Hearing of your love and faith, which you have toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all saints;
Hearing.
Galatians 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Ephesians 1:15 Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints,
Colossians 1:4 Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints,
toward the Lord.
Philemon 1:7 For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother.
Psalm 16:3 But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight.
Acts 9:39-41 Then Peter arose and went with them. When he was come, they brought him into the upper chamber: and all the widows stood by him weeping, and shewing the coats and garments which Dorcas made, while she was with them…
and your love for all the saints
Philemon's love is directed towards "all the saints," indicating a comprehensive and inclusive affection for fellow believers. The term "saints" refers to those set apart for God, highlighting the communal aspect of the Christian faith. This love is agape, a selfless, sacrificial love that mirrors Christ's love for the church. In the cultural context of the Roman Empire, where social divisions were pronounced, such love was countercultural and a powerful witness to the transformative power of the Gospel. This love fulfills the commandment in John 13:34-35, where Jesus instructs His disciples to love one another as He has loved them, serving as a mark of true discipleship. The early church's practice of love and hospitality was crucial for its growth and unity, as seen in Acts 2:44-47.
Paul’s “because” links verse 5 to the thanksgiving of verse 4. Paul is thanking God for Philemon not in vague terms but for specific, observable evidence of God’s work. Just as in Colossians 1:3-4 and Philippians 1:3-5, gratitude flows from clear fruit in a believer’s life. The conjunction invites us to look for the cause of Paul’s joy—faith and love that are visible, consistent, and worthy of celebration.
Though confined in Rome, Paul keeps receiving reports of Philemon’s spiritual vitality. This mirrors his words to the Romans: “your faith is being proclaimed all over the world” (Romans 1:8). It shows that genuine faith cannot stay hidden—news of it travels.
• Faithfulness creates a ripple effect; people talk about what God is doing.
• The phrase highlights accountability: others are watching, and testimony matters (Ephesians 1:15-16).
• It also underscores community: believers share victories and encourage one another through praise stories (3 John 3).
Philemon’s faith is personal (“your”) yet anchored entirely in Christ (“in the Lord Jesus”).
• Faith is trust—not mere assent but resting in the finished work of Jesus (Galatians 2:16).
• It is present-tense, ongoing confidence, not a one-time decision (Hebrews 12:2).
• True faith produces fruit; James reminds us that living faith acts (James 2:17).
Paul celebrates this faith because it is the root of every other grace evident in Philemon’s life.
Gospel faith always blooms into love (Galatians 5:6). Philemon’s love is:
• Comprehensive—“all the saints,” without favoritism (Colossians 1:4).
• Practical—later in the letter we learn he refreshes hearts and opens his home (Philemon 1:7).
• Christ-reflecting—Jesus said, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).
Such love validates faith (1 John 3:17-18) and strengthens the church’s witness.
Paul thanks God because reports keep arriving of Philemon’s vibrant trust in Jesus and his tangible, impartial love for every believer. Faith is the root, love the fruit, and together they give credible evidence of the gospel’s power, stirring thanksgiving in all who hear.
(5) Thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all saints.--This description of a faith directed not only to the Lord Jesus, but to all the saints, has perplexed commentators, and called out various explanations. (1) One is that "faith" here (as in Romans 3:3; Galatians 5:22) is simply fidelity; but this can hardly be accepted as an explanation of so well-known and almost technical a phrase as "faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ." (2) Another, noting the distinction in the original between the two prepositions here--the former (pros) signifying direction towards, and the latter (eis) actual contact with, its object--explains the phrase as signifying "the faith which has as its object the Lord Jesus Christ, but which shows itself practically towards all saints." But this, even if the word "hast" will bear this gloss, seems too artificial for such a Letter as this. (3) The comparison with the contemporaneous Letter to the Colossians--where we read, "your faith in the Lord Jesus, and your love toward all the saints" (Colossians 1:4)--seems to clear up the matter. We have here an equivalent phrase, in which, however (by what the grammarians called chiasmus), the extremes and means correspond to each other. The idea which runs through the Letter is Philemon's "love to the saints." In writing of that love St. Paul cannot refrain from (4) referring it to its true origin--the faith towards the Lord Jesus Christ. Hence the broken phrase. The sense seems therefore to be that which in some MSS. has been brought out by a natural correction, "thy faith towards the Lord Jesus, and thy love to all the saints."Verse 5. - Hearing of thy love, and of the faith ... saints. He would hear of these instances of Philemon's faith and love naturally through Epaphras (see on Ver. 2). Refer "faith" to "the Lord Jesus" and "love" to "all the saints" (a chiasmus, or cross-reference). Note that the phrase is πρὸς (i.e. erga, towards) τὸν Κύριον, but εἰς (i.e. upon) τοὺς ἁγίους; perhaps because Christ cannot now be reached by bodily efforts, but only aspired towards by the soul; while the poor can actually be reached and ministered unto. "Ye have the poor always with you, but me ye have not always" (Matthew 26:11). All Christians are called "saints" in the Scriptures, as Ephesians 1:1, and invariably. What a reminder to them of their "holy calling" (2 Timothy 1:9)! Meyer notes, however, that it is not uncommon with St. Paul to vary the preposition (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16).