Identity Change
no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. Philemon 1:16 NASB
More than – We often read this verse with Pollyanna eyes. That is to say, we think that Philemon won’t view Onesimus as a slave anymore but rather as a brother in the Lord. Philemon will see the light and change his view of the master/slave relationship. That’s what Paul really wants, right? But, of course not! Paul doesn’t write, “but no longer a slave.” He writes, “more than a slave.” In other words, Onesimus will still be a slave—but he will also be a brother. Just how that works isn’t specified. Use your imagination.
The Greek word here is hypér. It is translated as “more than.” Actually, the original sense was spatial, meaning “over” or “beyond,” but under the Hellenistic age it became a useful metaphor for anything greater. Notice that the original spatial idea still carries an assumption of adding to something, not replacing something. “The town is beyond the river” locates the town in relation to the river. So, “but more than a slave” locates the future status of Onesimus in relation to his slavery. Because slavery seems so onerous to us, we imagine that Paul is asking Philemon to free Onesimus, but he isn’t. Slavery was a fact of life in the Roman world, although there were many different varieties of slavery, some much more like contracted servants that owned property. Nevertheless, Paul is not trying to reform the system. He is working within the cultural norms, asking only that Philemon’s behavior toward Onesimus reflect the ethics of the Kingdom. A change of heart doesn’t always mean a change of culture.
We need to recognize that Paul uses the Greek doúlos to describe Onesimus. Of all the categories of slaves in the Roman world, the doúlos was the lowest, considered as a piece of property. The famous Socratic dialogue about the ethical accountability of a master who kills a doúlos demonstrates how little human value was attributed to this class of slave. Under Roman law, Philemon has the perfect right to do whatever he wishes with Onesimus. However, this is the same Greek term that Paul ascribes to himself. He is “owned” by the Messiah. This implies that Philemon’s treatment of Onesimus should reflect Paul’s relationship to his master, Yeshua. Philemon might not be legally obligated to treat Onesimus as anything but a useful tool, but Paul isn’t appealing to Roman juris prudence. He’s appealing to Philemon’s similar relationship to Yeshua. To treat Onesimus differently than he would treat Paul would be the equivalent of denying the master/slave relationship Philemon has with the Messiah. Therefore, applying hypér to Onesimus is really the same as applying hypér to himself. Philemon is also more than a slave, and it is on this basis that he is obligated to treat Onesimus the same way.
What do we learn? First, we learn that cultural transformation isn’t always the objective. More than once the biblical instruction asks for transformation within the existing system. Secondly, we recognize that parallel relationships demand equal behavior. If we’re slaves to the Messiah who subsequently decides to call us friends (cf. John 15:15), then we are to act in turn to those who were once nothing more than tools for us. That transformation will eventually change the culture.
Topical Index: slave, more than, hypér, doúlos, Philemon 1:16
