Philemon 1:2 And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: This was one way in which Philemon might be said to have "refreshed the bowels of the saints" (ver. 7), and to have shown his Christian faith and love to his poorer brethren. Here probably it was that St. Paul preached when at Colosse. This concession of some apartment in their own houses for the purposes of the public worship of the Christian Church, "a sect everywhere spoken against" in those days, was an act of zeal and courage on the part of the wealthier members of the Christian community, and seems to have elicited special expressions of notice, approval, and affection from St. Paul and the other apostles (Romans 16:5, 23; Colossians 4:15; cf. 2 Timothy 1:16; 2 Timothy 4:19; 3 John 1:6, 7). (Bp. Chris. Wordsworth.) Parallel Verses KJV: And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house:WEB: to the beloved Apphia, to Archippus, our fellow soldier, and to the assembly in your house: |
    |