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Read the Bible

Contemporary English Version

Ephesians 6:3

and you will have a long and happy life."

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Children;   Quotations and Allusions;   Reward;   Thompson Chain Reference - Children;   Home;   Parents;   The Topic Concordance - Honor;   Parents;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Children, Good;   Conduct, Christian;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ancestors;   Ethics;   Family;   Parents;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Law;   Teach, Teacher;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Image;   Justice;   Love, Brotherly;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Colosse;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ephesians, Book of;   Family;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Commandment;   Ephesians Epistle to the;   Family;   Worldliness;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Law of Moses, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Ephesians, Epistle to the;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for April 13;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
so that it may go well with you and that you may have a long life in the land.
King James Version (1611)
That it may bee well with thee, and thou maiest liue long on the earth.
King James Version
That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
English Standard Version
"that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land."
New American Standard Bible
SO THAT IT MAY TURN OUT WELL FOR YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.
New Century Version
"Then everything will be well with you, and you will have a long life on the earth."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.
Legacy Standard Bible
so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long in the land.
Berean Standard Bible
"that it may go well with you and that you may have a long life on the earth."
Complete Jewish Bible
"so that it may go well with you, and you may live long in the Land."
Darby Translation
that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest be long-lived on the earth.
Easy-to-Read Version
And this is the promise: "Then all will go well with you, and you will have a long life on the earth."
Geneva Bible (1587)
That it may be well with thee, and that thou mayst liue long on earth.
George Lamsa Translation
That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
Good News Translation
"so that all may go well with you, and you may live a long time in the land."
Lexham English Bible
"in order that it may be well with you, and you may live a long time on the earth."
Literal Translation
"that it may be well with you, and you may be long-lived on the earth". Deut. 5:16
Amplified Bible
SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY HAVE A LONG LIFE ON THE EARTH.
American Standard Version
that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
Bible in Basic English
So that all may be well for you, and your life may be long on the earth.
Hebrew Names Version
"that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the eretz."
International Standard Version
"So that it may go well for you, and that you may have a long life on the earth."Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16">[fn]
Etheridge Translation
that it may be well with thee, and thy life be prolonged upon the earth.
Murdock Translation
that it may be well with thee, and that thy life may be prolonged on the earth.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
That thou mayest prosper, and lyue long on earth.
English Revised Version
that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
World English Bible
"that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth."
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
and thou mayst live long upon the earth.
Weymouth's New Testament
"so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth."
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
that it be wel to thee, and that thou be long lyuynge on the erthe.
Update Bible Version
that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth.
Webster's Bible Translation
That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
New English Translation
" that it may go well with you and that you will live a long time on the earth ."
New King James Version
"that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."Deuteronomy 5:16">[fn]
New Living Translation
If you honor your father and mother, "things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth."
New Life Bible
The promise is this: If you respect your father and mother, you will live a long time and your life will be full of many good things.
New Revised Standard
"so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
That it may come to be, well with thee, and thou shalt be long-lived upon the land.
Douay-Rheims Bible
That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest be long lived upon earth.
Revised Standard Version
"that it may be well with you and that you may live long on the earth."
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
that thou mayst be in good estate and lyve longe on the erthe.
Young's Literal Translation
which is the first command with a promise, `That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live a long time upon the land.'
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
that thou mayest prospere, and lyue longe vpon earth.
Mace New Testament (1729)
that it may be well with thee, and thou mayst be long-lived on the earth."
Simplified Cowboy Version
If you honor your father and mother, "you'll make it to the end of the trail in one piece after a good, long life."

Contextual Overview

1 Children, you belong to the Lord, and you do the right thing when you obey your parents. The first commandment with a promise says, 2 "Obey your father and your mother, 3 and you will have a long and happy life." 4 Parents, don't be hard on your children. Raise them properly. Teach them and instruct them about the Lord. 5 Slaves, you must obey your earthly masters. Show them great respect and be as loyal to them as you are to Christ. 6 Try to please them at all times, and not just when you think they are watching. You are slaves of Christ, so with your whole heart you must do what God wants you to do. 7 Gladly serve your masters, as though they were the Lord himself, and not simply people. 8 You know that you will be rewarded for any good things you do, whether you are slaves or free. 9 Slave owners, you must treat your slaves with this same respect. Don't threaten them. They have the same Master in heaven that you do, and he doesn't have any favorites.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Deuteronomy 4:40, Deuteronomy 5:16, Deuteronomy 6:3, Deuteronomy 6:18, Deuteronomy 12:25, Deuteronomy 12:28, Deuteronomy 22:7, Ruth 3:1, Psalms 128:1, Psalms 128:2, Isaiah 3:10, Jeremiah 42:6

Reciprocal: Genesis 28:7 - General Deuteronomy 5:29 - that it might Deuteronomy 25:15 - that thy days Ruth 1:8 - the dead Jeremiah 35:6 - Ye shall Romans 13:7 - honour to

