Core Glossary
08 Core Glossary — Philemon (English → Mandarin)
This glossary consolidates every load-bearing term identified in 07_semantic_analysis.md, covering the entire book of Philemon (1:1–25). Terms already fixed in the baseline Romans translation_memory.json are marked [Reused] and their existing risk tier and rendering are carried over unchanged. New terms specific to Philemon are marked [New] and are proposed here for addition to translation memory, pending Phase 1 Step review.
Risk tiers follow the baseline doctrine_risk_registry.json definitions:
- Critical — mistranslation destroys essential doctrine; theologian review required for every occurrence.
- High — mistranslation risks significant theological confusion or syncretism; theologian review required.
- Medium — mistranslation reduces clarity but preserves core meaning; native speaker review recommended.
- Low — mistranslation causes minor imprecision; automated review sufficient.
Section 1 — Opening and Thanksgiving (Philemon 1:1–7)
| # | Greek Term | Transliteration | Mandarin Rendering | Status | Doctrine | Risk | Rejected Alternatives | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | δέσμιος | desmios | 被囚的 | New | Christian Brotherhood / Identity in Christ | Medium | 犯人 (criminal) | Paul’s chosen self-designation as “prisoner of Christ,” not a Roman legal-status label; must retain the genitive “of Christ Jesus” as the true possessor |
| 2 | ἀδελφός | adelphos | 兄弟 | New | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | High | 结拜兄弟 (sworn brotherhood), 同志 (comrade) | Must not be reduced to a chosen fictive-kinship pact (结拜) between social equals; in Philemon it is imposed by the gospel across an unequal, involuntary social relationship |
| 3 | ἀγαπητός | agapētos | 亲爱的 | New | Christian Brotherhood | Low | — | Standard relational term of affection |
| 4 | συνεργός | synergos | 同工 | New | Intercession and Appeal / Partnership | Low | — | Shared gospel labor; low collision risk |
| 5 | συστρατιώτης | systratiōtēs | 一同当兵的 | New | Partnership in Ministry | Low | — | Military metaphor for shared spiritual labor |
| 6 | ἐκκλησία | ekklēsia | 教会 | Reused | Church as God’s People | Medium (baseline) | 庙, 寺, 道观 | Baseline term; house-church sense noted |
| 7 | χάρις | charis | 恩典 | Reused | Grace | Critical (baseline) | 功德, 阴德, 造化, 福气 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 8 | εἰρήνη | eirēnē | 平安 | Reused | Peace with God | Medium (baseline) | 安宁 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 9 | θεός | theos | 神 | Reused | Deity of Christ | Critical (baseline) | 上帝, 天, 老天爷 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 10 | πατήρ | patēr | 父 | Reused | Adoption / Fatherhood of God | High (baseline) | 祖先, 老天爷 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 11 | κύριος | kyrios | 主 | Reused | Lordship of Christ | Critical (baseline) | 主人, 老爷 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 12 | εὐχαριστέω | eucharisteō | 感恩 | Reused | Thanksgiving | Low (baseline) | — | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 13 | ἀγάπη | agapē | 爱心 | New (concept low-risk) | Christian Brotherhood | Low | — | Standard NT love-vocabulary |
| 14 | πίστις | pistis | 信心 | Reused | Faith | High (baseline) | 虔诚, 迷信, 信仰 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 15 | ἅγιος (saints) | hagios | 圣徒 | Reused | Sainthood | High (baseline) | 圣人, 高僧 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 16 | κοινωνία | koinōnia | 团契 | Reused (sense-flagged) | Christian Fellowship / Grace-Motivated Obedience | Medium | 交情, 结拜 | Baseline term reused, but here denotes active outworking of faith, not gathered fellowship; flag sense difference for reviewers |
| 17 | χαρά | chara | 快乐 | New | Intercession / Relational tone | Low | — | Standard term |
| 18 | παράκλησις | paraklēsis | 安慰 | New | Intercession and Appeal | Low | — | Shares root with παρακαλέω; comfort/encouragement sense here |
| 19 | σπλάγχνα | splanchna | 心 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | High | 内脏 (literal “entrails,” too clinical/graphic), 肺腑 (archaic/literary, risks obscure register) | First of three occurrences (also vv.12, 20); requires dynamic, consistent rendering; no fixed Chinese compound captures the visceral Greek force |
| 20 | ἀναπαύω | anapauō | 得畅快 / 得安息 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | Medium | — | Recurs in v.20; consistency required |
Section 2 — Core Passage (Philemon 1:8–21)
| # | Greek Term | Transliteration | Mandarin Rendering | Status | Doctrine | Risk | Rejected Alternatives | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | παρρησία | parrēsia | 坦然的态度 / 权柄 | New | Intercession and Appeal | Medium | — | Apostolic confidence voluntarily set aside, not mere social forwardness |
| 22 | παρακαλέω | parakaleō | 恳求 | New (sense-distinguished from baseline “exhort” 劝勉) | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | High | 劝勉 (reserve for mutual-encouragement sense), 命令 (command) | Must read as personal appeal/request, not directive; do not default to baseline “exhort” gloss without checking sense |
| 23 | πρεσβύτης | presbytēs | 年老的 | New | (translation-choice note) | Low | πρεσβευτής reading “ambassador” | Textual variant; this package follows CUV “old man” tradition |
| 24 | τέκνον | teknon | 儿子 | New | Spiritual Fatherhood | Low | — | Spiritual, not biological, child |
| 25 | γεννάω | gennaō | 生 | New | Spiritual Fatherhood | Medium | — | Standard spiritual-parentage idiom; guard against literal-fatherhood confusion |
| 26 | δεσμός | desmos | 锁链 | New | Identity in Christ / Slavery doctrine backdrop | Medium | — | Recurs vv.10, 13; consistency required |
| 27 | Ὀνήσιμος | Onēsimos | 阿尼西母 | New | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | Low (doctrinal) / High (translator-note) | — | Name means “useful”; wordplay with vv.11, 20 requires mandatory footnote |
| 28 | ἄχρηστος | achrēstos | 从前没有益处的 | New | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | Medium | — | Utility-based valuation of a person, about to be overturned |
| 29 | εὔχρηστος | euchrēstos | 现在有益处的 | New | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | Medium | — | Wordplay on Onesimus’s name; do not let “usefulness” remain the final measure of his worth |
| 30 | ἀναπέμπω | anapempō | 送他回 / 打发他 | New | Reconciliation / Social Order | Low | — | Paul works within, not around, existing social/legal structures |
| 31 | κατέχω | katechō | 留 | New | Intercession | Low | — | Paul’s restrained personal desire |
| 32 | διακονέω | diakoneō | 服侍 | New | Slavery / Dignified Service | Low-Medium | — | Dignified ministry-service register, not degrading labor |
| 33 | εὐαγγέλιον | euangelion | 福音 | Reused | Gospel | Medium (baseline) | 好消息, 喜讯 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 34 | γνώμη | gnōmē | 同意 | New | Grace-Motivated Obedience | Medium | — | Philemon’s free, considered decision |
| 35 | ἀνάγκη | anankē | 勉强 | New | Grace-Motivated Obedience | High | 强迫 (too harsh/legalistic register) | Paired with ἑκούσιον; the negative pole Paul explicitly rejects |
| 36 | ἀγαθός | agathos | 善事 | New | Grace-Motivated Obedience | Low | — | Philemon’s coming act of grace |
| 37 | ἑκούσιον | hekousion | 甘心 / 出于自愿 | New | Grace-Motivated Obedience | High | 被迫 (forced) | Positive pole; preferred CUV-tradition rendering, use consistently |
| 38 | χωρίζω | chōrizō | 离开 | New | Providence / Reconciliation | Medium | — | Diplomatic euphemism for Onesimus’s flight; must not obscure real wrongdoing |
| 39 | αἰώνιος | aiōnios | 永远 | New | Providence / Permanent Reconciliation | Medium | — | Contrasted with “for an hour”; permanence echoing Christ-secured relationship |
| 40 | δοῦλος | doulos | 奴仆 | New | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | High | 佣人/雇工 (too weak, erases legal bondage), politicized “旧社会” class-narrative framing | Central doctrinal term of the whole letter; gospel transforms the relationship without first abolishing the legal category; must avoid both softening and politicized-class-struggle over-reading |
| 41 | ἀδελφός (v.16) | adelphos | 兄弟 | New (see Section 1 #2) | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | High | 结拜兄弟 | Central reversal term paired with δοῦλος |
| 42 | σάρξ | sarx | 肉身 / 世俗的关系 | New | Social Order within the Gospel | Medium | — | Neutral “ordinary social relations” sense here, not the sin-inclined “flesh” sense common elsewhere in Paul |
| 43 | κοινωνός | koinōnos | 同伴 | New | Christian Brotherhood / Partnership | Medium | 同伙 (criminal-accomplice connotation) | Avoid gang/conspiracy overtone present in 同伙 |
| 44 | προσλαμβάνω | proslambanō | 收纳 | New | Reconciliation | Low-Medium | — | Full, personal welcome as an equal |
| 45 | ἀδικέω | adikeō | 亏负 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | Medium | — | Real moral/legal wrongdoing, not mere inconvenience |
| 46 | ὀφείλω | opheilō | 欠 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | Low-Medium | — | Financial/moral debt |
| 47 | ἐλλογάω | ellogaō | 归在我的帐上 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | High | 因果报应 (impersonal karmic retribution), 功德转移 (Buddhist merit-transfer) | Substitutionary-echoing ledger term; must remain personal, one-time, voluntary — not cosmic/karmic or merit-based |
