Ephesians · Majority Standard Bible
Ephesians 5 Majority Standard Bible
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
MSB Majority Standard Bible
WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
PT1904 Patriarchal Text 1904 (accented, eBible edition)
1 Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,
1 Be therefore imitators of God, as beloved children.
1 Γίνεσθε οὖν μιμηταὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὡς τέκνα ἀγαπητά,
2 and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.
2 Walk in love, even as Christ also loved us and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance.
2 καὶ περιπατεῖτε ἐν ἀγάπῃ, καθὼς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς καὶ παρέδωκεν ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν προσφορὰν καὶ θυσίαν τῷ Θεῷ εἰς ὀσμὴν εὐωδίας.
3 But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.
3 But sexual immorality, and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be mentioned among you, as becomes saints;
3 πορνεία δὲ καὶ πᾶσα ἀκαθαρσία ἢ πλεονεξία μηδὲ ὀνομαζέσθω ἐν ὑμῖν, καθὼς πρέπει ἁγίοις,
4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.
4 nor filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not appropriate, but rather giving of thanks.
4 καὶ αἰσχρότης καὶ μωρολογία ἢ εὐτραπελία, τὰ οὐκ ἀνήκοντα, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον εὐχαριστία.
5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
5 Know this for sure, that no sexually immoral person, nor unclean person, nor covetous man (who is an idolater), has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God.
5 τοῦτο γάρ ἐστε γινώσκοντες, ὅτι πᾶς πόρνος ἢ ἀκάθαρτος ἢ πλεονέκτης, ὅς ἐστιν εἰδωλολάτρης, οὐκ ἔχει κληρονομίαν ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ Θεοῦ.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.
6 Μηδεὶς ὑμᾶς ἀπατάτω κενοῖς λόγοις· διὰ ταῦτα γὰρ ἔρχεται ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς ἀπειθείας.
7 Therefore do not be partakers with them.
7 Therefore don’t be partakers with them.
7 μὴ οὖν γίνεσθε συμμέτοχοι αὐτῶν.
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,
8 For you were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,
8 ἦτε γάρ ποτε σκότος, νῦν δὲ φῶς ἐν Κυρίῳ· ὡς τέκνα φωτὸς περιπατεῖτε· —
9 for the fruit of the Spirit consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.
9 for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth,
9 ὁ γὰρ καρπὸς τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐν πάσῃ ἀγαθωσύνῃ καὶ δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ· —
10 Test and prove what pleases the Lord.
10 proving what is well pleasing to the Lord.
10 δοκιμάζοντες τί ἐστιν εὐάρεστον τῷ Κυρίῳ.
11 Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
11 Have no fellowship with the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather even reprove them.
11 καὶ μὴ συγκοινωνεῖτε τοῖς ἔργοις τοῖς ἀκάρποις τοῦ σκότους, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἐλέγχετε·
12 For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
12 For it is a shame even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret.
12 τὰ γὰρ κρυφῆ γινόμενα ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν αἰσχρόν ἐστι καὶ λέγειν·
13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.
13 But all things, when they are reproved, are revealed by the light, for everything that reveals is light.
13 τὰ δὲ πάντα ἐλεγχόμενα ὑπὸ τοῦ φωτὸς φανεροῦται· πᾶν γὰρ τὸ φανερούμενον φῶς ἐστι.
14 So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
14 Therefore he says, “Awake, you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
14 διὸ λέγει· ἔγειρε ὁ καθεύδων καὶ ἀνάστα ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν, καὶ ἐπιφαύσει σοι ὁ Χριστός.
15 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
15 Therefore watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise,
15 Βλέπετε οὖν πῶς ἀκριβῶς περιπατεῖτε, μὴ ὡς ἄσοφοι, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς σοφοί,
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
16 ἐξαγοραζόμενοι τὸν καιρόν, ὅτι αἱ ἡμέραι πονηραί εἰσι.
17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
17 Therefore, don’t be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
17 διὰ τοῦτο μὴ γίνεσθε ἄφρονες, ἀλλὰ συνιέντες τί τὸ θέλημα τοῦ Κυρίου.
18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
18 Don’t be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,
18 καὶ μὴ μεθύσκεσθε οἴνῳ, ἐν ᾧ ἐστιν ἀσωτία, ἀλλὰ πληροῦσθε ἐν Πνεύματι,
19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord,
19 speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs; singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
19 λαλοῦντες ἑαυτοῖς ψαλμοῖς καὶ ὕμνοις καὶ ᾠδαῖς πνευματικαῖς, ᾄδοντες καὶ ψάλλοντες ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμῶν τῷ Κυρίῳ,
20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
20 giving thanks always concerning all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
20 εὐχαριστοῦντες πάντοτε ὑπὲρ πάντων ἐν ὀνόματι τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τῷ Θεῷ καὶ πατρί,
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
21 subjecting yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ.
