Core Glossary
08 Core Glossary — Philemon (English → Vietnamese)
This glossary lists 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 / bible_term_registry.json are marked [BASELINE — reuse exactly] and MUST NOT be altered. All other terms are new entries proposed for this curriculum, carrying forward the same risk-tier conventions (Critical / High / Medium / Low) and the same doctrine-collision documentation standard as the baseline.
Part 1 — Baseline Terms Reused (No Changes)
| Concept | Vietnamese Term | Greek (Transliteration) | Risk (baseline) | Verses in Philemon | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gospel | Tin Lành | εὐαγγέλιον (euangelion) | Medium | 1:13 | Reuse exactly; no new nuance introduced |
| Grace | ân điển | χάρις (charis) | High | 1:3, 1:22 (wordplay), 1:25 | v.22’s χαρισθήσομαι deliberately echoes this root — flag for translator note |
| Faith | đức tin | πίστις (pistis) | Medium | 1:5, 1:6 | Object is Christ, per baseline convention |
| Peace | sự bình an | εἰρήνη (eirēnē) | Medium | 1:3 | Standard epistolary greeting pair with grace |
| Church | Hội Thánh | ἐκκλησία (ekklēsia) | Medium | 1:2 | Here specifically a house church (κατ’ οἶκον) |
| Saints | các thánh đồ | ἅγιοι (hagioi) | High | 1:5, 1:7 | Never shorten to bare “các thánh” |
| Fellowship | sự thông công | κοινωνία (koinōnia) | Low | 1:6 | Distinct from κοινωνός (partner), a new term below |
| Thanksgiving | sự cảm tạ | εὐχαριστία / εὐχαριστῶ (eucharistia/eucharistō) | Low | 1:4 | Verb form “cảm tạ” |
| God | Đức Chúa Trời | θεός (theos) | High | 1:3, 1:4 | Standard usage, Father-relation context |
| Father | Cha | πατήρ (patēr) | High | 1:3 | Paired with “Đức Chúa Trời” |
| Lord | Chúa | κύριος (kyrios) | High | 1:3, 1:5, 1:16, 1:20, 1:25 | Appears repeatedly; note contrastive use with “flesh” at 1:16 |
| Jesus | Đức Chúa Giê-xu | Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous) | Critical | 1:1, 1:3, 1:5, 1:9, 1:23, 1:25 | Standard form throughout |
| Exhort (entreaty sense) | khuyên nài | παρακαλέω (parakaleō) | Low (baseline; elevated to High in this doctrinal use) | 1:9, 1:10 | Baseline note explicitly assigns “khuyên nài” to the entreaty sense — the exact sense active in Philemon’s central appeal |
Part 2 — New Terms Introduced in Philemon
| Concept | Vietnamese Term | Greek (Transliteration) | Risk | Doctrine | Verses | Rationale / Collision Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slave / bondservant | tôi mọi | δοῦλος (doulos) | High | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power; Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:16 | Established 1926 Bible-tradition rendering (same word used for Paul’s self-designation “servant of Christ Jesus” in Rô-ma 1:1). Must not be softened into a vague “servant” that erases real legal bondage, nor read as endorsing slavery as an institution — the doctrinal point is transcendence of the category in Christ, not its legitimation. |
| Beloved brother | anh em yêu dấu | ἀδελφὸς ἀγαπητός (adelphos agapētos) | High | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:16 | The letter’s theological climax: a slave received as family. Confucian/Vietnamese social hierarchy (chủ–tôi relations) resists familial equality across master–servant lines; teaching must make this radical reordering explicit, not domesticate it into polite courtesy language. |
| Brother / sister (general) | anh em / chị em | ἀδελφός / ἀδελφή (adelphos/adelphē) | Medium | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:1, 1:2, 1:7, 1:9, 1:20 | General fellow-believer term; risk rises specifically when applied to Onesimus (1:16, see above) rather than in its ordinary occurrences. |
| In the flesh / in the Lord (contrast) | theo xác thịt / trong Chúa | ἐν σαρκί / ἐν κυρίῳ (en sarki / en kyriō) | High | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:16 | ”Flesh” here means the ordinary social/legal sphere, NOT the morally negative “sinful nature” sense familiar from Romans 7-8. A translator note is required so readers do not import the wrong sarx-sense; the same two persons exist in both a social and a spiritual relationship simultaneously. |
| Partner (individual) | bạn hữu | κοινωνός (koinōnos) | Medium | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status; Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:17 | Distinct from κοινωνία (“sự thông công,” baseline Low risk, general fellowship) — κοινωνός denotes a specific, reciprocal, equal-standing partnership status extended by proxy to Onesimus. |
| Receive / welcome | tiếp nhận | προσλαμβάνω (proslambanō) | Medium | Forgiveness and Reconciliation; Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:17 | The concrete reconciling act requested: receive Onesimus exactly as Paul would be received. |
| Wronged / did injustice | làm hại / gây thiệt hại | ἀδικέω (adikeō) | Medium | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:18 | Names a real personal offense; keep as a personal wrong against a person, not a vague misfortune. |
| Owe / be indebted | mắc nợ | ὀφείλω (opheilō) | High | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:18, 1:19 | Must be framed as a personal debt owed to a person and forgivable by that person’s choice — never reframed as impersonal karmic debt (nghiệp) that self-resolves across time without a forgiving party. |
| Charge to one’s account / impute | kể vào (sổ của tôi) | ἐλλογάω (ellogaō) | Critical | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:18 | Forensic accounting/ledger metaphor for substitutionary payment. Shares its conceptual and lexical root (“kể cho” = reckon/impute) with the baseline Critical term imputed_righteousness (sự công bình được kể cho, Romans 4:3). Here the same reckoning-logic is enacted between two humans as a living picture of Christ’s atoning substitution — a theologically load-bearing connection that must be preserved for teaching purposes. |
| I will repay | tôi sẽ trả (đủ) | ἀποτίνω (apotinō) | High | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:19 | Full financial/legal repayment language; substitutionary payment motif. |
| Owe besides / owe in addition | còn mắc nợ (tôi) nữa | προσοφείλω (prosopheilō) | Medium | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:19 | Reminds the forgiver (Philemon) that he himself is a forgiven debtor — reciprocal, not one-directional, forgiveness. |
| Command (renounced) | truyền (dạy) / ra lệnh | ἐπιτάσσω (epitassō) | Medium | Grace-Motivated Obedience; Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:8 | Named only to be set aside in favor of appeal — establishes the letter’s entire rhetorical and doctrinal strategy. |
| What is fitting/proper (duty) | điều đáng làm | τὸ ἀνῆκον (to anēkon) | High | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:8 | Risk of collapsing into Confucian “duty/obligation” (nghĩa vụ, bổn phận) framing — precisely the compelled-obedience model the letter contrasts with grace-motivated appeal. |
| Boldness / confidence (to speak) | sự dạn dĩ | παρρησία (parrēsia) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:8 | Paul’s standing to command, deliberately not exercised. |
| Old man / ambassador (textual variant) | người già cả (v.l. sứ giả) | πρεσβύτης / πρεσβευτής (presbytēs / presbeutēs) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:9 | Genuine early manuscript variant affecting the basis of Paul’s persuasive authority (age vs. commission); flag for translator/theologian note rather than silently resolving. |
| Prisoner / one bound | kẻ bị tù | δέσμιος (desmios) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another; Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:1, 1:9 | Paul’s chosen self-identity throughout the letter; distinct Greek root from συναιχμάλωτος (1:23) and from δοῦλος (1:16) — keep these three bondage-terms visually distinct in Vietnamese. |
| Chains / bonds | xiềng xích / vòng xiềng | δεσμοί (desmoi) | Low | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:10, 1:13 | Literal imprisonment chains; also figurative “bonds of the gospel.” |
| Fellow prisoner/captive | bạn cùng bị tù | συναιχμάλωτος (synaichmalōtos) | Low | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:23 | Distinct root from δέσμιος (military-captivity imagery); purely descriptive. |
| Child (spiritual) | con | τέκνον (teknon) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:10 | Spiritual, not biological, parentage language for Onesimus. |
| Beget (spiritually) | sinh ra | γεννάω (gennaō) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:10 | Related to, but distinct from, the baseline High-risk “adoption” doctrine (sự làm con nuôi, Romans 8) — this is spiritual fatherhood through gospel ministry, not the legal adoption formula; keep the two concepts distinguished in teaching. |
| Onesimus (proper name, meaning “useful”) | Ô-nê-sim | Ὀνήσιμος (Onēsimos) | Medium | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:10, throughout | Retain the established transliterated proper-name form; footnote the name’s meaning at first occurrence since the letter builds sustained wordplay on it (1:11, 1:20). |
| Useless | vô dụng | ἄχρηστος (achrēstos) | Medium | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:11 | Describes Onesimus’s former condition; avoid a rendering so blunt it sounds dehumanizing — the doctrinal point is transformation. |
| Useful / profitable | có ích / hữu dụng | εὔχρηστος (euchrēstos) | Medium | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:11 | Direct evidence of the gospel’s transforming effect on character and relationships. |
| Send back | gửi trả về | ἀναπέμπω (anapempō) | Low | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:12 | Paul voluntarily returns Onesimus, modeling the reconciliation he requests. |
| Inward affections / heart | lòng dạ | σπλάγχνα (splagchna) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another; Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:7, 1:12, 1:20 | Visceral idiom for deepest affection; forms an inclusio across the letter (vv.7, 12, 20) and must be rendered consistently. |
| Give rest / refresh | làm cho … được yên ủi | ἀναπαύω (anapauō) | Medium | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:7, 1:20 | Paired verb with σπλάγχνα; consistent rendering required across both occurrences. |
| Serve / minister | hầu việc | διακονέω (diakoneō) | Low | Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power | 1:13 | Onesimus’s transformed usefulness expressed as gospel-related service, not mere slave labor. |
| Wish / desire (deliberate) | ước muốn | βούλομαι (boulomai) | Low | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:13 | Paul’s own desire yielding to Philemon’s rightful authority. |
| Hold fast / retain | giữ lại | κατέχω (katechō) | Low | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:13 | Paul deliberately declines to exercise possible retention. |
| Consent / judgment / will | ý riêng / sự đồng ý | γνώμη (gnōmē) | Medium | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:14 | Philemon’s free agreement is essential to the outcome’s moral value. |
| Compulsion / necessity | sự ép buộc | ἀνάγκη (anagkē) | High | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:14 | Explicitly named as the wrong model for Christian response — the opposite pole from grace-motivated obedience. |
| Good (deed) | điều lành / việc tốt | ἀγαθόν (agathon) | Medium | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:14 | The good act in view must arise from the heart, not from pressure. |
| Voluntary / of one’s own accord | cách tình nguyện | ἑκούσιον (hekousion) | High | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:14 | The positive model Paul insists on — directly serves the doctrine’s core claim. |
| Separated | bị phân cách / đã lìa khỏi | χωρίζω (chōrizō) | Medium | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:15 | Passive voice hints at providence at work even in wrongdoing, without excusing it. |
| Forever / permanently (non-eschatological) | mãi mãi | αἰώνιος (aiōnios) | Medium | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:15 | CAUTION: same root as doctrinal “eternal life” elsewhere in the NT; here describes lasting restoration of an earthly relationship, not afterlife destiny — must not be conflated. |
| Have back fully / possess | được lại (trọn vẹn) | ἀπέχω (apechō) | Low | Forgiveness and Reconciliation | 1:15 | Suggests complete, settled reception, not grudging or partial restoration. |
| Obedience | sự vâng phục | ὑπακοή (hypakoē) | High | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:21 | Shares its root with the baseline “obedience of faith” (sự vâng phục của đức tin) but stands alone here as the expected response to an appeal, not a command; must be taught as flowing from love/persuasion, not đạo hiếu-style hierarchical duty. |
| Confident / persuaded | tin chắc | πείθω/πεποιθώς (peithō/pepoithōs) | Low | Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:21 | Paul’s confidence rests on proven character, not coercive command. |
| Lodging / guest room | nơi trọ | ξενία (xenia) | Low | (none — practical detail) | 1:22 | Practical arrangement; minimal doctrinal weight. |
| Graciously granted / restored | tôi sẽ được ban lại cho anh em | χαρίζομαι/χαρισθήσομαι (charizomai/charisthēsomai) | Medium | Forgiveness and Reconciliation; (echoes) Grace | 1:22 | Deliberate wordplay on χάρις (ân điển) — Paul frames his hoped-for reunion itself as an act of grace; preserve the grace-echo with a translator note. |
| Fellow worker | bạn đồng công | συνεργός (synergos) | Low | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status | 1:1, 1:24 | Names active gospel partnership; later invoked (as κοινωνός, 1:17) as grounds for receiving Onesimus. |
| Fellow soldier | bạn đồng ngũ | συστρατιώτης (systratiōtēs) | Low | (none — honorific) | 1:2 | Military metaphor for shared gospel labor; purely figurative. |
| Your spirit (human, not divine) | tâm linh anh em | πνεῦμα (pneuma) | Medium | (caution note only) | 1:25 | Refers to the recipients’ own human spirit, NOT the Holy Spirit — must not be confused with the baseline Critical term “Đức Thánh Linh.” |
| Full knowledge | sự hiểu biết | ἐπίγνωσις (epignōsis) | Low | (supports Grace-Motivated Obedience context) | 1:6 | Describes the maturing effect Paul prays for in Philemon’s faith. |
| Joy | sự vui mừng | χαρά (chara) | Low | (none) | 1:7 | Standard term. |
| Comfort / consolation | sự yên ủi | παράκλησις (paraklēsis) | Low | Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another | 1:7 | Noun form; distinguished from the verb παρακαλῶ (“khuyên nài,” entreaty sense) used later in the appeal proper. |
| Love | tình yêu thương | ἀγάπη (agapē) | Medium | Christian Brotherhood across Social Status; Grace-Motivated Obedience | 1:5, 1:7, 1:9 | Stated ground of Paul’s entire appeal; must convey selfless, covenantal love, not mere familial sentiment or reciprocal favor. |
Risk Summary for This Curriculum
| Risk Tier | Count (new terms) | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 1 | Human theologian review |
| High | 8 | Human theologian review |
| Medium | 19 | Native speaker review |
| Low | 12 | Automated review |
All Critical- and High-risk terms above must be routed to human theologian review per the same escalation rules established in 12_ai_translation_requirements.md; all Medium-risk terms to native speaker review; Low-risk terms may proceed with automated review only, consistent with the baseline Romans package’s risk-tier conventions.
Critical Risk Terms
Jesus
Approved rendering: Đức Chúa Giê-xu
Transliteration: Duc Chua Gie-xu
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Appears throughout Philemon (1:1, 1:3, 1:5, 1:9, 1:23, 1:25); keep the established form consistent across the whole letter.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Đức Thánh Linh
Transliteration: Duc Thanh Linh
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: thần linh
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly), included here for CONTRASTIVE purposes only. Philemon 1:25’s πνεῦμα (‘your spirit’) refers to the recipients’ OWN human spirit (see new term ‘your_spirit_human’), NOT to Đức Thánh Linh. Never render 1:25 in a way readable as a Trinity reference.
Imputed Righteousness
Approved rendering: sự công bình được kể cho
Transliteration: su cong binh duoc ke cho
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: công đức tích lũy
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly), included here for CROSS-REFERENCE. Philemon 1:18’s ἐλλογάω (‘kể vào sổ của tôi’, new Critical term ‘charge_to_account’ below) shares its conceptual and lexical reckoning/crediting root with this term. This connection is theologically load-bearing and must be preserved for teaching, not treated as coincidental vocabulary overlap.
Christ
Approved rendering: Đấng Christ
Transliteration: Dang Christ
Doctrine: Deity of Christ / Messianic Promise
Formalizes as a standalone translation_memory.json entry the transliteration standard already fixed in the baseline 12_ai_translation_requirements.md (‘Christ = Đấng Christ’); not previously its own translation_memory entry. Appears repeatedly throughout Philemon (1:1 Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ, 1:3, 1:6, 1:8, 1:9, 1:20, 1:23, 1:25).
Charge To Account
Approved rendering: kể vào (sổ của tôi)
Transliteration: ke vao (so cua toi)
Doctrine: Vicarious Debt Payment (Substitution Enacted)
Rejected alternatives: hồi hướng công đức, xin lỗi giùm, bỏ qua cho
Original: ἐλλογάω
Category: Reconciliation
CRITICAL: Philemon 1:18. A forensic-accounting metaphor for substitutionary payment, sharing its conceptual/lexical reckoning root with the baseline Critical term imputed_righteousness. NEVER render this through hồi hướng công đức (Vietnamese Buddhist merit-transfer/dedication, e.g. to deceased ancestors), which moves accumulated merit rather than transferring a specific, named, forgivable financial/personal debt. Losing the ledger/reckoning sense collapses the letter’s clearest lived picture of substitutionary atonement into a vague apology.
High Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: ân điển
Transliteration: an dien
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: phước đức, công đức, ơn nghĩa
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Appears at Philemon 1:3, 1:25. Philemon 1:22’s χαρισθήσομαι (‘graciously_granted’, new term below) deliberately echoes this root; preserve the echo with a translator note while keeping it visibly distinct from the debt/ledger vocabulary of 1:18-19 so the two logics are never blended into a single reciprocal-favor reading.
Saints
Approved rendering: các thánh đồ
Transliteration: cac thanh do
Doctrine: Sainthood
Rejected alternatives: các thánh
Original: ἅγιοι
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Appears at Philemon 1:5, 1:7. Never shortened to bare các thánh, which names deified folk heroes worshipped at temples.
God
Approved rendering: Đức Chúa Trời
Transliteration: Duc Chua Troi
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Ông Trời
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Appears at Philemon 1:3, 1:4; every occurrence should carry enough context to convey a personal, covenant-making God, not the impersonal Ông Trời of folk speech.
Father
Approved rendering: Cha
Transliteration: Cha
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Paired with Đức Chúa Trời in the epistolary greeting at Philemon 1:3.
Lord
Approved rendering: Chúa
Transliteration: Chua
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Appears at Philemon 1:3, 1:5, 1:16, 1:20, 1:25; used contrastively with ‘flesh’ at 1:16 (ἐν κυρίῳ), marking the spiritual sphere in which Onesimus and Philemon stand as equals regardless of their social relationship.
Adoption
Approved rendering: sự làm con nuôi
Transliteration: su lam con nuoi
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly), included here for CROSS-REFERENCE. Philemon 1:10’s γεννάω (‘sinh ra’, new term ‘spiritually_beget’ below — spiritual fatherhood through gospel ministry) must be kept distinct from this legal, forensic Romans 8 adoption doctrine. Related but not identical concepts; do not conflate in teaching material.
In Christ
Approved rendering: trong Đấng Christ
Transliteration: trong Dang Christ
Doctrine: Christian Identity Transformation (Name and Usefulness)
New formalization for this curriculum, reusing the established Đấng Christ pattern. Philemon 1:8’s ἐν Χριστῷ names the sphere/source of Paul’s boldness, the same union-with-Christ identity formula active in Romans. Distinguish carefully from ἐν κυρίῳ (‘trong Chúa’) and ἐν σαρκί (‘theo xác thịt’), the two spheres contrasted at 1:16 (see ‘flesh_and_lord_contrast’).
Intercessory Appeal
Approved rendering: khuyên nài
Transliteration: khuyen nai
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Rejected alternatives: sự cầu thay, ra lệnh
Original: παρακαλέω (entreaty sense)
Category: Intercession
The entreaty sense of παρακαλέω, active at Philemon 1:9-10, where Paul deliberately entreats rather than commands. Elevated to High risk in this book: never label this human-to-human appeal ‘sự cầu thay’ (the baseline Critical prayer/intercession-before-God doctrine); the two must remain doctrinally distinct.
Slave Bondservant
Approved rendering: tôi mọi
Transliteration: toi moi
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Rejected alternatives: đầy tớ, người hầu
Original: δοῦλος
Category: Social Status
Established 1926 Bible-tradition rendering (same word used for Paul’s self-designation in Rô-ma 1:1). Philemon 1:16 names Onesimus’s real, legally-binding bondage. Must not be softened into a vague ‘servant’ erasing the injustice, nor read as endorsing slavery. First-occurrence translator note required distinguishing Onesimus’s forced bondage from Paul’s own voluntary theological self-designation elsewhere, and confirming no reference to the unrelated pejorative ethnic usage of the bare syllable ‘mọi’.
Beloved Brother
Approved rendering: anh em yêu dấu
Transliteration: anh em yeu dau
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: ἀδελφὸς ἀγαπητός
Category: Social Status
The letter’s theological climax (1:16): a slave received as family. Confucian chủ–tôi hierarchy resists familial equality across master-servant lines; must be taught as a radical reordering of relationship, not domesticated into polite courtesy address extended downward to a social inferior.
Flesh And Lord Contrast
Approved rendering: theo xác thịt / trong Chúa
Transliteration: theo xac thit / trong Chua
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: ἐν σαρκί / ἐν κυρίῳ
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:16 only. Here ‘flesh’ denotes the ordinary social/legal sphere (master-slave), NOT the morally negative ‘sinful nature’ sense from Romans 7-8. Requires a translator note so readers do not import the wrong sarx-sense from the Romans curriculum. The same two persons exist simultaneously in both spheres; the spiritual relation reshapes, but does not simply erase, the social one.
Owe Indebted
Approved rendering: mắc nợ
Transliteration: mac no
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Rejected alternatives: nợ nghiệp, nợ duyên, nợ đời
Original: ὀφείλω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:18, 1:19. Must be framed as a personal debt owed to a person and forgivable by that person’s free choice. Never reframed as impersonal karmic debt (nghiệp) that self-resolves across time without a forgiving party — a pervasive everyday Vietnamese idiom pattern (nợ duyên, nợ đời, nợ nghiệp) this term must actively resist.
Will Repay
Approved rendering: tôi sẽ trả (đủ)
Transliteration: toi se tra (du)
Doctrine: Vicarious Debt Payment (Substitution Enacted)
Rejected alternatives: tôi sẽ giúp trả một phần
Original: ἀποτίνω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:19. Paul personally guarantees full repayment — a lived picture of substitutionary payment. A weak or partial rendering (‘I will help pay’) would undercut the substitutionary force of the offer.
What Is Fitting
Approved rendering: điều đáng làm
Transliteration: dieu dang lam
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: nghĩa vụ, bổn phận
Original: τὸ ἀνῆκον
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:8. Risk of collapsing into Confucian duty/obligation framing (nghĩa vụ, bổn phận) — precisely the compelled-obedience model Paul sets aside in favor of appeal grounded in love. A single mistranslated word here can silently reverse the letter’s rhetorical strategy.
Compulsion Necessity
Approved rendering: sự ép buộc
Transliteration: su ep buoc
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: ἀνάγκη
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:14. Explicitly named as the wrong model for Christian response, the opposite pole from grace-motivated obedience. A rendering with connotations of fate-bound necessity (rather than external pressure from a person) would blur this deliberate contrast.
Voluntary
Approved rendering: cách tình nguyện
Transliteration: cach tinh nguyen
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: ἑκούσιον
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:14. The positive model Paul insists on, directly serving the doctrine’s core claim. Risk of sounding like secular civic volunteering (‘tình nguyện viên’); must be taught as a grace-rooted moral choice, not casual volunteer activity.
Obedience
Approved rendering: sự vâng phục
Transliteration: su vang phuc
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Rejected alternatives: đạo hiếu
Original: ὑπακοή
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:21. Shares its Vietnamese root with the baseline ‘obedience of faith’ (sự vâng phục của đức tin), but stands alone here as the expected response to an appeal, not a command. Must be taught as flowing from love and persuasion, not đạo hiếu-style hierarchical duty owed by social role. Pair consistently with an explicit contrasting clause (‘bởi tình yêu thương, không phải bởi sự ép buộc’) at 1:8, 1:14, 1:21.
Medium Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: Tin Lành
Transliteration: tin lanh
Doctrine: Gospel
Rejected alternatives: tin tức tốt lành
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). In Philemon 1:13 names the cause for which Paul is imprisoned (‘bonds of the gospel’), grounding Onesimus’s transformed usefulness in gospel-related service rather than mere slave labor.
Faith
Approved rendering: đức tin
Transliteration: duc tin
Doctrine: Faith
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Philemon 1:5-6 describes Philemon’s reported faith toward the Lord Jesus and its outworking in fellowship.
Peace
Approved rendering: sự bình an
Transliteration: su binh an
Doctrine: Peace with God
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Standard Pauline greeting pair with grace at Philemon 1:3.
Church
Approved rendering: Hội Thánh
Transliteration: Hoi Thanh
Doctrine: Church as God’s People
Rejected alternatives: đền, chùa
Original: ἐκκλησία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Philemon 1:2 specifies a house church (κατ’ οἶκον ἐκκλησία); render as ‘Hội Thánh nhóm tại nhà’ so readers picture a home gathering of believers, not a dedicated temple building.
