22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.
24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
This is one of those sets of verses that seems to plant land mines and booby-traps for me. It is one of those topics so fraught with the possibility to be misunderstood. The man-woman relationship is such a hot issue.
From a commentary: “Building on the principle of mutual submission in Eph 5:21 (which itself stems from being filled with the Spirit in v. 18), Paul presents examples of how believers should be subject to one another in household relationships. In the first-century Graeco-Roman world, it was standard for every household member to be subject in daily affairs to the patriarch. This viewpoint was central to Graeco-Roman society.
Paul works within this framework to suggest a model that makes Christ the ultimate authority—his viewpoint is based on mutual love. In these sections of Ephesians, Paul addresses wives and husbands, children and parents, and servants and masters. As he does so, he follows a similar pattern: He first calls on the subordinate—according to Graeco-Roman values—to submit to authority, and then reminds the superior to exercise authority considerately, in ways that honor Christ. Compare Col 3:18–4:1.” (See Note 1, below)
The subject of submission is carried into chapter 6 of this letter. Paul was quite aware of submission - slaves to masters, children to parents, wives to husbands, husbands to Jesus Christ. The church - in fact, all believers - are in submission to Christ. A commentary opined: “Submission does not mean inferiority. As well, submission does not mean silence. Submission means ‘sub-mission.’ There is a mission for the Christian marriage, and that mission is obeying and glorifying God.” (See Note 2, below)
Vs. 22 - “Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord." - The people who are staunchly advocating women’s rights may take umbrage at these sections of verses. However comma…
"as to the Lord." This is about the marriage relationship, not about politics, business, education, etc. This not about men being superior to women; this only concerns the home and church.
I think that David Guzik’s commentary explains this very well: “The words in the fear of God describe what should be our motive for submitting to one another. We should submit to one other — see ourselves no longer in an individualistic way, but as a unit, as a company or a battalion — out of respect for God the Father, respect for Jesus Christ… The motive for submission is not social kindness. The motive for submission is not the law of God. The motive for submission is respect for Jesus Christ. If we respect Jesus, we then should submit to one another because we love Jesus. Paul uses the term fear in this passage, but it is a fear — a respect — that is compatible with love. It is a fear of disappointing Jesus, a fear of grieving Him. That is totally compatible with love. When you really respect someone, you care about pleasing him or her, and you are afraid to disappoint that one.” (See Note 2, below)
Paul is not saying women are inferior to men, or that wives are inferior to their husbands; those concepts are neither scriptural nor Christian. Paul is emphasizing the ‘team’ or ‘squad’ idea. The idea that a woman is inferior to a man is concentrating on the individuals, a very secular way of thinking. Our salvation is not dependent on our selves, or our abilities, or social status. We are wholly and completely saved only by the power of Jesus Christ. We owe everything to Him. What He wants must be our command, not just a suggestion.
For example: On a football team, every player is necessary. There may be a spectacular play, but the touchdown reception happens when the coach calls the right play, the team blocks the opponents correctly, the receiver runs the right route, the other receivers provide enough deception that they cannot be ignored, the quarterback throws the ball to the correct spot, and the receiver catches the ball. We, the church, are all vital to the mission set before us - to reach the lost and share the gospel. See: “In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” (Rom 12:5)
Also, from Guzik’s commentary, submission “means: ‘Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands because it is a part of your duty to the Lord, because it is an expression of your submission to the Lord.’ Or, ‘Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands; do it in this way, do it as a part of your submission to the Lord.’ In other words, you are not doing it only for the husband, you are doing it primarily for the Lord Himself… You are doing it for Christ’s sake; you are doing it because you know that He exhorts you to do it. It is well-pleasing in His sight that you should be doing it. It is part of your Christian behaviour, it is a part of your discipleship.” (Lloyd-Jones) (See Note 2, below)
Vs. 23 - “For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.”
After the fall in the Garden (Gen 3:1-19), God did not change that symbiotic relationship when He ejected them from the garden, and He has not changed it when we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In fact, the concept is enhanced by our Savior, and is the third reason for the submission of wife to husband. Jesus Christ is the head of the church - it does not exist without His sacrifice and resurrection - the church submits to Him. Jesus Christ is the head over man, the man and husband - the Christian man submits to Him, as is fitting and commanded.
“For the husband is the head of the wife” - Here is the second reason regarding submission. We see in Gen 2:18-24, man (the male) was created first, and the woman (the female) was created after. She was created to be a companion and partner for the man - and it was good. They were created for each other, and each had a role with respect to each other.
“as Christ also is the head of the church” - After the fall in the Garden (Gen 3:1-19),when He ejected them from the garden, God did not change that symbiotic relationship; and He has not changed it when we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In fact, the concept is enhanced by our Savior, and is the third reason for the submission of wife to husband. Jesus Christ is the head of the church - it does not exist without His sacrifice and resurrection - the church submits to Him. Jesus Christ is the head over man, the man and husband - the Christian man submits to Him, as is fitting and commanded.
Vs. 24 - “But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.”
“so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything” - Jesus Christ is head over the woman - even if she is not married - and the Christian woman submits to her husband and to the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is the hierarchy ordained by the Lord.
“Everything” - There may be exceptions to the “everything”, Guzik highlights the following: “When the husband asks or expects the wife to sin, she is free from her obligation to submit. This applies in a place of clearly Biblical sin — such as signing a fraudulent tax return. It also applies in matters of true Christian conscience. But we must be very careful to distinguish between true Christian conscience and mere opinion. Yet the wife does not have to submit to a request to commit sin…When the husband is medically incapacitated or insane, she is free from her obligation to submit… A wife does not have to submit to the requests a husband makes when he is insane or medically incapacitated… When the husband is physically abusive and endangers the safety of the wife or children, the wife is free from her obligation to submit. She does not have to submit to his violence… When the husband breaks the marriage bond by adultery. Obviously, a wife does not have to submit to her husband’s adultery, and just accept it. The Bible says she has the right to ‘come out from under his rank’ in such cases. ‘If the husband has been guilty of adultery the wife is no longer bound to give him obedience in everything. She can divorce him, she is allowed to do so by the Scripture. She is entitled to do so because adultery breaks the unity, breaks the relationship. They are now separate and no longer one. He has broken the unity, he has gone out of it. So we must not interpret this Scripture as teaching that the wife is this irrevocably, inevitably bound to an adulterous husband for the rest of her life. She may choose to be — that is for her to decide. All I am saying is, that this Scripture does not command it.’ (Lloyd-Jones)” (See Note 2)
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Note 1: copied from ‘Faithlife Bible” found on Logos App.
Note 2: Guzik, David. “Commentary on Ephesians”, Blue Letter Bible App. There is much more in the commentary mentioned above, and I can’t quote it all here. I suggest that you look it up and read his comments.
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