Philemon 1:9

“Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, &c.] Either for the sake of the great love which the apostle bore to Philemon, being, as he calls him, his dearly beloved, he took this method; or because of Philemon's great love to all the saints before mentioned, he was encouraged to proceed in this manner, hoping on that account to have success; or it may be, it was for the sake of that love with which God had loved him, and which he puts him in mind of, to engage him to grant his request; that seeing God the Father had loved him, and chosen him in Christ; and Christ had loved him, and redeemed him by his blood; and the Holy Spirit had loved him, and sanctified him by his grace, that therefore…”

“for love's sake--mine to thee, and (what ought to be) thine to Onesimus. Or, that Christian love of which thou showest so bright an example (Plm 1:7). being such an one--Explain, Being such a one as thou knowest me to be, namely, Paul--the founder of so many churches, and an apostle of Christ, and thy father in the faith. the aged--a circumstance calculated to secure thy respect for anything I request. and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ--the strongest claim I have on thy regard: if for no other reason, at least in consideration of this, through commiseration gratify me.”

“Yet for love’s sake - For the love which you bear me, and for the common cause. I rather beseech thee - Rather than command thee. Being such an one as Paul the aged - πρεσβυτης presbutēs - an old man. We have no means of ascertaining the exact age of Paul at this time, and I do not recollect that he ever alludes to his age, though he often does to his infirmities, in any place except here. Doddridge supposes that at the time when Stephen was stoned, when he is called “a young man” (νεανίας neanias, Acts 7:58), he was 24 years of age, in which case he would now have been about 53. Chrysostom supposes that he may have been 35 years old at the time of his conversion, which would have made him…”

“Yet out of love I rather entreat thee - In how handsome a manner does the apostle just hint, and immediately drop, the consideration of his power to command, and tenderly entreat Philemon to hearken to his friend, his aged friend, and now prisoner for Christ! With what endearment, in the next verse, does he call Onesimus his son, before he names his name! And as soon as he had mentioned it, with what fine address does he just touch on his former faults, and instantly pass on to the happy change that was now made upon him! So disposing Philemon to attend to his request, and the motives wherewith he was going to enforce it. Philemon 1:10”

“love's sake: Rom 12:1; Co2 5:20, Co2 6:1; Eph 4:1; Heb 13:19; Pe1 2:11 Paul: Psa 71:9, Psa 71:18; Pro 16:31; Isa 46:4 prisoner: Plm 1:1; Eph 3:1, Eph 4:1 Philemon 1:10”