| 48 | ἀποτίνω | apotinō | 偿还 | New | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | Medium | — | Full, legally binding repayment guarantee |
| 49 | ὀνίνημι (ὀναίμην) | oninēmi | 我要从你得益处 | New | Intercession and Appeal | Medium | — | Wordplay on Onesimus’s name; footnote required |
| 50 | σπλάγχνα (v.20) | splanchna | 心 | New (see #19) | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | High | — | Second/third occurrence; consistency with vv.7, 12 required |
| 51 | πείθω (πεποιθώς) | peithō | 深信 | New | Grace-Motivated Obedience | Low-Medium | — | Confidence grounded in relationship, not leverage |
| 52 | ὑπακοή | hypakoē | 顺服 | New (sense-distinguished from baseline “obedience_of_faith”) | Grace-Motivated Obedience | High | 因信而生的顺服 (reserve for Romans technical compound) | Philemon’s expected compliance flows from his own love/faith; must not read as command-extracted obedience |
Section 3 — Closing (Philemon 1:22–25)
| # | Greek Term | Transliteration | Mandarin Rendering | Status | Doctrine | Risk | Rejected Alternatives | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | ξενία | xenia | 住处 | New | Christian Fellowship / Hospitality | Low | — | Ordinary hospitality practice |
| 54 | ἐλπίζω | elpizō | 盼望 | New | Providence | Low | — | Hope tied to the church’s prayers |
| 55 | χαρίζομαι | charizomai | 蒙恩归回 | New | Grace / Forgiveness (adjacent) | Medium | — | Grace-root (χαρ-) should remain audible in the Mandarin phrasing; cognate with χάρις and with Paul’s technical “forgive” usage elsewhere |
| 56 | συναιχμάλωτος | synaichmalōtos | 一同坐监的 | New | Partnership in Suffering | Low | — | Reinforces letter’s repeated “fellow-” vocabulary |
| 57 | χάρις (v.25) | charis | 恩典 | Reused | Grace | Critical (baseline) | 功德, 阴德, 造化, 福气 | Baseline term, reused exactly |
| 58 | πνεῦμα (human spirit) | pneuma | 心灵 | New (context-restricted) | (distinguishing note only) | Medium | 圣灵 (reserved for Holy Spirit compound only) | Human spirit/inmost self of the letter’s recipients; must not be confused with, or rendered using, the reserved Holy Spirit compound 圣灵 |
Cross-Reference: Baseline Terms Reused Without Modification
The following terms appear in Philemon and carry over their exact baseline rendering and risk tier with no changes: χάρις (恩典, Critical), εἰρήνη (平安, Medium), θεός (神, Critical), πατήρ (父, High), κύριος (主, Critical), εὐχαριστέω (感恩, Low), πίστις (信心, High), ἅγιος/saints (圣徒, High), κοινωνία (团契, Medium — sense-flagged), ἐκκλησία (教会, Medium), εὐαγγέλιον (福音, Medium). Proper names Ἰησοῦς (耶稣) and Χριστός (基督) are presumed present throughout per standard epistolary greeting/closing formulas and are reused at Critical risk per baseline.
New Terms Requiring Translation Memory Addition
Terms marked [New] above (#1–5, 13, 17–58 as applicable) are proposed for addition to translation_memory.json following this Phase 1 analysis. Per Critical/High risk tiering, the following require mandatory theologian review before memory finalization: δοῦλος, ἀδελφός, σπλάγχνα, ἀνάγκη, ἑκούσιον, ὑπακοή, ἐλλογάω, παρακαλέω (appeal sense).
Critical Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: 恩典
Transliteration: ēndiǎn
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 功德, 造化, 福气, 阴德
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in Philemon’s greeting (1:3) and closing benediction (1:25). Its cognate verb χαρίζομαι (1:22, see ‘grant_graciously’ below) keeps this grace-root vocabulary audible even in the letter’s closing logistical remark; NEVER 功德/阴德/造化/福气 per baseline.
God
Approved rendering: 神
Transliteration: Shén
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 上帝, 天, 老天爷
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in the greeting formula (1:3) naming God and the Lord Jesus jointly as source of grace and peace. Standardized on 神 (Shen edition) per baseline.
Lord
Approved rendering: 主
Transliteration: zhǔ
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 主人, 老爷
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in 1:3, ‘in the Lord’ (1:16, 1:20), and elsewhere. UNIQUELY ACUTE in this letter: Philemon’s own ordinary, literal household mastery over Onesimus is simultaneously in view. 主 (exclusive divine Lordship) must remain visibly distinct from any term used for Philemon’s ordinary social authority (which this package does not render with 主 at all — see ‘slave’ entry) throughout the letter.
Jesus
Approved rendering: 耶稣
Transliteration: Yēsū
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package. CUV standard transliteration, used uniformly throughout Philemon’s greeting, body, and closing.
