Dear Friends in Christ,

This Sunday’s epistle, 1 Peter 2:19-25, conveniently leaves out verse 18, which clearly belongs in this section. I am suspicious of lectionary committees, who, upon finding difficult verses, brush them aside.

In this case, verse 18 is advice to slaves (not servants as the New English Bible purports) to submit to the abuse of their masters.

Troubling, indeed!

First, the existence of slavery is never taken on by the Bible in full-throated opposition, and secondly, advising the abused to accept their abuse, grin and bear it, and give thanks for it simply is not God’s will.

New Testament scholar and native of Russia, Zhenya Gurina-Rodriguez, calls out such advice for what it is. Acceptance of abuse goes against an overarching theme of the entire Bible which is exodus from slavery, oppression and injustice, along with newfound resistance in the resurrection of Christ in whatever societal forms these scourges operate.

She suspects that the author of 1 Peter is divorced from the realities of abused and powerless persons within the social hierarchy of the day. This writer most likely enjoyed a higher social rank because of class, gender, or status.

This scholar sees this scripture tilting towards cultural household codes normalized by Greco-Roman mores more than towards the life and teachings of Jesus the Christ. Then the implication is left unchallenged that God is on the side of abusers and oppressors. Chapter 3 picks up with “In the same way you women must accept the authority of your husbands…”

“In the same way” implies submission no matter what. A later attempt is made to soften the “submission of women” advice by making a pitch to husbands to have “understanding.”

Hierarchical power structures have been fond of this passage over the centuries. It has been used to protect abusers while dismissing the needs of the vulnerable. Those in positions of authority have used it to dismiss voices of reform and protest on behalf of spousal abuse and abuse of women in general. It has been used by enslavers to justify their rights to own persons and bodies as their property.

By leaving off verse 18, we are left with bland, trite, and boring mealy-mouthed preachments. By properly linking verse 18, we get the full historical context with its unsettling assumptions. These recommendations for submission need to surrender themselves to the presence of Christ and see what he has to say.

Your fellow traveler,

—Richard