1So be imitators of God, as beloved children,
2and walk in love, as also Christ loved us and gave himself up on our behalf
as an offering and sacrifice to God as a sweet scent.
3But
as for fornication and all uncleanness or fraud, let them not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints,
4nor disgracefulness and foolish talk or jesting, which
are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks,
5for be aware of this, that no fornicator, or unclean person, or fraudster, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
6Let no-one deceive you with vain words, for on account of such
things the wrath of God comes on the sons of disobedience.
7Therefore do not be joint partakers of these
things,
8for you were once darkness, but
are now light in
the Lord; walk as children of light
9(for the fruit of the spirit
is in all goodness and righteousness and truth),
10as
you test what is well-pleasing to the Lord.
11And do not have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather censure
them too.
12For it is a shame even to speak
of the
things which are done by them in secret.
13But all the
things which are censured by the light are made manifest. For everything that makes manifest is light.
14Therefore he says,
“Awake, you who are asleep,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.”
15See then that you walk circumspectly, not as unwise
folk, but as wise,
16buying up the time, because the days are evil.
17On account of this, do not become foolish, but understanding what the will of the Lord
is.
18And do not become drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with
the spirit,
19speaking to each other in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing a melody in your heart to the Lord,
20always giving thanks for all
things in
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to him
who is God and father,
21submitting to each other in
the fear of Christ.
22You wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord,
23for a husband is
the head of the wife, as Christ
is the head of the church, as he is
the saviour of the body.
24But as the church submits to Christ, so
should wives
do to their own husbands in every
respect.
25Husbands, love your own wives, as also Christ loved the church and gave himself up for it,
26in order that he might sanctify it, having cleansed
it by the water-laver: by
the word,
27in order that he might present the church to himself
as glorious, not having spot or wrinkle or any such
thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.
28In this way husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He
who loves his own wife loves himself,
29for no-one ever hated his own flesh, but
everyone nourishes and cherishes it as the Lord for his part
does the church,
30for we are members of his body, of his flesh and of his bones.
31For this reason a man will leave his father and mother, and he will cleave to his wife, and the two will be one flesh.
32This mystery is great, but I speak concerning Christ and concerning the church.
33But still, let each of you individually so love his wife as himself, but let the wife
see that she reveres
her husband.
Reference(s) in Chapter 5: v.14 ↔ Isaiah 60:1, Isaiah 60:2 ● v.31 ↔ Genesis 2:24.