Brother Sister General
Approved rendering: anh em / chị em
Transliteration: anh em / chi em
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Original: ἀδελφός / ἀδελφή
Category: Church
General fellow-believer usage (1:1, 1:2, 1:7, 1:9, 1:20) carries ordinary, lower risk; risk rises sharply and specifically only when applied to Onesimus at 1:16 (see ‘beloved_brother’).
Partner Individual
Approved rendering: bạn hữu
Transliteration: ban huu
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Original: κοινωνός
Category: Church
Philemon 1:17. Distinct from κοινωνία (‘sự thông công’, baseline Low term) — κοινωνός denotes a specific, reciprocal, equal-standing partnership Paul extends by proxy to Onesimus. Requires a translator note clarifying this is a formal partnership status, not casual friendship.
Receive Welcome
Approved rendering: tiếp nhận
Transliteration: tiep nhan
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: προσλαμβάνω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:17. The concrete reconciling act requested: receive Onesimus exactly as Paul would be received, erasing status distinction in practice.
Wronged
Approved rendering: làm hại / gây thiệt hại
Transliteration: lam hai / gay thiet hai
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀδικέω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:18. Names a real personal offense; keep as a genuine wrong against a person, giving the doctrine real moral content rather than a merely sentimental reunion.
Owe Besides
Approved rendering: còn mắc nợ (tôi) nữa
Transliteration: con mac no (toi) nua
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: προσοφείλω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:19. Reminds Philemon that he himself is spiritually indebted to Paul, making forgiveness reciprocal rather than one-directional — the one asked to forgive a debt is himself a forgiven debtor.
Command Renounced
Approved rendering: truyền (dạy) / ra lệnh
Transliteration: truyen (day) / ra lenh
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: ἐπιτάσσω
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:8. Named only to be set aside in favor of appeal — establishes the letter’s entire rhetorical and doctrinal strategy of grace-motivated request over compelled command.
Boldness
Approved rendering: sự dạn dĩ
Transliteration: su dan di
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: παρρησία
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:8. Names the standing Paul has to command, which he deliberately does not exercise, foregrounding appeal over authority.
Elder Ambassador Variant
Approved rendering: người già cả (v.l. sứ giả)
Transliteration: nguoi gia ca (v.l. su gia)
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: πρεσβύτης (v.l. πρεσβευτής)
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:9. Genuine early manuscript variant (πρεσβύτης ‘old man’ vs. πρεσβευτής ‘ambassador’) affecting the basis of Paul’s persuasive authority. Flag with a translator/theologian note rather than silently resolving in either direction.
Prisoner Bound
Approved rendering: kẻ bị tù
Transliteration: ke bi tu
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: δέσμιος
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:1, 1:9. Paul’s chosen self-identity throughout the letter, distinct from συναιχμάλωτος (‘fellow_prisoner’, military-captivity imagery, 1:23) and from δοῦλος (‘slave_bondservant’, 1:16) — keep all three bondage-terms visually distinct in Vietnamese.
Spiritual Child
Approved rendering: con
Transliteration: con
Doctrine: Spiritual Fatherhood in Ministry
Original: τέκνον
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:10. Spiritual, not biological, parentage — Onesimus’s new identity in Christ supersedes his social identity as slave.
Spiritually Beget
Approved rendering: sinh ra
Transliteration: sinh ra
Doctrine: Spiritual Fatherhood in Ministry
Original: γεννάω
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:10. Paul’s claim of spiritual fatherhood over Onesimus through gospel ministry. Related to, but distinct from, the baseline High-risk ‘adoption’ doctrine (see ‘adoption’ entry above) — this is begetting through gospel proclamation, not the legal adoption formula.
Onesimus Name
Approved rendering: Ô-nê-sim
Transliteration: O-ne-sim
Doctrine: Christian Identity Transformation (Name and Usefulness)
Original: Ὀνήσιμος
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:10 and throughout. Retain the established transliterated proper-name form; footnote the name’s meaning (‘useful/profitable one’) at first occurrence since the letter sustains wordplay on it at 1:11 and 1:20.
Useless
Approved rendering: vô dụng
Transliteration: vo dung
Doctrine: Christian Identity Transformation (Name and Usefulness)
Original: ἄχρηστος
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:11. Describes Onesimus’s former condition and puns on his name; avoid a rendering so blunt it sounds dehumanizing or reads as a lingering judgment — the doctrinal point is a past condition now reversed, not ongoing worthlessness.
Useful
Approved rendering: có ích / hữu dụng
Transliteration: co ich / huu dung
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: εὔχρηστος
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:11. Direct evidence of the gospel’s transforming effect on Onesimus’s character and relationships.
Inward Affections
Approved rendering: lòng dạ
Transliteration: long da
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: σπλάγχνα
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:7, 1:12, 1:20. A visceral idiom for deepest affection forming an inclusio across the letter; must be rendered consistently at all three occurrences. At 1:12 the idiom is applied directly to a person (Onesimus is Paul’s own ‘lòng dạ’) — flag as an unusual application that may read oddly without a supporting note.
