Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you greetings. And so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas and Luke, my fellow workers. Philemon 23-24. (EHV).
The closing of this brief letter gives it credibility. Paul included the names of his friends in the letter to Philemon for a number of reasons.
It was a way to send their greetings; practically speaking, that’s the foremost reason. In the first century, other than word of mouth, this was the only way to send greetings.
It was a way to give his bold letter some depth. One can assume Paul wouldn’t have mentioned these men if they hadn’t known what he was saying in the letter. With that in mind, it could then also be assumed that they likely concurred with Paul’s request (to free Onesimus). Otherwise, they may not have consented to Paul even mentioning them. By including their names, Paul was indicating that consent.
It provides historic reference. Mark and Luke went on to write two of the four Gospels. It is believed that Epaphras was a member of the young church in Colosse and would have been known to Philemon. It is also believed that Aristarchas was a fellow Christian who, like Paul, was martyred under Nero. As for Demas, it is thought that this is the man who later deserted Paul and went to Thessolonica, site of another new church. Demas, it is believed, fell away from the faith.
Yet for Paul to mention these people in this small letter meant that he was providing markers in the historical timeline for Philemon (and us) to reference. Indeed, it isn’t unusual for things like this to occur all the way through the Bible. They make it one of the most referenced and historically accurate books from all of antiquity. They refute those who would say the Bible is untrue.
And that could very well be Paul’s unwitting final reason for including the names here. Paul probably didn’t think that people would be reading his mail two thousand years later yet here we are doing just that. His inclusion of the names of his contemporaries provides proof that both he and they actually existed. They are names God wanted Paul to include so that we might find credibility in the amazing request that Paul makes of his friend. And they’re a lesson for us to learn when we’re so far removed from those ancient times.
For further reading: 2 Timothy 4:8-10, Philemon 24
Lord God, thank You for including the names of these men so that my questioning heart would not question Your perfect words.