The big picture
Instructions about marriage now widen to children, parents, slaves, and masters. Paul, the prisoner speaking in the letter, places each relationship under Jesus Christ, the Lord they serve. These commands enter an unequal world and do not remove slavery from it. The closing appeal then pictures believers wearing armour against spiritual evil. Paul asks for prayer as he speaks while bound. Personal news and a wish for peace bring the letter to its end.
In this chapter
- Children and Fathers Have Duties Ephesians 6:1-4
Children are told to obey their parents in the Lord and to honour them.
- Masters Also Answer to God Ephesians 6:5-9
Slaves are commanded to obey their earthly masters sincerely, as service to Christ.
- Stand Against Spiritual Evil Ephesians 6:10-13
Strength for the final struggle must come from the Lord, Paul says.
- The Armour Takes Its Form Ephesians 6:14-17
Each piece of armour now receives a meaning.
- Prayer for Courage While Bound Ephesians 6:18-20
Prayer belongs with the armour, not as an afterthought.
- News and a Closing Blessing Ephesians 6:21-24
Tychicus, a trusted fellow believer and servant of the Lord, will carry news of Paul’s circumstances.
Central truth
Paul places household power under Christ’s authority and calls believers to stand against spiritual evil with God’s strength and prayer.
Scripture beside the summary
Ephesians · King James Version · 24Ephesians 6:1-4
Children and Fathers Have Duties
Children are told to obey their parents in the Lord and to honour them. Paul recalls the command together with its promise of well-being and long life. Parental authority is not the only concern, however. He directly addresses fathers about the way they use it. They must not keep stirring their children to anger. Their task is to raise them through teaching and correction shaped by the Lord. Paul therefore gives duties to both sides of the bond. Obedience does not leave fathers free from scrutiny over their own conduct.
In everyday life
A father shows his daughter how to use a kitchen knife safely. She follows his directions while he keeps his voice calm after a clumsy cut. He corrects her grip without mocking her or shouting. Her willingness to listen depends partly on how he teaches. Paul grounds family duties in the Lord, not only in safe kitchen practice.
Notice
Ephesians 6:4 Fathers receive a limit alongside their duty to teach. Paul addresses the harm their own behaviour can cause rather than blaming every conflict on children.
Ephesians 6:1-4
King James Version1Children, 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.
Ephesians 6:5-9
Masters Also Answer to God
Slaves are commanded to obey their earthly masters sincerely, as service to Christ. Paul rejects work done only to impress a watching owner. He says the Lord will reward good done by either slave or free person. Masters then face a matching demand for sincere conduct and an end to threats. They too have a Master in heaven, who shows no favour based on status. These are instructions within slavery, not a command to abolish it. The unequal power remains, even while Paul subjects the slaveholder to God’s judgment.
In everyday life
The night cleaner finishes a stairwell after her supervisor has left. Next morning he thanks her, then accepts correction about his threats over small delays. Both must answer for how they act when they hold or lack power. She can resign from paid work. Enslaved people addressed by Paul lack that freedom, so this comparison has a sharp limit.
Notice
Ephesians 6:9 The master has a Master too. Paul removes any claim that owning another person places the owner above judgment or earns favour with God.
Ephesians 6:5-9
King James Version5Servants, 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.
Ephesians 6:10-13
Stand Against Spiritual Evil
Strength for the final struggle must come from the Lord, Paul says. He pictures believers wearing all the armour God supplies against the devil, the evil spiritual enemy. Human bodies are not the target of this struggle. Paul names hostile powers and spiritual evil instead. The armour enables believers to resist during a time of testing and remain standing afterward. Christians understand the workings of these powers differently. Paul’s instruction is firm about the source of strength and the need to stand, rather than to turn other people into enemies.
