Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Philemon 1:20

"Yea, brother, let me have joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my heart in Christ." — Philemon 1:20 (ASV)

Paul now expresses another wish, using the same word in “I do wish... some benefit” (GK 3949) as is in the root of the name Onesimus. Paul then returns to the vocabulary of v.7, where he told Philemon that he had refreshed the hearts of many. How, then, can he do less than that for the apostle to the Gentiles? In its relationship to v.7 this sentence is an excellent example of literary reinforcement.