Ephesians 5:28

In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Paul, writing to the Ephesian church, addresses husbands directly within a sustained argument (5:22–33) that models marriage on Christ's relationship with the church.

The words — ὀφείλουσιν (opheilousin), "they owe," grounds the command in debt rather than preference; it is the same root behind "debt" and "debtor" throughout the NT.

The thread — The self-identity logic ("loves his wife, loves himself") rests on the one-flesh union traced in Genesis 2:21 and reaffirmed in Matthew 19:5.

Why it lands — It removes the option of indifference: if the wife is your own body, neglecting her is self-harm, and the standard is not sentiment but the same instinct that makes you feed and protect yourself.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.

Cross-references

Matthew 19:5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’?
Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
Genesis 2:21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and while he slept, He took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the area with flesh.
Ephesians 5:33 Nevertheless, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Ephesians 5:31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”