The Letters · New Testament

Ephesians 6

Ephesians 6: the rest of the household, the armour of God and Tychicus

General context

The household instructions continue. Children are told to obey their parents in the Lord because it is right, and the commandment to honour father and mother is quoted, with the note that it is the first commandment with promise. Fathers are told not to provoke their children to wrath but to bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Servants are told to obey their masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling, not with eyeservice as menpleasers but as servants of Christ doing God's will from the heart, and that whatever good anyone does comes back from the Lord, bond or free. Masters are told to do the same things and to stop threatening, because their own Master is in heaven and shows no respect of persons. Paul then tells them to be strong in the Lord and put on the whole armour of God, because the struggle is not against flesh and blood but against principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places. He lists the equipment: loins girt with truth, the breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the gospel of peace, the shield of faith to quench fiery darts, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which he identifies as the word of God. Prayer runs alongside it, always, in the Spirit, with perseverance for all saints, and he asks them to pray for him too, that he may speak boldly as an ambassador in bonds. He closes by saying Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister, will tell them how he is doing and was sent to comfort their hearts, and ends with peace, love and grace.

Cited passages: Ephesians 6:1, Ephesians 6:2, Ephesians 6:3, Ephesians 6:4, Ephesians 6:5, Ephesians 6:6, Ephesians 6:7, Ephesians 6:8, Ephesians 6:9, Ephesians 6:10, Ephesians 6:11, Ephesians 6:12, Ephesians 6:13, Ephesians 6:14, Ephesians 6:15, Ephesians 6:16, Ephesians 6:17, Ephesians 6:18, Ephesians 6:19, Ephesians 6:20, Ephesians 6:21, Ephesians 6:22, Ephesians 6:23, Ephesians 6:24

Ephesians 6 (KJV)

¹Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.

²Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)

³That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

⁴And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

⁵Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;

⁶Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;

⁷With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:

⁸Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.

⁹And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.

¹⁰Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.

¹¹Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

¹²For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

¹³Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

¹⁴Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

¹⁵And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

¹⁶Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

¹⁸Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

¹⁹And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

²⁰For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

²¹But that ye also may know my affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things:

²²Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts.

²³Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁴Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.

Printed after this letter in the King James Version: Written from Rome unto the Ephesians by Tychicus.

This page shows the King James Version. In the app, reading opens in the Berean Standard Bible unless you have chosen another translation. The reader includes five translations: the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), the King James Version (KJV), the World English Bible (WEB), the Bible in Basic English (BBE), and the American Standard Version (ASV). Search covers three of them: Berean Standard, King James, and World English. Basic English and American Standard readers search the King James words.

Historical context

One commandment is quoted, Honour thy father and mother, followed by That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth, and the letter adds its own comment that this is the first commandment with promise. Exodus 20:12 prints Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and Deuteronomy 5:16 adds that it may go well with thee. The letter names no book for the quotation. Tychicus is the only person named besides Paul, described as a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord and as already sent. Paul says he is in custody, calling himself an ambassador in bonds, without naming a place, an authority or a charge. After the closing Amen the source prints one more line, Written from Rome unto the Ephesians by Tychicus, which stands inside the final verse rather than as a heading; Rome is named nowhere in the body of the letter.

Cited passages: Ephesians 6:2, Ephesians 6:3, Ephesians 6:20, Ephesians 6:21, Ephesians 6:22, Ephesians 6:24, Exodus 20:12, Deuteronomy 5:16

Literary context

The household section finishes the way it ran in the previous chapter, in pairs, with the person holding power addressed second and given the shorter, sharper instruction: fathers are told what not to do, masters are told to stop threatening and reminded that they have a Master too. Then the letter changes scene without transition, from houses to a battle line. The armour is described item by item, and the last two break the pattern by being named as well as worn, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. One word holds that passage together: counting withstand, stand appears four times across verses 11 to 14, so the aim of the equipment is position rather than advance. The ending is domestic again, a named messenger carrying news, which returns the letter to ordinary business after the fighting language.

Cited passages: Ephesians 6:4, Ephesians 6:9, Ephesians 6:11, Ephesians 6:12, Ephesians 6:13, Ephesians 6:14, Ephesians 6:16, Ephesians 6:17, Ephesians 6:21, Ephesians 6:22

Key moments

Honour thy father and mother (Ephesians 6:2). A commandment is quoted and labelled the first with a promise.
Do not provoke (Ephesians 6:4). Fathers are told what to avoid rather than what to require.
Masters under a Master (Ephesians 6:9). Masters are told to stop threatening and reminded who stands over them.
Not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12). The opposition is named as something other than human.
Stand therefore (Ephesians 6:14). The armour passage is organised around holding position.
The sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17). The last piece of equipment is identified as the word of God.
Tychicus sent (Ephesians 6:21). A named messenger is to tell the readers how Paul is doing.

For reflection

Masters are told to do the same things unto them and are reminded that there is no respect of persons with God. Where would it change your behaviour to know that the rules you apply are also being applied to you?