Give Rest Refresh
Approved rendering: làm cho … được yên ủi
Transliteration: lam cho … duoc yen ui
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: ἀναπαύω
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:7, 1:20. Paired verb with ‘lòng dạ’; consistent rendering required across both occurrences so readers can trace Paul’s request that Philemon refresh his heart just as he has refreshed the saints’.
Consent Will
Approved rendering: ý riêng / sự đồng ý
Transliteration: y rieng / su dong y
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: γνώμη
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:14. Philemon’s free agreement is essential to the outcome’s moral and spiritual value, central to Grace-Motivated Obedience.
Good Deed
Approved rendering: điều lành / việc tốt
Transliteration: dieu lanh / viec tot
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: ἀγαθόν
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:14. The good act in view (freeing/receiving Onesimus as brother) must arise from the heart, not from pressure.
Separated
Approved rendering: bị phân cách / đã lìa khỏi
Transliteration: bi phan cach / da lia khoi
Doctrine: Providence in Separation
Rejected alternatives: số trời, nghiệp, duyên/số
Original: χωρίζω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:15. Passive voice hints at divine providence at work even in Onesimus’s departure/wrongdoing, without excusing it — echoing the baseline Romans 8:28 providence doctrine. Must not be rendered with fate/karma framing (số trời, nghiệp, duyên/số) nor read as excusing the underlying wrong (ἀδικέω).
Forever Permanent
Approved rendering: mãi mãi
Transliteration: mai mai
Doctrine: Christian Brotherhood across Social Status
Rejected alternatives: sự sống đời đời (wrong register)
Original: αἰώνιος
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:15. CAUTION: same root as the doctrinal ‘eternal life’ sense used elsewhere in the NT, but here describes the lasting nature of the restored earthly relationship between Philemon and Onesimus, not life after death — must not be conflated with the eschatological sense readers may already know from other curricula.
Graciously Granted
Approved rendering: tôi sẽ được ban lại cho anh em (bởi ân điển)
Transliteration: toi se duoc ban lai cho anh em (boi an dien)
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: ơn nghĩa-style reciprocal favor framing
Original: χαρίζομαι (χαρισθήσομαι)
Category: Salvation
Philemon 1:22. A deliberate echo of χάρις (ân điển) — Paul frames his own hoped-for release/reunion as itself an act of grace. Preserve the grace-echo with a translator note, explicitly distinguished from the ledger/debt vocabulary two verses earlier (1:18-19), which describes a debt Paul is PAYING, not a favor owed TO Paul.
Your Spirit Human
Approved rendering: tâm linh anh em
Transliteration: tam linh anh em
Doctrine: (caution note only)
Original: πνεῦμα
Category: God
Philemon 1:25. CAUTION: refers to the recipients’ own human spirit, NOT Πνεῦμα Ἅγιον. Must be rendered clearly distinguishable from the baseline Critical term Đức Thánh Linh so readers do not read a Trinity reference into a closing benediction about their own inner being.
Love Agape
Approved rendering: tình yêu thương
Transliteration: tinh yeu thuong
Doctrine: Love as the Ground of Christian Relationship
Rejected alternatives: ơn nghĩa
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Faith
Philemon 1:5, 1:7, 1:9. The stated ground of Paul’s entire appeal for Onesimus — must convey selfless, covenantal love, not mere familial sentiment or a reciprocal Confucian-style favor (ơn nghĩa) that would collapse Grace-Motivated Obedience back into obligation.
Low Risk Terms
Fellowship
Approved rendering: sự thông công
Transliteration: su thong cong
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Original: κοινωνία
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Philemon 1:6. Distinct from κοινωνός (‘bạn hữu’, new term ‘partner_individual’ below), a related but distinct individual-partner noun used at 1:17.
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: sự cảm tạ
Transliteration: su cam ta
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Original: εὐχαριστία / εὐχαριστῶ
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly). Verb form ‘cảm tạ’ opens Paul’s thanksgiving for Philemon at 1:4.
Exhort
Approved rendering: khích lệ
Transliteration: khich le
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package (copied exactly), reserved for the encouragement/build-up sense of παρακαλέω. In Philemon the entreaty sense of the same Greek verb dominates at 1:9-10; see new term ‘intercessory_appeal’ (khuyên nài) for that doctrinally load-bearing usage. Do not conflate the two senses.
Paul Name
Approved rendering: Phao-lô
Transliteration: Phao-lo
Doctrine: (proper name)
Formalizes as a standalone translation_memory.json entry the transliteration standard already fixed in the baseline 12_ai_translation_requirements.md. Paul identifies himself as author throughout Philemon (1:1, 1:9, 1:19).
Chains Bonds
Approved rendering: xiềng xích / vòng xiềng
Transliteration: xieng xich / vong xieng
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: δεσμοί
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:10, 1:13. Literal imprisonment chains; also figuratively ‘the bonds of the gospel.’ Low doctrinal risk, primarily descriptive.
