Newly Released! The Apostle Paul, A Bondservant Of Christ Jesus |
Historical Background Information
To Paul's Prison Letters
The Books Of Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, Philippians
Paul’s Roman Imprisonment:
Paul wrote the Books of Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, and Philippians during his first imprisonment in Rome. The Lord Jesus brought Paul to Rome to complete the mission strategy that Jesus gave to his disciples just before his ascension into heaven. In Acts 1:8 Jesus told his disciples they were to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Paul was brought to Rome to complete the mission of bringing Jesus’ gospel to the ends of the earth. With the coming of Paul to Rome the gospel was brought from the Jewish capital of Jerusalem in the east to the Gentile capital of the world in Rome in the west. The Lord himself had told Paul, “Continue to be courageous! For as you testified these things about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome,” (Acts 23:11).
In compliance with the Lord Jesus’ will to have his gospel brought to Rome, Paul came there, not as an apostle who was free to go about conducting his ministry, but as an apostle in chains whose activities were limited because he was held under house arrest and guard.
His imprisonment began in Caesarea years earlier. At the end of his third missionary journey, during which time he spent more than two years working in Ephesus, Paul revisited the churches he had established in Macedonia, the northern province of Greece, on his second missionary journey. From there he traveled to Jerusalem by way of Troas and Miletus. In Jerusalem the Jews mobbed Paul, because they thought he had desecrated the temple by bringing a Gentile into it. Roman soldiers came to Paul’s rescue and took him into their custody. Paul then became entangled in the Roman judicial system. He was taken to the Roman governor Felix in the provincial capital of Caesarea. Felix kept Paul imprisoned there for two years, hoping that he might receive a bribe from Paul for his freedom. Festus then succeeded Felix as governor and intended to appease the Jews by having Paul transferred for trial to Jerusalem. Paul then resorted to his right as a Roman citizen and appealed his case to Caesar in Rome.
Paul was transferred by ship under guard to Rome. Enroute his ship was wrecked in a storm off the island of Malta. Paul finally arrived in Rome the beginning of April A.D. 60. There he was held under house arrest and guard for the next two years. His Roman imprisonment, or captivity, was from April A.D. 60 to April A.D. 62.
The Dating Of These Letters:
While under house arrest in Rome, Paul was able to conduct a limited ministry. He was able to receive visitors, such as the Jewish leaders of the synagogue in Rome (see Acts 28:16-29), and to minister to those who came to him. He was also able to minister to the needs of the churches by means of letters that he was free to write.
Paul wrote his letters to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians and Philippians while under this house arrest in Rome. These letters were written around the latter part of A.D. 60 to 61. Because Paul was under house arrest and imprisoned at the time, his letters have been called his imprisonment or captivity letters.
The Internal Evidence Within The Letters:
The internal evidence within the letters clearly indicate Paul wrote them while a prisoner in Rome. The internal evidence is as follows:
In the letter to the Colossians he wrote:
Colossians 1:24: Now I am rejoicing in the things I suffered for your sake, and I am filling up in my flesh the things that are lacking of Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, which is the church, . . .
Colossians 4:10: Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greeting, . . .
Colossians 4:18: This greeting is by my hand, Paul’s. Continue to remember my imprisonment.
In the letter to Philemon he wrote:
Philemon 1: Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy, our brother; To Philemon our beloved and fellow worker,. . .
Philemon 9: . . . for the sake of love I rather appeal, being such as Paul an old man, but now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus --
Philemon 23: Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you.
In the letter to the Ephesians he wrote:
Ephesians 3:1: For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles --
Ephesians 4:1: Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the calling with which you were called.
Ephesians 6:20: . . . I am an ambassador in chains. . .
In the letter to the Philippians he wrote:
Philippians 1:12-14: Now I want you to come to know, brothers, that the things concerning me here have worked for the greater advancement of the gospel, so that my imprisonment on account of Christ has become known in the whole palace guard and to all the rest of the people, and most of the brothers in the Lord have become confident because of my imprisonment to have much more courage to speak the word without fear.
The occasion of the writing of these letters:
Epaphras, leader of the church in Colosse in Asia Minor (see Colossians 4:12), came to Paul in Rome with good news and bad news about the church of Colosse. The good news was the gospel had born fruit among the Colossians (see Colossians 1:6), who were continuing in the faith (see Colossians 1:4) in Christ and in love for their fellow believers. The bad news was the Colossians were being troubled by a new teaching that was contrary to the gospel that Epaphras had been preaching to them. The new teaching claimed a profound knowledge apart from Christ (see Colossians 2:8), an emphasis on following prescribed rituals (see Colossians 2:16), the worship of angels (see Colossians 2:18), and ascetic self-abasement (see Colossians 2:18 & 20-23). The new teaching that included the worship of angels indicates that it invoked spiritual powers rather than calling on Christ in whom the fullness of God dwelt in bodily form (see Colossians 2:9).