Messiah
Approved rendering: 基督
Transliteration: Jīdū
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 弥勒, 救世主式泛称
Inherited from Romans package. Recurs throughout Philemon as ‘Christ Jesus,’ ‘in Christ,’ and as the possessor of Paul’s imprisonment (δέσμιος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ, 1:1, 1:9). NEVER conflate with 弥勒 (Maitreya).
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: 圣灵
Transliteration: Shènglíng
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 祖灵, 灵
Inherited from Romans package. Not directly named in Philemon’s body text, but retained here as a REQUIRED CONTRAST entry: Philemon 1:25’s closing benediction (‘with your spirit’) refers to the human spirit of the letter’s recipients, not the Holy Spirit — see ‘human_spirit’ below. The reserved compound 圣灵 must never be used for that ordinary human-spirit reference.
High Risk Terms
Faith
Approved rendering: 信心
Transliteration: xìnxīn
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 虔诚, 迷信, 信仰
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in Philemon 1:5 (‘your love and faith’) as one of the two grounds (with love) Paul appeals to in 1:9 and 1:21. Object of faith (the Lord Jesus, and toward the saints) must remain explicit.
Saints
Approved rendering: 圣徒
Transliteration: shèngtú
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Rejected alternatives: 圣人, 高僧
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in Philemon 1:5, 1:7 as recipients of Philemon’s love and the ones whose ‘hearts’ (σπλάγχνα) he has refreshed. Must not imply the elevated Confucian 圣人 (sage) category.
Father
Approved rendering: 父
Transliteration: fù
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 祖先, 老天爷
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in the greeting formula (1:3). Retained here also for contrast with ‘spiritual_child’/‘beget’ below: Paul’s figurative fathering of Onesimus (1:10) is a distinct, non-technical NT idiom and must not be confused with, or blended into, God the Father’s relational fatherhood of believers.
Obedience Of Faith
Approved rendering: 因信而生的顺服
Transliteration: yīn xìn ér shēng de shùnfú
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 孝顺, 礼法遵从
Inherited from Romans package (Rom 1:5, 16:26 technical soteriological compound). REQUIRED CONTRAST entry for this book: Philemon 1:21’s ὑπακοή (‘obedience’) is Philemon’s expected personal compliance with Paul’s specific appeal, NOT an instance of this Romans technical phrase. This full compound must NEVER be attached to Philemon 1:21 — use the bare term 顺服 registered separately under ‘obedience_appeal’ below.
Adoption
Approved rendering: 儿子的名分
Transliteration: érzi de míngfèn
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 过继, 收养
Inherited from Romans package. REQUIRED CONTRAST entry for this book: Paul’s figurative claim to have ‘begotten’ Onesimus (1:10, see ‘beget’ below) is a distinct minister-to-convert spiritual-parentage idiom and must not be confused with, or rendered using, this baseline term for believers’ relational adoption by God the Father.
Brother
Approved rendering: 兄弟
Transliteration: xiōngdì
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Rejected alternatives: 结拜兄弟, 同志
Original: ἀδελφός
Category: Christian Brotherhood
The letter’s central reversal term (1:16), paired directly with ‘slave’ (奴仆) in the same verse. NEVER let 兄弟 here be assimilated to 结拜兄弟 (sworn/ritual brotherhood, e.g. the Peach Garden Oath) — a voluntary pact between social equals who choose each other. Philemon 1:16 asserts the opposite: gospel-imposed kinship across an existing, involuntary, legally unequal master-slave relationship. Real social distance is not erased (‘both in the flesh and in the Lord,’ 1:16b) but is now governed by this new family bond. Avoid 同志 entirely (unrelated modern colloquial connotation).
Heart Affection
Approved rendering: 心
Transliteration: xīn
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Rejected alternatives: 内脏, 肺腑
Original: σπλάγχνα
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
σπλάγχνα: literally the inward parts/entrails; idiomatically the seat of deep affection. Occurs THREE times: the saints’ ‘hearts’ refreshed by Philemon (1:7), Onesimus called Paul’s own σπλάγχνα (1:12), and Paul’s request that Philemon ‘refresh my heart’ (1:20). No single Mandarin compound captures the visceral force of the Greek; 心 is the best functional equivalent but requires dynamic, context-sensitive rendering at each occurrence, tracked as ONE underlying concept across all three so the letter’s emotional arc is not lost. Avoid clinical 内脏 or archaic/obscure 肺腑.
Appeal
Approved rendering: 恳求
Transliteration: kěnqiú
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Rejected alternatives: 劝勉, 命令
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Intercession and Appeal
παρακαλέω in its personal, vulnerable-request sense (1:9, 1:10) — DISTINCT from the baseline Romans sense registered under ‘exhort’ = 劝勉 (mutual corporate encouragement among believers). That gloss must NEVER be applied here: doing so would flatten Paul’s deliberate rhetorical pivot from named-but-set-aside authority (παρρησία) to personal appeal, the doctrinal hinge of the whole letter. 劝勉 is reserved exclusively for the Romans mutual-encouragement sense; 命令 (command) is rejected as too directive.
