Ephesians 6:1
“Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.”
King James Version (KJV)
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This verse opens the second set of household instructions in Ephesians 6:1-4, addressing children and then fathers. It applies the principle of mutual respect within the family to the parent-child relationship.
What Does Ephesians 6:1 Mean?
Paul speaks directly to children, which is itself notable -- they are addressed as real members of the believing community, capable of responding to God. His instruction is plain: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord." Obedience to parents is presented as a basic and good ordering of family life, the proper response of children to those who care for and raise them. The phrase "in the Lord" places this obedience within the larger relationship to God. Children obey their parents as part of their walk with God, not merely out of fear or social custom, and the phrase also gently signals that such obedience is bounded by what is good and right before the Lord.
Paul grounds the command simply: "for this is right." This is not an arbitrary rule but reflects the right order of things, woven into how God designed family life to work. Honoring and obeying those who raise us is fitting and good. The verses that follow connect this to the ancient commandment to honor father and mother, with its promise of blessing. For the reader, this verse affirms the value of the family and the goodness of an ordered home where children learn to honor and obey. It also dignifies children, treating them as people who can please God through their conduct. Within a loving family, obedience is not a burden but part of the good and right pattern God intends.
In the Original Language
The Greek "hupakouo" (obey) means to listen under, to heed and submit to. "Dikaios" (right) means just, proper, and in accord with what is fitting.
Cross References
“Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.”
- Colossians 3:20
“Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.”
- Exodus 20:12
“My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:”
- Proverbs 1:8
Application
Within the family, embrace the good order God intends -- children honoring and obeying parents as part of their walk with God, and the home becoming a place where right living is learned.