To deal with this new false teaching, Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians. In his letter Paul overwhelmed the false teaching by proclaiming the surpassing greatness of Christ. Paul then dispatched his co-worker Tychicus to carry his letter to the church of Colosse (see Colossians 4:7, 8). Paul’s letter was a circular letter to be shared with the other churches in the area, particularly nearby Laodicea (see Colossians 4:16).
With Paul in Rome was a runaway slave named Onesimus. Onesimus had come to Paul and had become a Christian (see Philemon 10). He performed valuable services for Paul, perhaps as a runner doing errands for Paul, who was not free to leave his house. Paul was obligated to return Onesimus to his rightful master, a Christian brother named Philemon. It appears that Philemon was a member of the church of Colosse, for he was known to Epaphras the leader of that church (see Philemon 23). Paul wrote his letter to Philemon, in which he expressed his desire to be able to retain Onesimus’ valuable services in Rome. He asked Philemon to treat Onesimus kindly as a Christian brother. Since Tychicus would be traveling to the church of Colosse, where Philemon was a member, Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon in the company of Tychicus. Tychicus carried, in addition to Paul’s letter to the Colossians, Paul’s letter to Philemon.
The route that Tychicus and Onesimus would logically travel to Colosse would take them through the port city of Ephesus, where Paul had ministered for more than two years. Paul had not revisited that church since he left it to go to Jerusalem about seven to eight years earlier. He seized the opportunity that Tychicus’ passing through Ephesus offered and wrote his letter to his beloved Ephesians. Tychicus, then, also carried this letter for Paul and delivered it to the church in Ephesus.
While still under house arrest in Rome, Paul received another visitor--Epaphroditus. Epaphroditus was a member of the church in Philippi in Macedonia, the northern province of Greece. In behalf of the congregation he brought Paul a gift for his support and reported that the Philippians were eager for some news about Paul’s circumstances and the outcome of his trial before the Roman imperial court. This prompted Paul to write the last of his imprisonment epistles to the Philippians. He wrote to thank them for their gift, to inform them about his circumstances in Rome and about his trial, and to strengthen them in the hope and joy that was theirs in Christ.
Paul wrote the Books of Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, and Philippians during his first imprisonment in Rome. The Lord Jesus brought Paul to Rome to complete the mission strategy that Jesus gave to his disciples just before his ascension into heaven. In Acts 1:8 Jesus told his disciples they were to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Paul was brought to Rome to complete the mission of bringing Jesus’ gospel to the ends of the earth. With the coming of Paul to Rome the gospel was brought from the Jewish capital of Jerusalem in the east to the Gentile capital of the world in Rome in the west. The Lord himself had told Paul, “Continue to be courageous! For as you testified these things about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome,” (Acts 23:11).
In compliance with the Lord Jesus’ will to have his gospel brought to Rome, Paul came there, not as an apostle who was free to go about conducting his ministry, but as an apostle in chains whose activities were limited because he was held under house arrest and guard.
His imprisonment began in Caesarea years earlier. At the end of his third missionary journey, during which time he spent more than two years working in Ephesus, Paul revisited the churches he had established in Macedonia, the northern province of Greece, on his second missionary journey. From there he traveled to Jerusalem by way of Troas and Miletus. In Jerusalem the Jews mobbed Paul, because they thought he had desecrated the temple by bringing a Gentile into it. Roman soldiers came to Paul’s rescue and took him into their custody. Paul then became entangled in the Roman judicial system. He was taken to the Roman governor Felix in the provincial capital of Caesarea. Felix kept Paul imprisoned there for two years, hoping that he might receive a bribe from Paul for his freedom. Festus then succeeded Felix as governor and intended to appease the Jews by having Paul transferred for trial to Jerusalem. Paul then resorted to his right as a Roman citizen and appealed his case to Caesar in Rome.
Paul was transferred by ship under guard to Rome. Enroute his ship was wrecked in a storm off the island of Malta. Paul finally arrived in Rome the beginning of April A.D. 60. There he was held under house arrest and guard for the next two years. His Roman imprisonment, or captivity, was from April A.D. 60 to April A.D. 62.
The Dating Of These Letters:
While under house arrest in Rome, Paul was able to conduct a limited ministry. He was able to receive visitors, such as the Jewish leaders of the synagogue in Rome (see Acts 28:16-29), and to minister to those who came to him. He was also able to minister to the needs of the churches by means of letters that he was free to write.
