Ephesians 5–6

¹Become, then, followers of God, as children beloved, ²and walk in love, as also the Christ did love us, and did give himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for an odour of a sweet smell.

³And whoredom, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as becometh saints; ⁴also filthiness, and foolish talking, or jesting,—the things not fit—but rather thanksgiving; ⁵for this ye know, that every whoremonger, or unclean, or covetous person, who is an idolater, hath no inheritance in the reign of the Christ and God. ⁶Let no one deceive you with vain words, for because of these things cometh the anger of God upon the sons of the disobedience, ⁷become not, then, partakers with them, ⁸for ye were once darkness, and now light in the Lord; as children of light walk ye, ⁹for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, and righteousness, and truth, ¹⁰proving what is well-pleasing to the Lord, ¹¹and have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of the darkness and rather even convict, ¹²for the things in secret done by them it is a shame even to speak of, ¹³and all the things reproved by the light are manifested, for everything that is manifested is light; ¹⁴wherefore he saith, ‘Arouse thyself, thou who art sleeping, and arise out of the dead, and the Christ shall shine upon thee.’ ¹⁵See, then, how exactly ye walk, not as unwise, but as wise, ¹⁶redeeming the time, because the days are evil; ¹⁷because of this become not fools, but—understanding what is the will of the Lord, ¹⁸and be not drunk with wine, in which is dissoluteness, but be filled in the Spirit, ¹⁹speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, ²⁰giving thanks always for all things, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to the God and Father.

²¹Subjecting yourselves to one another in the fear of God. ²²The wives! to your own husbands subject yourselves, as to the Lord, ²³because the husband is head of the wife, as also the Christ is head of the assembly, and he is saviour of the body, ²⁴but even as the assembly is subject to Christ, so also are the wives to their own husbands in everything. ²⁵The husbands! love your own wives, as also the Christ did love the assembly, and did give himself for it, ²⁶that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it with the bathing of the water in the saying, ²⁷that he might present it to himself the assembly in glory, not having spot or wrinkle, or any of such things, but that it may be holy and unblemished; ²⁸so ought the husbands to love their own wives as their own bodies: he who is loving his own wife—himself he doth love; ²⁹for no one ever his own flesh did hate, but doth nourish and cherish it, as also the Lord—the assembly, ³⁰because members we are of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones; ³¹‘for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and they shall be—the two—for one flesh;’ ³²this secret is great, and I speak in regard to Christ and to the assembly; ³³but ye also, every one in particular—let each his own wife so love as himself, and the wife—that she may reverence the husband.

Chapter 6

¹The children! obey your parents in the Lord, for this is righteous; ²honour thy father and mother, ³which is the first command with a promise, ‘That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live a long time upon the land.’ ⁴And the fathers! provoke not your children, but nourish them in the instruction and admonition of the Lord. ⁵The servants! obey the masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling, in the simplicity of your heart, as to the Christ; ⁶not with eye-service as men-pleasers, but as servants of the Christ, doing the will of God out of soul, ⁷with good-will serving, as to the Lord, and not to men, ⁸having known that whatever good thing each one may do, this he shall receive from the Lord, whether servant or freeman. ⁹And the masters! the same things do ye unto them, letting threatening alone, having known that also your Master is in the heavens, and acceptance of persons is not with him.

¹⁰As to the rest, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might; ¹¹put on the whole armour of God, for your being able to stand against the wiles of the devil, ¹²because we have not the wrestling with blood and flesh, but with the principalities, with the authorities, with the world-rulers of the darkness of this age, with the spiritual things of the evil in the heavenly places; ¹³because of this take ye up the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to resist in the day of the evil, and all things having done—to stand. ¹⁴Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about in truth, and having put on the breastplate of the righteousness, ¹⁵and having the feet shod in the preparation of the good-news of the peace; ¹⁶above all, having taken up the shield of the faith, in which ye shall be able all the fiery darts of the evil one to quench, ¹⁷and the helmet of the salvation receive, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the saying of God, ¹⁸through all prayer and supplication praying at all times in the Spirit, and in regard to this same, watching in all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—

¹⁹And in behalf of me, that to me may be given a word in the opening of my mouth, in freedom, to make known the secret of the good news, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in a chain, that in it I may speak freely—as it behoveth me to speak. ²¹And that ye may know—ye also—the things concerning me—what I do, all things make known to you shall Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful ministrant in the Lord, ²²whom I did send unto you for this very thing, that ye might know the things concerning us, and that he might comfort your hearts. ²³Peace to the brethren, and love, with faith, from God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ! ²⁴The grace with all those loving our Lord Jesus Christ—undecayingly! Amen.

Chapter 1