21 ὑποτασσόμενοι ἀλλήλοις ἐν φόβῳ Χριστοῦ.
22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.
22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
22 Αἱ γυναῖκες τοῖς ἰδίοις ἀνδράσιν ὑποτάσσεσθε ὡς τῷ Κυρίῳ,
23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, and He is the Savior of the body.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the assembly, being himself the savior of the body.
23 ὅτι [ὁ] ἀνήρ ἐστι κεφαλὴ τῆς γυναικός, ὡς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς κεφαλὴ τῆς ἐκκλησίας, καὶ αὐτός ἐστι σωτὴρ τοῦ σώματος.
24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
24 But as the assembly is subject to Christ, so let the wives also be to their own husbands in everything.
24 ἀλλ᾽ ὥσπερ ἡ ἐκκλησία ὑποτάσσεται τῷ Χριστῷ, οὕτω καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες τοῖς ἰδίοις ἀνδράσιν ἐν παντί.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the assembly and gave himself up for her,
25 οἱ ἄνδρες ἀγαπᾶτε τὰς γυναῖκας ἑαυτῶν, καθὼς καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς ἠγάπησε τὴν ἐκκλησίαν καὶ ἑαυτὸν παρέδωκεν ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς,
26 to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
26 ἵνα αὐτὴν ἁγιάσῃ καθαρίσας τῷ λουτρῷ τοῦ ὕδατος ἐν ῥήματι,
27 and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.
27 that he might present the assembly to himself gloriously, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without defect.
27 ἵνα παραστήσῃ αὐτὴν ἑαυτῷ ἔνδοξον τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, μὴ ἔχουσαν σπίλον ἢ ῥυτίδα ἤ τι τῶν τοιούτων, ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα ᾖ ἁγία καὶ ἄμωμος.
28 In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
28 Even so husbands also ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself.
28 οὕτως ὀφείλουσιν οἱ ἄνδρες ἀγαπᾶν τὰς ἑαυτῶν γυναῖκας ὡς τὰ ἑαυτῶν σώματα. ὁ ἀγαπῶν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα ἑαυτὸν ἀγαπᾷ·
29 Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.
29 For no man ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord also does the assembly,
29 οὐδεὶς γάρ ποτε τὴν ἑαυτοῦ σάρκα ἐμίσησεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκτρέφει καὶ θάλπει αὐτήν, καθὼς καὶ ὁ Κύριος τὴν ἐκκλησίαν·
30 For we are members of His body—of His flesh and of His bones.
30 because we are members of his body, of his flesh and bones.
30 ὅτι μέλη ἐσμὲν τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ, ἐκ τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὀστέων αὐτοῦ·
31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
31 “For this cause a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife. Then the two will become one flesh.”
31 ἀντὶ τούτου καταλείψει ἄνθρωπος τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν μητέρα καὶ προσκολληθήσεται πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἔσονται οἱ δύο εἰς σάρκα μίαν.
32 This mystery is profound, but I am speaking about Christ and the church.
32 This mystery is great, but I speak concerning Christ and the assembly.
32 τὸ μυστήριον τοῦτο μέγα ἐστίν, ἐγὼ δὲ λέγω εἰς Χριστὸν καὶ εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν.
33 Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
33 Nevertheless each of you must also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
33 πλὴν καὶ ὑμεῖς οἱ καθ᾽ ἕνα ἕκαστος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα οὕτως ἀγαπάτω ὡς ἑαυτόν, ἡ δὲ γυνὴ ἵνα φοβῆται τὸν ἄνδρα.