Fellow Prisoner
Approved rendering: bạn cùng bị tù
Transliteration: ban cung bi tu
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: συναιχμάλωτος
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:23. Different Greek root from δέσμιος, drawing on military-captivity imagery; purely descriptive of Epaphras’s shared suffering with Paul.
Send Back
Approved rendering: gửi trả về
Transliteration: gui tra ve
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀναπέμπω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:12. Paul voluntarily returns Onesimus rather than retaining him, modeling the reconciliation he requests of Philemon.
Serve Minister
Approved rendering: hầu việc
Transliteration: hau viec
Doctrine: Slavery and the Gospel’s Transforming Power
Original: διακονέω
Category: Social Status
Philemon 1:13. Envisions Onesimus’s transformed usefulness expressed in gospel-related service, not mere slave labor.
Wish Desire
Approved rendering: ước muốn
Transliteration: uoc muon
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: βούλομαι
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:13. Shows Paul’s own desire yielding to Philemon’s rightful authority, modeling the voluntary self-limitation he asks of Philemon.
Hold Fast Retain
Approved rendering: giữ lại
Transliteration: giu lai
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: κατέχω
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:13. Paul deliberately declines to exercise a retention he could have claimed.
Have Back Fully
Approved rendering: được lại (trọn vẹn)
Transliteration: duoc lai (tron ven)
Doctrine: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Original: ἀπέχω
Category: Reconciliation
Philemon 1:15. Suggests a complete, settled reception of Onesimus, not a grudging or partial restoration.
Confident Persuaded
Approved rendering: tin chắc
Transliteration: tin chac
Doctrine: Grace-Motivated Obedience
Original: πείθω (πεποιθώς)
Category: Obedience
Philemon 1:21. Paul’s confidence rests on Philemon’s proven character, not on the coercive force of command.
Lodging
Approved rendering: nơi trọ
Transliteration: noi tro
Doctrine: Hospitality and Gospel Partnership
Original: ξενία
Category: Epistolary
Philemon 1:22. Practical arrangement for Paul’s hoped-for visit; minimal doctrinal weight.
Fellow Worker
Approved rendering: bạn đồng công
Transliteration: ban dong cong
Doctrine: Hospitality and Gospel Partnership
Original: συνεργός
Category: Church
Philemon 1:1, 1:24. Names Philemon’s own active gospel partnership at 1:1, later invoked (as κοινωνός, 1:17) as grounds for receiving Onesimus; also applied to Paul’s traveling companions at 1:24.
Fellow Soldier
Approved rendering: bạn đồng ngũ
Transliteration: ban dong ngu
Doctrine: Hospitality and Gospel Partnership
Original: συστρατιώτης
Category: Church
Philemon 1:2. Military metaphor for shared gospel labor applied to Archippus; purely honorific and figurative.
Full Knowledge
Approved rendering: sự hiểu biết
Transliteration: su hieu biet
Doctrine: Faith
Original: ἐπίγνωσις
Category: Faith
Philemon 1:6. Describes the maturing effect Paul prays for in Philemon’s faith-partnership.
Joy
Approved rendering: sự vui mừng
Transliteration: su vui mung
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Original: χαρά
Category: Faith
Philemon 1:7. Standard term; minimal doctrinal risk.
Comfort Consolation
Approved rendering: sự yên ủi
Transliteration: su yen ui
Doctrine: Intercession and Appeal on Behalf of Another
Original: παράκλησις
Category: Intercession
Philemon 1:7. Noun form distinguished from the verb παρακαλῶ used later in the entreaty proper (‘intercessory_appeal’); here carries the comfort/consolation sense.
Prayer
Approved rendering: sự cầu nguyện
Transliteration: su cau nguyen
Doctrine: Christian Fellowship
Original: προσευχή
Category: Faith
Philemon 1:4, 1:22. Standard term, kept distinct from the more theologically loaded baseline term ‘sự cầu thay’ (intercession before God).
Philemon Name
Approved rendering: Phi-lê-môn
Transliteration: Phi-le-mon
Doctrine: (proper name / book title)
Letter recipient and book title; not previously fixed in the baseline Romans package. Establishes the standard Vietnamese Protestant form for this curriculum.
Apphia Name
Approved rendering: Áp-phia
Transliteration: Ap-phia
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:2. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Archippus Name
Approved rendering: Ác-chíp
Transliteration: Ac-chip
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:2. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Epaphras Name
Approved rendering: Ê-pháp-ra
Transliteration: E-phap-ra
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:23. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Mark Name
Approved rendering: Mác
Transliteration: Mac
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:24. New proper name; consistent with other NT-book transliteration conventions.
Aristarchus Name
Approved rendering: A-ri-tác
Transliteration: A-ri-tac
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:24. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Demas Name
Approved rendering: Đê-ma
Transliteration: De-ma
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:24. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Luke Name
Approved rendering: Lu-ca
Transliteration: Lu-ca
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:24. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Timothy Name
Approved rendering: Ti-mô-thê
Transliteration: Ti-mo-the
Doctrine: (proper name)
Philemon 1:1. New proper name; establishes the standard transliterated form for this curriculum.
Referenced passages