Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor thy father and mother, for this is the first commandment with promise; That thy days may be well, and that thou mayest live long upon the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
The Greek root word translated "obey" is υπακουο (Latin: hupakouo) and refers to closeness leading to respect, with the immediate goal of Christian parenting then being closeness, and an open kind of closeness where children could tell parents everything and anything under the sun, being themselves around parents, with parents channeling the neediness and rambunctiousness of children towards the presence of parents, with parents being safe people for children to express their individuality around, owing nothing in return to parents, with parents surrendering to the needs and demands of children. In biblical times, this meant attachment parenting. Children went in the nude throughout the biblical context, and that was because mothers treated their children with skin-to-skin contact, with children co-sleeping next to parents until adulthood.
The Greek root word translated "nurture" is παιδεία (Latin: paideia) and refers here to a Christ-like example, namely the selfless discipline that Christ showed, namely a selfless, charitable example. It is, here, turning all aggressive and selfish instincts inward, including physical and sexual/pedophilic aggression, putting your child first, with this teaching children to put others first. It is a centered, chastened up attitude. It is the Living Example of Christ imparted to children, namely the sacrificial example, with parents taking up the cross in the spirit that Christ took up the cross for His children. The Greek root word translated "admonition" is νουθεσία (Latin: nouthesia) and refers to God's loving warning and instruction, meaning warning children gently of what is unacceptable or unattainable, and when children cannot understand, being supportive emotionally and keeping them safe, perhaps saying "you'll understand later why I said know, but I'm here if it is disappointing" or something along those lines. Sometimes, children need to hear the word "no" or its various variants. The idea is to back up warnings and limits with instruction and lecture, meaning have a talk with your child about what happened or what they can't have, explain it, and if it doesn't click now it will click later. The Greek root word translated "provoke...to wrath" is παροργιζο (Latin: pqrorgizo) and refers to "bitter anger" and refers to the moral count of provocation to anger, which referred to the slightest of personal offense perceived by the child. This was a commandment by God through the Apostle Paul against corporal punishment, as well as other forms of punishment and control of children by parents or adults, as the Apostle Paul was cracking down on punitive parenting practices among the parents of Greco-Roman background in the churches he oversaw as a deacon, as such parents were very punitive towards children. Christian parents were seen then as the "soft" type of parents, and were shunned by Roman society because of that. Most parents today punish children in order to back up a limit, whereas in Judeo-Christian circles then, parents backed up their limits by way of bond or friendship with a child, meaning parents were your best friends growing up in a Christian church, and when children demanded things in an immature way, they got what they wanted/needed anyway, because parents didn't expect a certain type of request, but just wanted to be there for every request.
Parents should discipline themselves when raising children, if they want to see discipline in their children. This means to be convicted of selflessness in the spirit that Christ was selfless for His children, and put others before Himself, giving His very earthly life for His children. Parents should be ready to forego anything for their children, including mere convenience, meaning getting angry at children for inconveniencing you is not a Christian attitude, and is to be struggled against.
The depraved and entitled parents who provoke children to anger through punishment or permissiveness will not inherit the Kingdom of God, with both punitive and permissive parents lacking discipline in most cases! Let them be cast into the lake of fire and burning sulfur, which is the second death prepared for Satan and his accomplices! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!
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