Ephesians

6:1-4

4. Practical application of the mystery - creating oneness, 4:1-6:9

vii] Family obligations

Commencing in 4:1, Paul deals with the practical Christian life, with particular reference to being subject to one another in 5:21-6:9. The passage before us, 6:1-4, deals with the mutual submission of children and parents. The section dealing with mutual submission is introduced in 5:21 with the general exhortation, "submit to one another, out of reverence for Christ." The exhortations in this section are based on the principle that a Christian is not to engage in self-assertive behavior which places another at a disadvantage.

In the first three verses Paul addresses the issue of the respect that children should show toward their parents, mother and father, not just father.

ta tekna (on) "Children" - Plural, therefore addressed to the children of the Ephesian congregation. Presumably children old enough to understand Paul's directive.

uJpakouete (uJakouw) pres. imp. "obey" - obey, be subject to. "Do what your parents want you to do."

toiV geneusin (euV ewV) "[your] parents" - the parents [of you]. Dative of possession/person.

en kuriw/ "in the Lord" - The phrase "in the Lord" has caused some trouble. It is often argued that believing children need only obey believing parents, ie. those who are "in the Lord." The context of the exhortation is a believing home, but whether believing or not, parental authority always exists and children should obey. If the parental direction is immoral, then that is on their head not the children. The phrase "in the Lord" is not found in many older manuscripts, see Metzger.

gar "for" - Expressing cause/reason, ie. providing the reason and thus the motivation for obedience.

dikaion adj. "[this is] right" - right, acceptable, fitting. The obedience of a child to their parents is right and proper, fitting. Possibly, but unlikely, Paul is saying that the command is right because it is God's command; "this is what the master requires", Junkins. "This is your Christian duty and it is right that you should do so", Barclay.

Paul supports his exhortation by quoting the scriptures, Deut.5:16.

timw (timaw) imp. "honour" - The word "honour" means respect, and to respect ones parents is to submit to their authority. Of course, this sits well with the Christian principle of mutual submission - the giving of self to others.

hJtiV pro. "which" - Properly an indefinite relative pronoun, but it can be taken as a relative pronoun with explanatory force, so Robinson; "the importance of this is made plain when He, in the very first commandment to which He attached a promise stated ...", Junkins.

en "with" - in, on, with [promise]. The preposition with the dative probably expresses association/accompaniment, although reference/respect is possible. This commandment is "the first commandment with a promise attached to it", Hoehner.

epaggelia/ (a) "a promise" - The promise in its original form was a promise of enjoying the fruits of the promised land. The people of Israel were God's chosen people. He had called them to himself, he was their God and they were his people. Yet, to experience the abundance of blessing which was theirs as God's children, required faithfulness. The blessings were expressed in physical terms - long life, many children, .... These would flow to the people if they were faithful to God and sought to live according to his revealed will. Of course, along with the promise of blessing was the promise of cursing. The people were born in sin and thus, their rebellion inevitably triggered the curse. All this prepared for the coming of Jesus. He, as the faithful Israelite, the faithful child of God, could receive the promised blessings of the "land", the promised covenant kingdom blessings. He is now the risen Lord, and all who associate with him get to share in the blessing of life eternal in the presence of God. Clearly Paul does not touch on the theology of the blessings and cursings of the covenant. Paul's point is a pragmatic one. He adapts the Deuteronomy quote by replacing the reference to the "land" with "earth". The "land", referring to the promised land of Israel, would have little meaning to Gentile readers. The pragmatics of the law are simple enough. Although God gave the law knowing that the people could never keep it, he did give a law which was keepable and which when kept, gives us the best possible chance to enjoy life to the full. That is, the law does not spoil our fun, but actually enables us to enjoy life more. So, his exhortation to children to obey their parents is supported by the simple pragmatic truth that such action is for their best. It may not seem that way now, but in the long run it is to the children's advantage if they submit to the authority of their parents.

iJna + subj. "that" - Forming a purpose clause, "in order that ..." eu\ "[it may go] well" - well, good. Adverb of manner. The "well/good" expresses the idea of prosperity; 'so that you might have a long life and prosper in the land'", NJB.

soi dat. "with you" - to you. Dative of advantage.

esh/ (eimi) fut. "[and that] you may enjoy [long life on the earth]" - [and that] you will be [long-lived upon the land. Since the purpose clause continues a subjunctive verb to-be would be expected, but possibly Paul wants to emphasize the future certainty of the promise. See above for the nature of the promise; "you will have a long and happy life".

Paul now addresses the issue of fatherly care. kai "-" - and. Here coordinating v4 to the previous three verses.

mh parorgizete (parorgizw) pres. imp. "do not exasperate" - do not make angry, provoke, irritate, demean. "You must not make your children resentful by your treatment of them", Barclay.

alla "instead" - but. Adversative.

ektrefete (ektrefw) pres. imp. "bring [them] up" - nourish, nurture, raise. As of establishing a sphere of influence. "Raise them properly", CEV.

en + dat. "in" - in. Probably local, "in the sphere of", but possibly instrumental, "by means of".

paideia/ (a) "training" - The word "training" can take the meaning "punishment/discipline". It is certainly used this way some times in the Bible, but it is difficult to understand what a term like "discipline of the Lord" might mean. It is difficult to see it as "the Lord's punishment schedule for disobedient children." The more likely sense of the word "training" is that of parental guidance through example, "education/training". The prime life-style example is Jesus himself. He is the one we must "follow", both as parents and children.

nouqesia/ (a) "instruction" - The word "instruction" is most likely being used in an Old Testament sense, as was "training", and if this is so it would tend toward "warning" or "strong exhortation" rather than instruction, in the sense of academic teaching. A word like "admonition" might apply, cf. Titus 3:10. So, parents must warn their children of life's dangers and admonish them when they wonder from the way. "Admonish them", Cassirer.

kuriou (oV) gen. "of the Lord" - of Lord. The genitive, as usual, is handled differently by translators. It seems unlikely that it is an objective genitive, a training and admonition that is "about the Lord", but it could be either a subjective/possessive genitive, a training and admonition that comes from the Lord / is the Lord's, "prescribed by the Lord", Abbott, or an adjectival/qualitative genitive, where the training and admonition "is in the sphere of the Lord, or has him as its reference point", O'Brien. "You must bring them up in Christian discipline and training", Barclay.

Ephesians Introduction

lectionarystudies.com