Compulsion
Approved rendering: 勉强
Transliteration: miǎnqiǎng
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 强迫
Original: ἀνάγκη
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
ἀνάγκη (1:14): the thing Paul explicitly refuses to impose. Pivotal negative-pole vocabulary for Grace-Motivated Obedience. Any rendering suggesting Paul is actually applying subtle pressure while denying it undermines the entire theological point. 强迫 rejected as too harsh/legalistic, which would exaggerate the very coercion being disclaimed and make Paul’s denial ring false.
Voluntary
Approved rendering: 甘心 / 出于自愿
Transliteration: gānxīn / chūyú zìyuàn
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 被迫
Original: ἑκούσιον
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
ἑκούσιον (1:14): the positive counterpart to ἀνάγκη, paired directly as the doctrinal center of Grace-Motivated Obedience. 甘心 is the preferred CUV-tradition rendering; use consistently wherever this doctrine recurs. Avoid any rendering implying grudging or extracted compliance (e.g. 被迫, ‘forced’).
Slave
Approved rendering: 奴仆
Transliteration: núpú
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Rejected alternatives: 佣人, 雇工, 旧社会式阶级叙事框架
Original: δοῦλος
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
δοῦλος (1:16): the letter’s central doctrinal term. Must NOT be softened into a generic 佣人/雇工 (‘servant/employee’), which erases the real, legally binding, ownership-based unfreedom Onesimus faces. Must NOT be overlaid with the modern politicized 旧社会 (‘old feudal society’) class-struggle narrative frame, which would read the passage as either endorsing exploitative bondage or as a purely historical grievance narrative. The gospel does not first abolish the legal category — it transforms the relationship within and beyond it, leaving practical outworking (manumission or not) to Philemon’s own grace-motivated will (see ‘consent’, ‘voluntary’ above).
Charge To Account
Approved rendering: 归在我的帐上
Transliteration: guī zài wǒ de zhàng shàng
Doctrine: Substitutionary Debt-Bearing (Atonement Echo)
Rejected alternatives: 因果报应, 功德转移
Original: ἐλλογάω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ἐλλογάω (1:18): Paul offers to have Onesimus’s entire debt transferred to his own account — the letter’s clearest verbal echo of substitutionary atonement. The commercial-ledger metaphor is Paul’s own deliberate choice and must be retained. MUST guard against two opposite Chinese-context misreadings: (1) 因果报应 (impersonal karmic retribution accruing across a person’s fortune/lineage, rather than a specific, personal, once-for-all transfer); (2) 功德转移 (Buddhist merit-transfer, as if Paul is banking merit for Onesimus). Paul’s ledger is a one-time, personal, voluntary substitution, not a recurring karmic or merit-accounting system.
Obedience Appeal
Approved rendering: 顺服
Transliteration: shùnfú
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: 孝顺, 因信而生的顺服 (reserve for Romans technical compound)
Original: ὑπακοή
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
ὑπακοή (1:21): Philemon’s expected compliance with Paul’s specific personal appeal — DISTINCT from the baseline’s reserved compound 因信而生的顺服 (see that entry above), which must NEVER be attached here. Use the bare term 顺服 alone. Acute risk: Chinese readers have a strong culturally available default lens for this term — 孝顺 (filial-duty obedience discharged as a debt owed to a superior) — which would recast Paul’s confident expectation (πεποιθώς) as a disguised command backed by implicit relational pressure, exactly the coercion (ἀνάγκη) that 1:14 explicitly disclaims. Must be understood as flowing from Philemon’s own love and faith (1:5, 1:7), freely exercised (ἑκούσιον, 1:14).
Medium Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: 福音
Transliteration: fúyīn
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: 好消息, 喜讯
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in Philemon 1:13, ‘the chains of the gospel’ — Paul’s imprisonment is bound up with gospel proclamation. No modification to baseline rendering or risk tier.
Church
Approved rendering: 教会
Transliteration: jiàohuì
Doctrine: Church as a Witnessing Community (House Church)
Rejected alternatives: 庙, 寺, 道观
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. Philemon 1:2 adds that this is specifically ‘the church in your house’ (家中的教会) — a house-church, giving the letter’s private request a public, congregational witness dimension since it is read aloud to the whole assembly. Baseline caution against 庙/寺/道观 still applies.
Peace
Approved rendering: 平安
Transliteration: píng’ān
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Rejected alternatives: 安宁
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. Standard Pauline greeting formula, Philemon 1:3. No modification.
Prisoner Of Christ
Approved rendering: 被囚的
Transliteration: bèi qiú de
Doctrine: Apostolic Authority Voluntarily Set Aside (Appeal over Command)
Rejected alternatives: 犯人
Original: δέσμιος
Category: Christian Identity
Paul’s self-designation, ‘prisoner of Christ Jesus’ (1:1, 1:9), used instead of his apostolic title — sets the letter’s humble, personal tone. The genitive ‘of Christ Jesus’ must be preserved as the possessor of the imprisonment (an identity claim: Paul belongs to Christ, not merely to Rome), never softened to a locative ‘imprisoned while serving Christ.’ Consistent rendering required across 1:1 and 1:9.
Refresh
Approved rendering: 得畅快 / 得安息
Transliteration: dé chàngkuài / dé ānxī
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀναπαύω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ἀναπαύω, used of Philemon’s ministry to the saints (1:7) and reused in Paul’s request (1:20). Consistency between 1:7 and 1:20 required so the reader recognizes Paul is asking Philemon to do for him what Philemon has already done for others.
Boldness
Approved rendering: 坦然的态度 / 权柄
Transliteration: tǎnrán de tàidù / quánbǐng
Doctrine: Apostolic Authority Voluntarily Set Aside (Appeal over Command)
Original: παρρησία
Category: Intercession and Appeal
παρρησία (1:8): the apostolic standing Paul has, and deliberately sets aside, to command Philemon. Must convey real apostolic confidence Paul voluntarily restrains, not mere social forwardness or rhetorical politeness. Losing the ‘authority possessed but not exercised’ nuance undermines the letter’s entire persuasive strategy.
Beget
Approved rendering: 生
Transliteration: shēng
Doctrine: Spiritual Fatherhood and New Birth through Ministry
Original: γεννάω
Category: Christian Brotherhood
γεννάω (1:10): ‘whom I have begotten in my imprisonment.’ Must not be misread as a claim of divine-style creative power; standard NT spiritual-parentage idiom. Must not be confused with the baseline’s God-the-Father adoption doctrine (儿子的名分) — see that entry above. Gloss if reader confusion with literal fatherhood is likely.
Chains
Approved rendering: 锁链
Transliteration: suǒliàn
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: δεσμός
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
δεσμός, recurring across 1:10, 1:13 (culminating in ‘the chains of the gospel’). Consistent rendering required across all occurrences so the reader tracks Paul’s recurring ‘in chains’ motif.
Onesimus
Approved rendering: 阿尼西母
Transliteration: Āníxīmǔ
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: Ὀνήσιμος
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Ὀνήσιμος, proper name meaning ‘useful/profitable,’ a common favorable-connotation Greco-Roman slave name. Standard CUV transliteration carries no doctrinal risk by itself, but the name’s meaning is untranslatable through transliteration alone and sets up the wordplay of 1:11 (ἄχρηστος/εὔχρηστος) and 1:20 (ὀναίμην). MANDATORY translator footnote required wherever this wordplay is taught: ‘Onesimus (阿尼西母) means useful in Greek’ — without it the letter’s central rhetorical device is invisible to the Mandarin reader.
Unprofitable
Approved rendering: 从前没有益处的
Transliteration: cóngqián méiyǒu yìchù de
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: ἄχρηστος
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
ἄχρηστος (1:11): describes Onesimus’s former status purely in economic-utility terms. Must retain the utilitarian framing (a person assessed by usefulness) precisely so the gospel’s reversal in the following clause is visible.
Profitable
Approved rendering: 现在有益处的
Transliteration: xiànzài yǒu yìchù de
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: εὔχρηστος
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
εὔχρηστος (1:11): wordplay directly on Onesimus’s name. Do not let the Mandarin rendering leave ‘usefulness’ as the final word on Onesimus’s worth; the letter’s real argument (1:16) relocates his value from economic usefulness to familial belonging.
Serve
Approved rendering: 服侍
Transliteration: fúshì
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: διακονέω
Category: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
διακονέω (1:13): Onesimus’s potential help to Paul framed as dignified ministry-service, not menial/degrading labor. Use ONLY for διακονέω, never as a euphemism for δοῦλος itself, to avoid retroactively softening the slave status the letter’s argument depends on being real.
Consent
Approved rendering: 同意
Transliteration: tóngyì
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: γνώμη
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
γνώμη (1:14): must clearly convey ‘your own free decision,’ not merely a weak sense of ‘opinion.’ Paul insists Philemon’s response must be his own decision, not something extracted in his absence.
Separated
Approved rendering: 离开
Transliteration: líkāi
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: χωρίζω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
χωρίζω (1:15): a euphemistic description of Onesimus’s flight. Tone must be soft enough to match Paul’s diplomatic restraint, but must not obscure that a real wrong occurred — needed for 1:18’s ‘if he wronged you’ to make sense.
Eternal Permanent
Approved rendering: 永远
Transliteration: yǒngyuǎn
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: αἰώνιος
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
αἰώνιος (1:15), contrasted with ‘for an hour.’ Should carry a permanence echoing the eternal, Christ-secured brotherhood of 1:16, not merely ‘a long time.‘
Flesh Social
Approved rendering: 肉身 / 世俗的关系
Transliteration: ròushēn / shìsú de guānxì
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: σάρξ
Category: Christian Brotherhood
σάρξ (1:16), ‘both in the flesh and in the Lord.’ Neutral sense here — ordinary earthly/social relations — not the sin-inclined ‘flesh’ sense common elsewhere in Paul. Onesimus’s continuing social position under Philemon’s household is affirmed even as spiritual status is equal and familial.
Partner
Approved rendering: 同伴
Transliteration: tóngbàn
Doctrine: Christian Partnership in Gospel Labor
Rejected alternatives: 同伙
Original: κοινωνός
Category: Christian Fellowship
κοινωνός (1:17): Paul asks Philemon to treat Paul and Onesimus as interchangeable in welcome. Avoid 同伙 (tónghuǒ), which in modern Mandarin usage carries a strong criminal-accomplice connotation (gang/conspiracy contexts).
Welcome Receive
Approved rendering: 收纳
Transliteration: shōunà
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: προσλαμβάνω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
προσλαμβάνω (1:17): the concrete action requested — full personal welcome of Onesimus as Paul’s equal. Ensure surrounding text conveys welcome as an equal, not merely tolerance or readmission to household duty; reconciliation must be embodied in action, not merely felt.
Wronged
Approved rendering: 亏负
Transliteration: kuīfù
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀδικέω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ἀδικέω (1:18): Paul’s delicate acknowledgment that Onesimus likely wronged Philemon. Must retain real moral weight (an actual wrong done), not soften into a neutral ‘inconvenience’ — this grounds Forgiveness and Reconciliation in an actual offense, not a sentimental reconciliation without content.
Owe
Approved rendering: 欠
Transliteration: qiàn
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ὀφείλω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ὀφείλω (1:18-19): a possible financial debt (perhaps stolen property or lost labor value) in addition to the wrong itself.
Repay
Approved rendering: 偿还
Transliteration: chánghuán
Doctrine: Substitutionary Debt-Bearing (Atonement Echo)
Original: ἀποτίνω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ἀποτίνω (1:19): Paul’s personal written guarantee of the debt, reinforcing the substitutionary offer of 1:18. Retain the sense of full, personal, legally binding repayment.
Wordplay Benefit
Approved rendering: 我要从你得益处
Transliteration: wǒ yào cóng nǐ dé yìchù
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: ὀνίνημι (ὀναίμην)
Category: Intercession and Appeal
ὀνίνημι/ὀναίμην (1:20): a wish-form wordplay on Onesimus’s name, closing the pun begun in 1:11. The wordplay itself cannot survive translation and must be flagged via the same mandatory footnote required for ‘onesimus’ above; the underlying request (a favor/benefit from Philemon, ‘in the Lord’) must still be conveyed clearly even without the pun.
Confident
Approved rendering: 深信
Transliteration: shēnxìn
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: πείθω (πεποιθώς)
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
πείθω, perfect participle πεποιθώς (1:21). Paul’s settled confidence rests on Philemon’s known character (love and faith, 1:5), not on legal leverage; the appeal closes as it opened, grounded in relationship rather than authority.
Grant Graciously
Approved rendering: 蒙恩归回
Transliteration: méng ēn guī huí
Doctrine: Grace as Unmerited Favor
Original: χαρίζομαι
Category: Salvation
χαρίζομαι (1:22): cognate with χάρις (grace). Must NOT be rendered as a bare secular ‘hope to be released’; the grace-root (χαρ-/恩) should remain audible in the Mandarin phrasing so the connection to χάρις elsewhere in the letter (1:3, 1:25), and to this same verb’s technical ‘forgive’ sense elsewhere in Paul (Col 3:13; Eph 4:32), is not entirely lost — even though ‘forgive’ is not the active sense in this specific verse.
Human Spirit
Approved rendering: 心灵
Transliteration: xīnlíng
Doctrine: Closing Benediction (Human Spirit Distinguished from Holy Spirit)
Rejected alternatives: 圣灵 (reserved for Holy Spirit compound only)
Original: πνεῦμα
Category: God
πνεῦμα (1:25), ‘with your spirit’ — the human spirit/inmost self of the letter’s plural recipients (the whole house-church), NOT the Holy Spirit. Must not be confused with, or rendered using, the baseline’s reserved compound 圣灵 (see that entry above). 心灵 avoids any accidental Trinitarian misreading of this ordinary closing benediction.
Low Risk Terms
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: 感恩
Transliteration: gǎn’ēn
Doctrine: Hospitality and Practical Christian Care
Original: εὐχαριστέω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. Occurs in Philemon 1:4, Paul’s habitual thanksgiving prayer for Philemon. No modification.