Cross-References

Genesis 6:1
More and more people were born, until finally they spread all over the earth. Some of their daughters were so beautiful that supernatural beings came down and married the ones they wanted.
Genesis 6:13
So he told Noah: Cruelty and violence have spread everywhere. Now I'm going to destroy the whole earth and all its people.
Genesis 6:14
Get some good lumber and build a boat. Put rooms in it and cover it with tar inside and out.
Genesis 6:15
Make it four hundred fifty feet long, seventy-five feet wide, and forty-five feet high.
Genesis 6:16
Build a roof on the boat and leave a space of about eighteen inches between the roof and the sides. Make the boat three stories high and put a door on one side.
Genesis 6:18
But I solemnly promise that you, your wife, your sons, and your daughters-in-law will be kept safe in the boat.
Numbers 11:17
While I am talking with you there, I will give them some of your authority, so they can share responsibility for my people. You will no longer have to care for them by yourself.
Nehemiah 9:30
For years, you were patient, and your Spirit warned them with messages spoken by your prophets. Still they refused to listen, and you handed them over to their enemies.
Psalms 78:39
God remembered that they were made of flesh and were like a wind that blows once and then dies down.
Isaiah 5:4
What more could I have done for my vineyard? I hoped for sweet grapes, but bitter grapes were all that grew.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

That it may be well with thee,.... In this world, and that which is to come; see Deuteronomy 5:16. The Jews z say,

"there are four things, which if a man does, he eats the fruit of them in this world, and the capital part remains for him in the world to come; and they are these, אב ואם

כיבוד; "honouring father and mother", doing acts of beneficence, making peace between a man and his neighbour, and learning of the law, which answers to them all.''

And thou mayest live long on the earth: length of days is in itself a blessing; and though men's days cannot be lengthened beyond God's purpose and decree; and though obedient children do not always live long; yet disobedience to parents often brings the judgments of God on children, so that they die not a common death, 2 Samuel 18:14. On those words in Deuteronomy 32:47, the Jews a have this paraphrase;

"because it is your life, זה כיבוד אב ואם, "this is honouring father and mother; and through this thing ye shall prolong your days", this is beneficence.''

It may be observed, that the words in this promissory part are not the same as in the decalogue, where they stand thus, "that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee",

Exodus 20:12, referring to the land of Canaan; for the law in the form of it, in which it was delivered by Moses, only concerned the people of the Jews; wherefore to suit this law, and the promise of it, to others, the apostle alters the language of it.

z Misna Peah, c. 1. sect. 1. T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 127. 1, & Kiddushin, fol. 40. 1. a T. Hieros. Peah, fol. 15. 4.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

That it may be well with thee - This is found in the fifth commandment as recorded in Deuteronomy 5:16. The whole commandment as there recorded is, “Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.” The meaning here is, that they would be more happy, useful, and virtuous if they obeyed their parents than if they disobeyed them.

And thou mayest live long on the earth - In the commandment as recorded in Exodus 20:12, the promise is, “that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.” This referred to the promised land - the land of Canaan. The meaning doubtless, is, that there would be a special providence, securing to those who were obedient to parents length of days. Long life was regarded as a great blessing; and this blessing was promised. The apostle here gives to the promise a more general form, and says that obedience to parents was connected at all times with long life. We may remark here:

(1) That long life is a blessing. It affords a longer space to prepare for eternity; it enables a man to be more useful; and it furnishes a longer opportunity to study the works of God on earth. It is not improper to desire it; and we should make use of all the means in our power to lengthen out our days, and to preserve and protect our lives.

(2) It is still true that obedience to parents is conducive to length of life, and that those who are most obedient in early life, other things being equal, have the best prospect of living long. This occurs because:

(a) obedient children are saved from the vices and crimes which shorten life. No parent will command his child to be a drunkard, a gambler, a spendthrift, a pirate, or a murderer. But these vices and crimes, resulting in most cases from disobedience to parents, all shorten life; and they who early commit them are certain of on early grave. No child who disobeys a parent can have any “security” that he will not fall a victim to such vices and crimes.

(b) Obedience to parents is connected with virtuous habits that are conducive to long life. It will make a child industrious, temperate, sober; it will lead him to restrain and govern his wild passions; it will lead him to form habits of self-government which will in future life save him from the snares of vice and temptation.

(c) Many a life is lost early by disobeying a parent. A child disobeys a father and goes into a dramshop; or he goes to sea; or he becomes the companion of the wicked - and he may be wrecked at sea, or his character on land may be wrecked forever. Of disobedient children there is perhaps not one in a hundred that ever reaches an honored old age.

(d) We may still believe that God, in his providence, will watch over those who are obedient to a father and mother. If he regards a falling sparrow Matthew 10:29, he will not be unmindful of an obedient child; if he numbers the hairs of the head Matthew 10:30, he will not be regardless of the little boy that honors him by obeying a father and mother.


 
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