When the New Testament speaks of slaves and masters, is it affirming an institution that we find reprehensible? Biblical scholars across the theological and political spectrum generally conclude that the answer is “yes.” And in the same passages the Bible seems to affirm male dominance in marriage, if not in society at large.

This book meticulously places these passages, the Bible’s “household codes,” in their historical and literary context, focusing on 1 Peter’s extensive code. A careful side-by-side reading with Rome’s cultural equivalent (Aristotle’s household code) reveals both the brilliance of the biblical author and the depth of 1 Peter’s antipathy toward slavery and misogyny.