who are members to the church that meets in the house of Philemon.” On the other hand, the letter is so predominantly addressed to Philemon that it may be misleading to suggest that the church that met in Philemon’s house, Apphia, and Archippus are all on the same level as recipients of the letter. Therefore, one may be obliged to translate as follows, “to you, Philemon, our friend and fellow worker, and will you extend greetings to the church that meets in your house and to our sister Apphia and to our fellow soldier Archippus.”

Apphia is called our sister, a phrase used also in the Christian sense of a fellow believer. There is no way of determining what was the relation between her, Philemon, and Archippus. Some may think that she was Philemon’s wife, which is quite possible, and that Archippus was their son; but all of this is purely conjectural. Some later manuscripts add the adjective “beloved” to Apphia (see King James Version).

A literal rendering of our sister Apphia can be misleading, not only because “sister” might be taken in the literal sense, but also because the possessive pronoun “our” might suggest some kind of possessive relationship. To avoid this misunderstanding, one may translate, for example, “Apphia, who also believes in Christ Jesus even as we do.”

Archippus is addressed as our fellow soldier, in a figurative sense of one who “fights” for the Christian cause (used also in Phil 2.25 of Epaphroditus). A literal rendering of soldier can be misleading. In some instances this metaphorical or figurative meaning may be identified satisfactorily as a simile, for example, “who is like a soldier.” The essential meaning may also be supplied by a non-figurative expression, for example, “who strives so hard to serve” or “who faces so much opposition in serving.” The phrase our fellow may be expressed as “even as we do” or “who together with us.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to Philemon. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1977. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .