“May the Lord show mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains. On the contrary, when he was in Rome, he searched hard for me until he found me. May the Lord grant that he will find mercy from the Lord on that day! You know very well in how many ways he helped me in Ephesus” (2 Timothy 1:16-18).
In contrast to the examples of Phygelus and Hermogenes, Paul the Apostle mentioned another man named Onesiphorus in the passage quoted above. Onesiphorus was someone who went out of his way to locate Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome. Whether Onesiphorus offered emotional support, financial support, or simply encouraged Paul through his presence, he clearly offered a great deal of comfort to the aged Apostle.
Onesiphorus’ task was made even more difficult when we stop to remember that he did not have the advantage of modern-day communication and location technology. In order to find Paul, it’s likely that Onesiphorus first had to seek out the local Christian community in Rome. He would then have to move forward using only the information he could gather, information that may or may not have been correct.
In fact, Paul made special mention of the fact that Onesiphorus had to “search hard” for him. But that effort was well worth it for Paul said, “…he often refreshed me.” Nevertheless, we should note that these were more than just social visits for Onesiphorus. Given the political climate that existed for Christians during that era, it’s clear the Onesiphorus took a substantial risk in visiting Paul…
“There is no doubt that, when Onesiphorus sought out Paul and came to see him again and again, he took his life in his hands. It was dangerous to keep asking where a certain criminal could be found; it was dangerous to visit him; it was still more dangerous to keep on visiting him; but that is what Onesiphorus did.” (1)
Another source outlines the options that Onesiphorus might have chosen…
“When Onesiphorus arrived in Rome, he had at least three choices. First, he could have avoided any contact with the Christians. Secondly, he could have met with the believers secretly. Finally, he could boldly expose himself to danger by visiting Paul in prison. This would bring him into direct contact with the Roman authorities. To his everlasting credit, he chose the last policy. He sought Paul out very zealously and found him.” (2)
(1) Barclay, William. “The Faithless Many And The Faithful One (2Ti_1:15-18)”. “William Barclay’s Daily Study Bible“.
(2) William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary, pg.2114