In everyday life
A firefighter checks her breathing gear before entering a smoke-filled shed. Her aim is to withstand danger and bring people out, not attack those trapped inside. She trusts equipment her bare strength cannot replace. The right protection changes what she can endure. Paul’s enemy is spiritual evil, not smoke or flame in a burning building.
Notice
Ephesians 6:12 The struggle is explicitly distinguished from a fight against human flesh. Naming spiritual enemies does not make ordinary people the targets of this armour.
Ephesians 6:10-13
King James Version10Finally, 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.
Ephesians 6:14-17
The Armour Takes Its Form
Each piece of armour now receives a meaning. Truth is the belt, and a right life protects the chest. Readiness rooted in the good news of peace gives firm footing. Faith works like a shield against the enemy’s burning arrows. God’s rescue protects the head, while his word becomes the sword supplied by the Spirit. Paul uses equipment for a real fight to describe spiritual resources. The point is not that believers need metal weapons. They resist through trust, truth, right conduct, peace, and reliance on what God has said.
In everyday life
The beekeeper pulls on her veil, gloves, and boots before lifting a hive lid. Each item protects a different exposed place. Leaving one piece behind would give the insects an opening. She checks the whole set rather than trusting only the thick gloves. Paul names faith and truth as protection, not fabric that prevents a sting.
Notice
Ephesians 6:15 Peace appears within the picture of armour. The good news equips a firm stance without changing the struggle into a command for human violence.
Ephesians 6:14-17
King James Version14Stand 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:
Ephesians 6:18-20
Prayer for Courage While Bound
Prayer belongs with the armour, not as an afterthought. Paul calls for steady, watchful prayer through the Spirit on behalf of all believers. Then he asks the group to include him. He needs words and courage to make God’s good news known clearly. Calling himself an ambassador means he speaks as a messenger for another. Yet this ambassador wears chains. Paul does not ask here for comfort or release. His stated concern is to speak boldly and fulfil the task given him while he remains bound.
In everyday life
A delivery dispatcher keeps radio contact with drivers through a long night. She asks a colleague to check every van, then requests help getting her own message through a weak channel. Her role does not remove her need for support. Others depend on hearing her clearly. Paul seeks courage while imprisoned, not better reception on a delivery route.
Notice
Ephesians 6:20 Chains and the title of ambassador sit together. Paul’s confinement limits his movement, but he still regards speaking for Christ as his assigned work.
Ephesians 6:18-20
King James Version18Praying 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.
Ephesians 6:21-24
News and a Closing Blessing
Tychicus, a trusted fellow believer and servant of the Lord, will carry news of Paul’s circumstances. Paul sends him so the group can know how things stand and receive comfort. The letter therefore ends with a human link as well as written teaching. Its final wishes gather peace, love, faith, and grace, the free favour God gives. These gifts come from God the Father and Christ. The last greeting extends to all whose love for Christ is sincere. Shared allegiance reaches further than the people receiving this particular visit.
In everyday life
A relative carries a handwritten update to a family whose phone line is down. She sits with them and explains how their absent brother is doing. The paper gives facts, while her presence lets them hear care in a familiar voice. News becomes a source of comfort. Tychicus serves a church as Christ’s minister, not only a family messenger.
Notice
Ephesians 6:22 Comfort is one of the reasons for sending Tychicus. The visit offers more than facts about Paul; it cares for people worried about him.
Ephesians 6:21-24
King James Version21But 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.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Ephesians 6:1 begins with “Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.”
Where the chapter turns
Ephesians 6:21 forms a natural hinge: “But 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:”
The final note
Ephesians 6:24 leaves the reader with “Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words Lord, Christ, able, stand, affairs, armour help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
KJV words made clear
- eyeservice
- Work done only when watched, to gain a master’s approval.
- wiles
- Deceptive tricks used to lead someone into harm.
- supplication
- An earnest request made to God in prayer.
Music and video connected to the passage
Related media appears when its Scripture reference overlaps this study. Music and video can illuminate a theme while the biblical text remains the foundation.
