<Tr> <Th> Order in the Bible part </Th> <Td> 18 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Category </Th> <Td> Pauline epistles </Td> </Tr> <P> The Epistle of Paul to Philemon, known simply as Philemon, is one of the books of the Christian New Testament . It is a prison letter, co-authored by Paul the Apostle with Timothy, to Philemon, a leader in the Colossian church . It deals with the themes of forgiveness and reconciliation . Paul does not identify himself as an apostle with authority, but as "a prisoner for Jesus Christ", calling Timothy "our brother", and addressing Philemon as "fellow labourer" and "brother ." Onesimus, a slave that had departed from his master Philemon, was returning with this epistle wherein Paul asked Philemon to receive him as a "brother beloved ." </P> <P> Philemon was a wealthy Christian, possibly a bishop of the house church that met in his home (Philemon 1: 1--2) in Colosse . This letter is now generally regarded as one of the undisputed works of Paul . It is the shortest of Paul's extant letters, consisting of only 335 words in the Greek text . </P>

The letter to philemon deals with the question of