1Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children. 2And •walk in love, as the •Messiah also loved us and gave Himself for us,a a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God. 3But sexual immoralityb and any impurityc or greedd should not even be heard ofe among you, as is proper for •saints. 4Coarse and foolish talking or crude joking are not suitable, but rather giving thanks. 5For know and recognize this: Every sexually immoralf or impureg or greedyh person, who is an idolater, does not have an inheritance in the kingdomi of the Messiah and of God.

Light versus Darkness

6Let no one deceive you with empty arguments, for God’s wrathj is coming on the disobedient because of these things.k 7Therefore, do not become their partners. 8For you were once darkness, but now you are lightl in the Lord. Walk as children of lightm — 9for the fruit of the lightn results in all goodness, righteousness, and trutho — 10discerningp what is pleasingq to the Lord. 11Don’t participate in the fruitlessr works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to mention what is done by them in secret. 13Everything exposed by the light is made clear,s 14for what makes everything clear is light. Therefore it is said:

Get up, sleeper,t and rise up from the dead,u

and the Messiah will shine on you.v, w

Consistency in the Christian Life

15Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk — not as unwise people but as wise — 16making the most of the time,x, y because the days are evil. 17So don’t be foolish, but understandz what the Lord’s willaa is. 18And don’t get drunkab with wine,ac which leads to reckless actions, but be filled by the Spirit:ad

19speaking to one another

in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs,

singing and making music

from your heart to the Lord,

20giving thanks always for everything

to God the Father

in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

21submitting to one another

in the fear of Christ.ae

Wives and Husbands

22Wives,af submitag, ah to your own husbandsai as to the Lord, 23for the husband is the head of the wifeaj as Christ is the headak of the church. He is the Savior of the body.al 24Now as the church submits to Christ, so wives are to submit to their husbands in everything. 25Husbands, love your wives,am just as Christ lovedan the church and gave Himselfao for her 26to make her holy, cleansingap her with the washing of water by the word. 27He did this to present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless.aq 28In the same way, husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29For no one ever hates his own flesh but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, 30since we are members of His body.ar

31For this reason a man will leave

his father and mother

and be joined to his wife,as

and the two will become one flesh.at, au

32This •mysteryav is profound, but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33To sum up, each one of you is to love his wife as himself, and the wife is to respect her husband.