The instructions to slaves and masters in the Colossian Haustafel have long raised questions about their concrete meaning for their intended audience. Drawing principally on recent research on the Roman family, but also on other texts, inscriptions and imagery, this article seeks to show that the implications of the household code for the sexual treatment of slaves must have varied widely. Important factors included the believing or non-believing nature of each household and the complexity of familial arrangements generally. Ultimately, Colossians appears implicitly to recognise a degree of honour in the case of slaves, a view that may sometimes have led to greater respect for familial/sexual boundaries than was otherwise usual.