Beloved
Approved rendering: 亲爱的
Transliteration: qīn’ài de
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: ἀγαπητός
Category: Christian Brotherhood
Applied identically to Philemon (1:1) and to Onesimus (1:16), asserting equal relational status between the two men before Philemon’s response is even given.
Fellow Worker
Approved rendering: 同工
Transliteration: tónggōng
Doctrine: Christian Partnership in Gospel Labor
Original: συνεργός
Category: Christian Fellowship
Applied to Philemon (1:1) and to Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke (1:24). Reinforces the letter’s overall partnership theme alongside κοινωνός (1:17).
Fellow Soldier
Approved rendering: 一同当兵的
Transliteration: yītóng dāngbīng de
Doctrine: Christian Partnership in Gospel Labor
Original: συστρατιώτης
Category: Christian Fellowship
Applied to Archippus (1:2). Military metaphor for shared spiritual labor/struggle; no significant collision risk.
Love
Approved rendering: 爱心
Transliteration: àixīn
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Christian Brotherhood
Philemon’s known love (1:5, 1:9), the primary ground of Paul’s appeal alongside faith. Standard NT love-vocabulary; low collision risk in this context.
Joy
Approved rendering: 快乐
Transliteration: kuàilè
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: χαρά
Category: Intercession and Appeal
Paul’s emotional response to hearing of Philemon’s love (1:7), establishing the letter’s relational register before the appeal.
Comfort
Approved rendering: 安慰
Transliteration: ānwèi
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: παράκλησις
Category: Intercession and Appeal
Shares a root with παρακαλέω (see ‘appeal’ below); emotional groundwork for the appeal that follows (1:7).
Elder
Approved rendering: 年老的
Transliteration: niánlǎo de
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Rejected alternatives: 使者/大使 (ambassador reading of the textual variant)
Original: πρεσβύτης
Category: Intercession and Appeal
πρεσβύτης (1:9), ‘an old man.’ A one-letter manuscript variant (πρεσβευτής, ‘ambassador’) exists; this package follows the CUV majority-reading tradition (‘an old man’). Either reading strengthens the appeal-not-command rhetoric; footnote the variant for translator awareness only, not as a doctrinal risk.
Spiritual Child
Approved rendering: 儿子
Transliteration: érzi
Doctrine: Spiritual Fatherhood and New Birth through Ministry
Original: τέκνον
Category: Christian Brotherhood
τέκνον (1:10): Onesimus as Paul’s spiritual child, converted through Paul’s ministry during imprisonment. Standard spiritual-fatherhood metaphor, paralleling 1 Cor 4:15, Gal 4:19.
Send Back
Approved rendering: 打发他 / 送他回到你那里
Transliteration: dǎfa tā / sòng tā huídào nǐ nàlǐ
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀναπέμπω
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
ἀναπέμπω (1:12): Paul voluntarily returning Onesimus to his legal master. Paul does not counsel Onesimus to remain hidden or Philemon’s authority to be circumvented; the gospel transforms the relationship rather than dissolving the social/legal structure first.
Retain
Approved rendering: 留
Transliteration: liú
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: κατέχω
Category: Intercession and Appeal
κατέχω (1:13): Paul’s own restrained desire to keep Onesimus with him. Underscores that returning Onesimus is a real personal sacrifice for Paul, not a costless gesture.
Good Deed
Approved rendering: 善事
Transliteration: shànshì
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: ἀγαθός
Category: Grace-Motivated Obedience
ἀγαθός (1:14): Philemon’s coming act of grace toward Onesimus, described simply as ‘the good’ he is about to do.
Own Hand
Approved rendering: 亲手
Transliteration: qīnshǒu
Doctrine: Substitutionary Debt-Bearing (Atonement Echo)
Original: χείρ
Category: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
χείρ (1:19), ‘I write this with my own hand.’ A legal-style personal guarantee, like a signature — underscores this is a binding personal commitment, not rhetorical flourish.
Guest Room
Approved rendering: 住处
Transliteration: zhùchù
Doctrine: Hospitality and Practical Christian Care
Original: ξενία
Category: Christian Fellowship
ξενία (1:22): Paul’s request for a room to be prepared for a hoped-for visit. Ordinary, expected form of Christian care.
Hope
Approved rendering: 盼望
Transliteration: pànwàng
Doctrine: Hospitality and Practical Christian Care
Original: ἐλπίζω
Category: Christian Fellowship
ἐλπίζω (1:22): Paul’s confident expectation of release, tied to the church’s prayers, not to Roman legal process alone.
Fellow Prisoner
Approved rendering: 一同坐监的
Transliteration: yītóng zuò jiān de
Doctrine: Christian Partnership in Gospel Labor
Original: συναιχμάλωτος
Category: Christian Fellowship
συναιχμάλωτος (1:23): Epaphras named as sharing Paul’s imprisonment. Reinforces the letter’s repeated ‘fellow-’ vocabulary alongside συνεργός, συστρατιώτης, κοινωνός.
Referenced passages