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Paul commends Onesiphorus for helping him and not being ashamed of his chains. The Acts of Paul and Thecla provides a backstory for Onesiphorus as the head of a household in Iconium who eagerly goes out to meet and welcome Paul.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
2 Timothy 1:16
New Testament
15 You know that everyone in the province of Asia deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the family of Onesiphorus because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my imprisonment. 17 But when he arrived in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me. 18 May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day! And you know very well all the ways he served me in Ephesus.
Acts of Paul and Thecla 1:2
Paul and Thecla
Early Christian
2 And a certain man named Onesiphorus, when he heard that Paul was come to Iconium, went out with his children Simmias and Zeno and his wife Lectra to meet him, that he might receive him into his house: for Titus had told him what manner of man Paul was in appearance; for he had not seen him in the flesh, but only in the spirit. 3 And he went by the king's highway that leadeth unto Lystra and stood expecting him, and looked upon them that came, according to tbe description of Titus. And he saw Paul coming, a man little of stature, thin-haired upon the head, crooked in the legs, of good state of body, with eyebrows joining, and nose somewhat hooked, full of grace: for sometimes he appeared like a man, and sometimes he had the face of an angel.
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Notes and References
“... Paul similarly commends Onesiphorus who serves as the example of a faithful man to whom Timothy may entrust the Pauline teaching (2 Timothy 1:16-2:2), and in the Acts of Paul he appears as the local leader of the church at Iconium. Like Stephanas, Onesiphorus is the head of a household (compare 2 Timothy 4:19). The Presbyter repeats this kind of exegesis in his treatment of Priscilla and Aquila ... Moreover, in the extant episodes of the Acts of Paul, the leadership situation appears to confirm this trend. Each locale has one leader; in addition to Stephanas at Corinth and Onesiphorus at Iconium, there are Hermias at Myra (Acts of Paul IV, 16) and Claudius in Italy (Acts of Paul XIII, 3-4) ...”
Dunn, Peter W.
The Influence of 1 Corinthians on the Acts of Paul
(pp. 444-445) Scholars Press, 1996
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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