It’s such a shame that the New Testament household codes are now used primarily to reinforce hierarchies because I’m convinced their original purpose was to subtly undermine them. Let me give a brief explanation. 1/?

Consider Ephesians 6:9:
“As for masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Stop threatening them, because you know that both you and your slaves have a master in heaven. He doesn’t distinguish between people on the basis of status.” 2/?

Sure, Paul* doesn’t explicitly tell masters to free their slaves, but pay close attention to the emphasis here. “Your master in heaven doesn’t distinguish between people on the basis of status.” It seems pretty clear that the subtext there is “SO NEITHER SHOULD WE!” 3/?

This comes just a few paragraphs after “Therefore, imitate God like dearly loved children” (Eph. 5:1). What does it mean to imitate God who doesn’t distinguish between people on the basis of status? 4/?

Remember, all this is in the context of the Greco-Roman household, where the paterfamilias had virtually unquestioned power and authority over everyone. He literally held the power of life and death over slaves and children, and wives were only slightly better. 5/?

In light of all that, it seems pretty clear to me that Paul* is throwing some not-so-subtle shade at the men and undermining their absolute authority. It sure seems to violate his intent, then, to use these passages to reinforce the very hierarchy he’s undermining. 6/6