American Standard Version
Ephesians 6:5
5Servants, be obedient unto them that according to the flesh are your masters, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
Ephesians 6:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
- New International Version (NIV)Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Bondservants, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ;
Context of Ephesians 6:5
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 nurture them in the chastening and admonition of the Lord. Servants, be obedient unto them that according to the flesh are your masters, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; 6not in the way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers; but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; 7with good will doing service, as unto the Lord, and not unto men:
Read all of Ephesians 6Ephesians 6:5 word by word
Οἱ δοῦλοι, ὑπακούετε τοῖς κατὰ σάρκα κυρίοις μετὰ φόβου καὶ τρόμου ἐν ἁπλότητι τῆς καρδίας ὑμῶν ὡς τῷ Χριστῷ.Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Ephesians 6:5
- Genesis 16:9And the angel of Jehovah said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.
- Psalms 123:2Behold, as the eyes of servantslook unto the hand of their master, As the eyes of a maid unto the hand of her mistress; So our eyeslook unto Jehovah our God, Until he have mercy upon us.
- Malachi 1:6A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master: if then I am a father, where is mine honor? and if I am a master, where is my fear? saith Jehovah of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?
- Matthew 6:24No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
- Matthew 8:9For I also am a man under authority, having under myself soldiers: and I say to this one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
- Acts 10:7And when the angel that spake unto him was departed, he called two of his household-servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
- Colossians 3:22Servants, obey in all things them that are your masters according to the flesh; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing the Lord:
- 1 Timothy 6:1Let as many as are servants under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honor, that the name of God and the doctrine be not blasphemed.
- 1 Peter 2:18Servants, bein subjection to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.
- Philemon 1:16no longer as a servant, but more than a servant, a brother beloved, specially to me, but how much rather to thee, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
- 1 Corinthians 2:3And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.
- 2 Corinthians 7:15And his affection is more abundantly toward you, while he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.
- Philippians 2:12So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
- 1 Peter 3:2beholding your chaste behaviorcoupledwith fear.
- Ephesians 6:24Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ witha loveincorruptible.
- Joshua 24:14Now therefore fear Jehovah, and serve him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt; and serve ye Jehovah.
Commentaries on Ephesians 6:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5Servants, be obedient - Though frequently signifies a slave or bondman, yet it often implies a servant in general, or any one bound to another, either for a limited time, or for life. Even a slave, if a Christian, was bound to serve him faithfully by whose money he was bought, howsoever illegal that traffic may be considered. In heathen countries slavery was in some sort excusable; among Christians it is an enormity and a crime for which perdition has…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5Servants - ̔́ ͂ hoi douloiThe word used here denotes one who is bound to render service to another, whether that service be free or voluntary, and may denote, therefore, either a slave, or one who binds himself to render service to another. It is often used in these senses in the New Testament, just as it is elsewhere. It cannot be demonstrated that the word here necessarily means “slaves;” though, if slavery existed among those to whom this Epistle was…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-9Verses 5-9 The duty of servants is summed up in one word, obedience. The servants of old were generally slaves. The apostles were to teach servants and masters their duties, in doing which evils would be lessened, till slavery should be rooted out by the influence of Christianity. Servants are to reverence those over them. They are to be sincere; not pretending obedience when they mean to disobey, but serving faithfully. And they must serve their masters…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5Obeying human masters shows a Christian slave's service to Christ (see Colossians 3:22–23; 1 Timothy 6:1–2; Titus 2:9–10; 1 Peter 2:18–23).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. Servants--literally, "slaves." masters according to the flesh--in contrast to your true and heavenly Master (Ep 6:4). A consolatory him that the mastership to which they were subject, was but for a time [Chrysostom]; and that their real liberty was still their own (1Co 7:22). fear and trembling--not slavish terror, but (See on 1Co 2:3; 2Co 7:15) an anxious eagerness to do your duty, and a fear of displeasing, as great as is produced in the ordinary…Read the comment
Topics related to Ephesians 6:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ephesians 6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries