“Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia.  Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you” (Rom 16:5-6). 

We really don’t know much about these two.  But like so many, they are unnamed partners and heroes in ministry.

Epaenetus is the fruitfruits within Asia.  While Lydia of Acts 16 was an Asian woman in Philippi, she was not actually in Asia when she met the Lord.  But for Epaenetus, it seems like he was in Asia Minor.  Paul remembered.

And there’s Mary.  The word “worked hard” ἐκοπίασεν means to toil, labor, work extremely hard.  The word “for you” in some manuscripts can be translated “for us.”  She has not been idle but has served others to extreme levels.  Paul wants to honor her.

Maybe their small names, but they are still people of significance in their own unique ways.