Ephesians 5

Be therefore imitators of God, as beloved children.

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.

But sexual immorality, and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be mentioned among you, as becomes saints;

nor filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not appropriate, but rather giving of thanks.

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.

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.

Therefore don’t be partakers with them.

For you were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,

for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth,

proving what is well pleasing to the Lord.

Have no fellowship with the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather even reprove them.

For it is a shame even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret.

But all things, when they are reproved, are revealed by the light, for everything that reveals is light.

Therefore he says, “Awake, you who sleep, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

Therefore watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise,

redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Therefore, don’t be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

Don’t be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,

speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs; singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

giving thanks always concerning all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;

subjecting yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ.

Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

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.

But as the assembly is subject to Christ, so let the wives also be to their own husbands in everything.

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the assembly and gave himself up for her,

that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,

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.

Even so husbands also ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself.

For no man ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord also does the assembly,

because we are members of his body, of his flesh and bones.

“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.”

This mystery is great, but I speak concerning Christ and the assembly.

Nevertheless each of you must also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview.
This chapter calls believers to live in a manner consistent with their new identity in Christ, emphasizing holiness, wisdom, and mutual love within the body of Christ. Paul urges the Ephesians to imitate God by walking in love, avoiding sexual immorality and empty living, and instead being filled with the Spirit, which overflows in thanksgiving, mutual submission, and Christlike relationships—especially within marriage, which he presents as a profound picture of Christ’s union with the church.

Flow.

Begins with a call to imitate God as beloved children, exemplified by Christ’s self-giving love (vv. 1–2).
Warns against sexual immorality, impurity, and foolishness, stressing that such behaviors exclude one from Christ’s kingdom (vv. 3–7).
Shifts to exhortations to walk as light in the Lord, making wise use of time and being Spirit-filled rather than self-indulgent (vv. 8–18).
Culminates in practical instructions for mutual submission, especially in marital relationships, rooted in the mystery of Christ and the church (vv. 19–33).

Connections.
Following chapter 4, which calls for putting off the old self and walking in unity and newness of life, this chapter deepens the ethical implications of that renewal by focusing on moral purity and Spirit-led conduct. It prepares the way for chapter 6, which extends the theme of Spirit-empowered obedience into relationships within the household and spiritual warfare, by grounding ethical living in the believer’s union with Christ and the church’s relationship to her Head.

What it teaches.
Believers are called to holy living not by external rules but from a transformed nature: they were darkness, but now are light in the Lord (; cf. WCF 13.1). Sexual immorality and idolatrous covetousness are incompatible with the kingdom of Christ (; cf. HC LD 41, Q&A 105), while the fruit of the Spirit—goodness, righteousness, truth—reflects divine light (; cf. WCF 16.2). Being filled with the Spirit produces thanksgiving and mutual deference, not drunkenness or domination (; cf. WCF 17.1). Marriage is ordained to mirror Christ’s sacrificial love for the church and her glad submission to Him (; cf. WCF 24.2; HC LD 41, Q&A 108).

Apply.
Live with such gratitude and reverence that every relationship—especially marriage—becomes a visible expression of Christ’s love for His church.

AI-generated. Not a substitute for Scripture, your pastor, or the confessions.