Ephesians 5:21–6:9

21Follow the lead of one another because of your respect for Christ.

Wives and Husbands

22Wives, follow the lead of your husbands as you follow the Lord. 23The husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church. The church is Christ’s body. He is its Savior. 24The church follows the lead of Christ. In the same way, wives should follow the lead of their husbands in everything.

25Husbands, love your wives. Love them just as Christ loved the church. He gave himself up for her. 26He did it to make her holy. He made her clean by washing her with water and the word. 27He did it to bring her to himself as a brightly shining church. He wants a church that has no stain or wrinkle or any other flaw. He wants a church that is holy and without blame.

28In the same way, husbands should love their wives. They should love them as they love their own bodies. Any man who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, people have never hated their own bodies. Instead, they feed and care for their bodies. And that is what Christ does for the church. 30We are parts of his body.

31Scripture says, “That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. The two will become one.” (Genesis 2:24) 32That is a deep mystery. But I’m talking about Christ and the church.

33A husband also must love his wife. He must love her just as he loves himself. And a wife must respect her husband.

Children and Parents

6 Children, obey your parents as believers in the Lord. Obey them because it’s the right thing to do. 2Scripture says, “Honor your father and mother.” That is the first commandment that has a promise. 3“Then things will go well with you. You will live a long time on the earth.” (Deuteronomy 5:16)

4Fathers, don’t make your children angry. Instead, train them and teach them the ways of the Lord as you raise them.

Slaves and Masters

5Slaves, obey your masters here on earth. Respect them and honor them with a heart that is true. Obey them just as you would obey Christ. 6Don’t obey them only to please them when they are watching. Do it because you are slaves of Christ. Be sure your heart does what God wants.

7Serve your masters with all your heart. Work as if you were not serving people but the Lord. 8You know that the Lord will give you a reward. He will give to each of you in keeping with the good you do. It doesn’t matter whether you are slaves or free.

9Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. When you warn them, don’t be too hard on them. You know that the One who is their Master and yours is in heaven. And he treats everyone the same.