Having confidence in your obedience I wrote unto you, knowing that you will also do more than I say.
All Commentaries on Philemon 1:21 Go To Philemon 1
Thomas Aquinas
AD 1274
Then when he says Trusting in your compliance, he provides a reason on the side of Philemon, and a commendation of his obedience. First he shows how he is confident in his obeying; second he adds to it something similar. Therefore he says, Trusting in your compliance. 2 Corinthians 7:16: ‘I rejoice that in all things I can have confidence in you.’ 1 Sam 15:22: ‘For obedience is better than sacrifices.’ But he writes more cautiously because a man listens more closely to one he expects to see again than if he despairs.