Cross references (33)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 1 John 4:11; 1 Peter 1:15–16; Ephesians 4:32; Matthew 5:48; Luke 6:35–36
- 2 John 13:34; Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:14; 2 Corinthians 2:15; Matthew 20:28
- 3 Colossians 3:5; Ephesians 5:5; Galatians 5:19–21; 1 Corinthians 6:18; 1 Thessalonians 4:3
- 4 Colossians 3:8; Ephesians 4:29; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Proverbs 15:2; James 3:4–8
- 5 Galatians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 6:9–10; Colossians 3:5; Revelation 22:15; Ephesians 5:3
- 6 Romans 1:18; Colossians 2:8; Matthew 24:4; 1 John 4:1; 2 Thessalonians 2:10–12
- 7 Revelation 18:4; 1 Timothy 5:22; Ephesians 5:11; Numbers 16:26; Proverbs 1:10–17
- 8 John 8:12; 1 John 1:7; John 12:46; Acts 26:18; Colossians 1:13
- 9 Galatians 5:22–23; 3 John 11; 1 John 3:9–10; Romans 15:14; Ephesians 6:14
- 10 Romans 12:1–2; Psalm 19:14; Hebrews 12:28; 1 Peter 2:5; 1 Peter 2:20
- 11 Romans 13:12; 1 Timothy 5:20; 2 Thessalonians 3:6; 2 John 10–11; Romans 16:17
- 12 Ephesians 5:3; Romans 2:16; Ecclesiastes 12:14; Jeremiah 23:24; 2 Samuel 12:12
- 13 John 3:20–21; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Hosea 2:10; Hosea 7:1; Micah 7:9
- 14 Isaiah 60:1; Romans 13:11–12; Isaiah 26:19; 1 Thessalonians 5:6; Isaiah 52:1
- 15 Colossians 4:5; James 3:13; Philippians 1:27; 1 Corinthians 14:20; Proverbs 14:8
- 16 Colossians 4:5; Amos 5:13; John 12:35; Ecclesiastes 12:1; Ephesians 6:13
- 17 Romans 12:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Colossians 1:9; Ephesians 5:15; Jeremiah 4:22
- 18 Luke 1:15; Romans 13:13; Proverbs 20:1; Galatians 5:21–25; Acts 11:24
- 19 Colossians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 14:26; Psalm 95:2; Acts 16:25; Psalm 147:7
- 20 Colossians 3:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Hebrews 13:15; Philippians 4:6; Ephesians 5:4
- 21 Philippians 2:3; Ephesians 5:24; Ephesians 5:22; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:5
- 22 Colossians 3:18–4:1; 1 Peter 3:1–6; Titus 2:5; Genesis 3:16; Esther 1:20
- 23 1 Corinthians 11:3–10; Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22–23; Ephesians 5:25–26; Ephesians 4:15
- 24 Ephesians 5:33; Titus 2:7; Colossians 3:20; Titus 2:9; Colossians 3:22
- 25 1 Peter 3:7; Colossians 3:19; Ephesians 5:28; Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:33
- 26 Hebrews 10:22; John 15:3; Ezekiel 36:25; John 3:5; John 17:17–19
- 27 Colossians 1:22; Hebrews 9:14; 1 Peter 1:19; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 1:4
- 28 Ephesians 5:25; Matthew 19:5; Genesis 2:21–24; Ephesians 5:33; Ephesians 5:31
- 29 Ephesians 5:31; Ezekiel 34:14–15; Proverbs 11:17; John 6:50–58; Ecclesiastes 4:5
- 30 1 Corinthians 6:15; 1 Corinthians 12:12–27; Romans 12:5; Genesis 2:23; Ephesians 1:23
- 31 Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5; Mark 10:7–8; 1 Corinthians 6:16
- 32 Revelation 21:2; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Isaiah 54:5; Revelation 19:7–8; Colossians 2:2
- 33 1 Peter 3:2–7; Esther 1:20; Ephesians 5:25; Ephesians 5:22; Ephesians 5:28–29
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
There were, it is likely, in the time of our forefathers also, some who "weakened the hands of the people" (Jer. xxxviii. 4.), and brought into practice that which is mentioned by Ezekiel,--or rather who did the works of the false prophets, who "profaned God among His people for handfuls of barley" (Ezek. xiii.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 13 (1889)
… also that Paul has referred to the conjunctions within the Pleroma, showing them forth by means of one; for, when writing of the conjugal union in this life, he expressed himself thus: "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the Church."
Nor had I aught to answer Thee calling to me, "Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." And to Thee showing me on every side, that what Thou saidst was true, I, convicted by the truth, had nothing at all to reply, but the drawling and drowsy words: "Presently, lo, presently;" "Leave …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
… this cause he also built theatres in the cities, and having trained those buffoons, by their pernicious influence he causes that kind of pestilence to light upon the whole city, persuading men to follow those things which Paul bade us flee, "foolish talking and jesting." And what is yet more grievous than these things is the subject of the laughter.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
… of salvation, and a robe of gladness: He hath crowned me with a garland as a bridegroom, and decked me with ornaments as a bride: that the soul of every one of you may be found not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; I do not mean before you have received the grace, for how could that …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)