Philemon 1:11 (DRB)

Passage

Who hath been heretofore unprofitable to thee but now is profitable both to me and thee:

Nearby Context

Philemon 1:9 For charity sake I rather beseech, whereas thou art such a one, as Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also of Jesus Christ.

Philemon 1:10 I beseech thee for my son, whom I have begotten in my bands, Onesimus,

Philemon 1:11 Who hath been heretofore unprofitable to thee but now is profitable both to me and thee:

Philemon 1:12 Whom I have sent back to thee. And do thou receive him as my own bowels.

Philemon 1:13 Whom I would have retained with me, that in thy stead he might have ministered to me in the bands of the gospel.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hath", "been", "heretofore", "unprofitable", "thee", and "both". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hath" and "been", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 10's "I beseech thee for my son whom..." into verse 12's "Whom I have sent back to thee...", so "hath" and "been" belong inside that flow. In Philemon context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "hath" and "been" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.