EPHESIANS 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, 26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, 27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.
Husbands Love Your Wives; Paul does not emphasize the husband's authority; instead, he calls on husbands to love self-sacrificially. Husbands are to emulate Christ's love, the kind of love that is willing to lay down one's life for another and serve that person even if it means suffering. NSB*
Loved The Church; Love here is the Greek word ἀγαπάω agapao. From Vine's notes - "Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren, or toward men generally, is not an impulse from the feelings, it does not always run with the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only upon those for whom some affinity is discovered. Love seeks the welfare of all. Strong's G25 denotes "to love (in a social or moral sense)", Dodson offers, I love, wish well to, take pleasure in, long for; denotes the love of reason, esteem. LSJ Gloss offers, to treat with affection, to caress, love, be fond of.
Gave Himself; This might be hard for a lot of my brothers in Christ to hear, both the husbands and those looking to be married. Gave here has the idea of surrender, i.e yield up, intrust, transmit. The Greek word is ἑαυτοῦ paradidōmi. Strong's G3860.
Acts 20:28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
Moving to Verse 26.
Sanctify And Cleanse; "Sanctification is that relationship with God into which men enter by faith in Christ, Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 6:11, and to which their sole title is the death of Christ. The Greek word is ἁγιασμός hagiasmos. Vine's (def A-1b) Strong's G38
Cleanse signifies "to make clean, to cleanse". In a moral sense, from the defilement of sin. The Greek word used here is καθαρίζω katharizo. Vine's (def B-1b), Strong's G2511.
Washing Of Water By The Word; "a bath, a laver" (akin to louo, See above), is used metaphorically of the Word of God, as the instrument of spiritual cleansing. The Greek word for "washing" is loutron λουτρόν. Vine's (def 2), Strong's G3067.
John 15:3 You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
John 17:17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
Note: In John 17:17 Sanctify means "to set apart". There are two ways to understand this statement. (1) as separate for holiness, or (2) as set apart for service. According to the first view Jesus was praying not only that the disciples should be kept from evil, but that they should advance in Holiness. However, in vs 18, sanctification seems to refer to the disciples' mission indicating that sanctify may also mean that Jesus was setting apart His disciples for this. "Your word is truth" is a strong statement of Jesus' confidence in the veracity of scripture. People's opinions may vary, and people's experiences can be untrustworthy, but God's word always remains true. NSB (para).
My notes - John 17:17 also dismantles any argument that Paul's writings are somehow not truth.
Moving to Verse 26-27
Song Of Solomon 4:7 You are all fair, my love, And there is no spot in you.
Present Her; denotes, when used transitively, to place beside" (para, "by," histemi, "to set"), "to present,". The Greek word is παρίστημι paristemi. Vine's (def 1), Strong's G3936. The King James Version uses the word "shew".
Glorious; "splendid, glorious," said of apparel, Luke 7:25, "gorgeously;" of the works of Christ, Luke 13:17; of the Church. The Greek word is ἔνδοξος endoxos. Vine's (def B-1b), Strong's G1741.
Without Blemish; The Greek word used here is "blameless", ἄμωμος amōmos. It has the idea of "without blemish". Vine's (def B-1), Strong's G299. The most authentic mss. have amomos, "without blemish," in Philippians 2:15, for amometos, "without rebuke." In the Sept., in reference to sacrifices, especially in Lev. and Num., the Psalms and Ezek., "of blamelessness in character and conduct.".
Takeaway -
Yes, wives should submit to their husbands as unto the Lord, however, the husband also needs to surrender himself to his wife as Christ did the church. This does have the connotation of being willing to die for her, but also helping her avoid sin, avoiding sin himself and doing such without bitterness.
This means husbands should refrain from "evil speaking" concerning their wives or anything really, I covered that here. They should not harbor ill will, malice etc, about being asked to do things that might bring suffering "as unto the Lord". In today's terms, that means, "You men of God, do not be a bunch of weaklings but have an attitude of service to your wife and the Lord, that you might be worthy in the eyes of God to lead one of his daughters.
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