Paul wrote his letters to the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians and Philippians while under this house arrest in Rome. These letters were written around the latter part of A.D. 60 to 61. Because Paul was under house arrest and imprisoned at the time, his letters have been called his imprisonment or captivity letters.
The Internal Evidence Within The Letters:
The internal evidence within the letters clearly indicate Paul wrote them while a prisoner in Rome. The internal evidence is as follows:
In the letter to the Colossians he wrote:
Colossians 1:24: Now I am rejoicing in the things I suffered for your sake, and I am filling up in my flesh the things that are lacking of Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, which is the church, . . .
Colossians 4:10: Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you his greeting, . . .
Colossians 4:18: This greeting is by my hand, Paul’s. Continue to remember my imprisonment.
In the letter to Philemon he wrote:
Philemon 1: Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy, our brother; To Philemon our beloved and fellow worker,. . .
Philemon 9: . . . for the sake of love I rather appeal, being such as Paul an old man, but now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus --
Philemon 23: Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you.
In the letter to the Ephesians he wrote:
Ephesians 3:1: For this reason, I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles --
Ephesians 4:1: Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the calling with which you were called.
Ephesians 6:20: . . . I am an ambassador in chains. . .
In the letter to the Philippians he wrote:
Philippians 1:12-14: Now I want you to come to know, brothers, that the things concerning me here have worked for the greater advancement of the gospel, so that my imprisonment on account of Christ has become known in the whole palace guard and to all the rest of the people, and most of the brothers in the Lord have become confident because of my imprisonment to have much more courage to speak the word without fear.
The occasion of the writing of these letters:
Epaphras, leader of the church in Colosse in Asia Minor (see Colossians 4:12), came to Paul in Rome with good news and bad news about the church of Colosse. The good news was the gospel had born fruit among the Colossians (see Colossians 1:6), who were continuing in the faith (see Colossians 1:4) in Christ and in love for their fellow believers. The bad news was the Colossians were being troubled by a new teaching that was contrary to the gospel that Epaphras had been preaching to them. The new teaching claimed a profound knowledge apart from Christ (see Colossians 2:8), an emphasis on following prescribed rituals (see Colossians 2:16), the worship of angels (see Colossians 2:18), and ascetic self-abasement (see Colossians 2:18 & 20-23). The new teaching that included the worship of angels indicates that it invoked spiritual powers rather than calling on Christ in whom the fullness of God dwelt in bodily form (see Colossians 2:9).
To deal with this new false teaching, Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians. In his letter Paul overwhelmed the false teaching by proclaiming the surpassing greatness of Christ. Paul then dispatched his co-worker Tychicus to carry his letter to the church of Colosse (see Colossians 4:7, 8). Paul’s letter was a circular letter to be shared with the other churches in the area, particularly nearby Laodicea (see Colossians 4:16).
With Paul in Rome was a runaway slave named Onesimus. Onesimus had come to Paul and had become a Christian (see Philemon 10). He performed valuable services for Paul, perhaps as a runner doing errands for Paul, who was not free to leave his house. Paul was obligated to return Onesimus to his rightful master, a Christian brother named Philemon. It appears that Philemon was a member of the church of Colosse, for he was known to Epaphras the leader of that church (see Philemon 23). Paul wrote his letter to Philemon, in which he expressed his desire to be able to retain Onesimus’ valuable services in Rome. He asked Philemon to treat Onesimus kindly as a Christian brother. Since Tychicus would be traveling to the church of Colosse, where Philemon was a member, Paul sent Onesimus back to Philemon in the company of Tychicus. Tychicus carried, in addition to Paul’s letter to the Colossians, Paul’s letter to Philemon.
The route that Tychicus and Onesimus would logically travel to Colosse would take them through the port city of Ephesus, where Paul had ministered for more than two years. Paul had not revisited that church since he left it to go to Jerusalem about seven to eight years earlier. He seized the opportunity that Tychicus’ passing through Ephesus offered and wrote his letter to his beloved Ephesians. Tychicus, then, also carried this letter for Paul and delivered it to the church in Ephesus.
While still under house arrest in Rome, Paul received another visitor--Epaphroditus. Epaphroditus was a member of the church in Philippi in Macedonia, the northern province of Greece. In behalf of the congregation he brought Paul a gift for his support and reported that the Philippians were eager for some news about Paul’s circumstances and the outcome of his trial before the Roman imperial court. This prompted Paul to write the last of his imprisonment epistles to the Philippians. He wrote to thank them for their gift, to inform them about his circumstances in Rome and about his trial, and to strengthen them in the hope and joy that was theirs in Christ.
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