Onan (Hastings' Dictionary)

A son of Judah, Gn 384 46”, ONESIPHORUS Nu 26", 1 Ch 2%. After the decease of his elder brother, Er, he was instructed by his father to contract a levirate marriage with Tamar. The device by which he evaded the object of this marriage ‘was evil in the sight of the LoRD, and He slew him,’ Gn 38° (J). It is impossible to disentangle from this narrative what was the action of certain individuals and what is tribal history.

Probably Er and Onan both stand for Judahite clans which at an early period, from what cause we know not, became extinct.* The present form of the narrative discloses a desire to impress the duty of marriage with a deceased brother’s wife (see Dillm. and Holzinger, ad loc.) J. A. SELBIE. ONESIMUS (Ονήσιμος) of Colossze (Col 4°), a slave of Philemon (Philem”), pay, a Phrygian by race, but bearing a Greek name which from its signification ‘helpful’ was often bestowed upon slaves (cf.

Zahn, Deinl, i. 2 324; Lightfoot, Phile- mon, p. 376 note). ‘Helpful’ had, however, proved unprofitable (ἄχρηστος, Philem™); he wronged his master, perhaps misusing money intrusted to him (ef. Lk 165), perhaps stealing trom him, and ran away from Colosse either to Cmsarea or, more robably, to Rome. There he gained access to st. Paul in his imprisonment; who ‘begat’ him in Christ and made him profitable (εὔχρηστος, Philem™) once more. With such goodwill, indeed, did he do service that St.

Paul would fain have kept him to minister to himself; but, feeling it a duty to return him to his master, he wrote the Epistle to Philemon, appealing to him to receive his slave, now become a brother worthy of love and trust, and himself undertaking to refund any money which Philemon had lost through the action of Onesimus (Philem 8.

39), This letter was prob- ably intrusted to Tychicus, who was bearing the Colossian letter, and a special word of commenda- tion of Onesimus was sent to the whole Church (Col 4°). The result of St. Paul’s appeal is unknown, but subsequent tradition treated Onesimus as a _pro- minent and active member of the Church. These traditions are very various: he was identified with a bishop of Berma (Apost. Constit. vii. 46), with the isho of Ephesus in the time of Ignatius (Zph. i.)

; he was said to have preached in Spain, and the apocryphal Acts of the Spanish sisters Xanthippe and Polyxena are written in his name (c. 38; Texts and Studies, ii. 3, ‘ Apocrypha Anecdota’): he was said to have been martyred either at Puteoli (Euthalius) or at Rome (‘ Mart. Ign.’ Roman Acts, c. 10). But the name was so common, not only in classical times for slaves, but also in later Christian use (Smith, Dictionary of Christian Biography, s.v.)

, that various Onesimi have probably been confused, and it is impossible to extricate any certain fact. His memory was observed by the Latin Church on Feb. 16, by the Greek Church on Feb. 15, and also in conjunction with Philemon, Appia, and Archippus, on Noy. 22: the various traditions will be found in the Acta. Sanctorum (ii. 855-859) and the Greek Menca (pp. 89-92) for those days.

A most interesting modern romance of his life will be found in Onesimus, by the author of Philochristus (London, 1882). W. Lock.