Atlas Biblica

    person

    Onesimus

    Ὀνήσιμος

    Onesimus was a runaway slave who became a Christian through Paul's ministry and was the subject of Paul's letter to Philemon.

    verses
    4
    first named
    Colossians 4:9
    last named
    Philemon 1:13
    period
    the New Testament
    role
    Man

    Description

    Who was Onesimus?

    In the words of STEPBible TIPNR:

    Onesimus was a slave who belonged to Philemon, a Christian from Colossae (Col.4.9). He ran away from his master and, in some way, came into contact with the apostle Paul while Paul was in prison (Phm.1.10). Through Paul's ministry, Onesimus became a Christian and proved to be a valuable companion and helper to Paul (Phm.1.11-13). Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon with a personal letter, urging Philemon to receive Onesimus back, not as a slave, but as a beloved brother in Christ (Phm.1.16-17). Paul also offered to pay any debt that Onesimus might owe to Philemon (Phm.1.18-19). The letter to Philemon is a powerful example of Christian love, forgiveness, and the transforming power of the gospel in human relationships. Onesimus is also mentioned as a faithful and beloved brother in Paul's letter to the Colossians (Col.4.9).

    Relations

    Direct connections

    Every entity the graph places in a stated relation with this one, grouped by the kind of link. Each relation is authored once and its inverse derived, so both ends always agree. Rows marked “registry” come from the identity spine rather than from a verse, and a row marked “which bearer is the source’s decision” is one where the name could have meant more than one person. The last group is not a relation at all — it counts the events two entities stand in together.

    How the graph connects Onesimus9 of 9 entities the graph connects to Onesimus, in 2 groups: company 3, events 6. Kinship, company and ground are stated relations; events counts the acts two entities stand in together and is not a relation. Each mark is sized by how many verses name that entity and labelled with the link and the count, so the grouping and the size are both readable without colour. Distance from the centre carries nothing.Paul’s appeal of PhilemonTook part in · 2 versesSpeaker’s sending of Tychicus and OnesimusTook part in · 2 versesTychicus TellingTook part in · 2 versesCompanyTelling1 event · 212 versesPaul5 events · 182 versesGospel1 event · 65 versesFatherhood1 event · 16 versesTychicus2 events · 7 versesPhilemon3 events · 2 versesEventsOnesimus

    Took part in

    Stands in the same events as

    Places

    Where this happens

    A person is placed by the events they take part in, and an event has to clear three things to place them: it must say where it happened, that place must be one the gazetteer can put a coordinate on, and the verse must report it rather than foretell, command or ask it. Nothing anchored here clears all three. Where the text names a setting no gazetteer surveys — a vineyard, a palace, a plot of ground — it is left off rather than guessed at; where a place is named only in a prophecy, the map does not draw what was said to be coming as though it had happened; and a place reached only through a relation is not inherited, because standing beside somebody is not being somewhere.

    No verse Atlas has read as a report puts this person anywhere.

    Not read yet

    Read it

    Where to read it

    Every verse of the text carried here that names this entity — 4, across 2 books.

    1. Colossians2 verses

      4:94:18

    2. Philemon2 verses

      1:101:25

    Onward

    Where this page goes

    Not the direct relations above — these are one hop further out, ranked so that a rare shared connection outweighs a common one. Descriptions by STEPBible TIPNR.

    via Speaker’s sending of Tychicus and Onesimus and Tychicus TellingTychicusFaithful companion and messenger of Paulvia Speaker’s sending of Tychicus and OnesimusSendingSending is a concept gathering 488 labelled instances in the text.via Tychicus TellingTellingTelling is a concept gathering 189 labelled instances in the text.via Paul’s appeal of PhilemonAppealAppeal is a concept gathering 12 labelled instances in the text.via Paul’s appeal of PhilemonPaulApostle to the Gentiles, author of many NT epistlesvia Paul’s appeal of PhilemonPhilemonRecipient of Paul's letter, Colossian slave owner

    Where they appear

    Chapter by chapter

    Atlas's reading of each chapter this person appears in, in canonical order. One line per chapter, and each leads to the whole of it.

    Sources

    What this rests on