What biblical figure had a slave named Onesimus?

The biblical figure who had a slave named Onesimus was Philemon. Philemon was a Christian in Colossae and the recipient of Paul’s short New Testament letter, the Epistle to Philemon.

According to the traditional interpretation, Onesimus had been Philemon’s enslaved servant and had separated from him, possibly after wrongdoing. Onesimus later met Paul while Paul was imprisoned and became a Christian. Paul then sent him back to Philemon with a personal letter asking that he be received not merely as a slave, but as a beloved brother in Christ.

The letter is unusual because Paul appeals to Philemon’s conscience rather than simply issuing a command. Paul even offers to repay any debt Onesimus owed. The text does not explicitly explain every detail of Onesimus’s departure, and some modern scholars question whether he was legally Philemon’s slave. Nevertheless, Philemon is the standard answer in biblical trivia because the letter’s traditional reading identifies him as Onesimus’s owner.