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Read the Bible

New King James Version

Colossians 3:19

Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Husband;   Wife;   Thompson Chain Reference - Conjugal Love;   Family;   Home;   Love;   Social Duties;   The Topic Concordance - Love;   Marriage;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Husbands;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Husband;   Wife;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Divorce;   Family Life and Relations;   Marriage;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Wife;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Marriage;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Colossians;   Marriage;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Christian Life;   Commandment;   Liberty;   Marriage;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Husband;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Marriage;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Sanctification;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bitter;   Essenes, the;   Wrath (Anger);   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Marriage;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Husbands, love your wives and don’t be bitter toward them.
King James Version (1611)
Husbands, loue your wiues, and be not bitter against them.
King James Version
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
English Standard Version
Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.
New American Standard Bible
Husbands, love your wives and do not become bitter against them.
New Century Version
Husbands, love your wives and be gentle with them.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.
Legacy Standard Bible
Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.
Berean Standard Bible
Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
Contemporary English Version
A husband must love his wife and not abuse her.
Complete Jewish Bible
Husbands, love your wives and don't treat them harshly.
Darby Translation
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Easy-to-Read Version
Husbands, love your wives, and be gentle to them.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Husbands, loue your wiues, and be not bitter vnto them.
George Lamsa Translation
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter toward them.
Good News Translation
Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
Lexham English Bible
Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.
Literal Translation
Husbands, love the wives and do not be bitter against them.
Amplified Bible
Husbands, love your wives [with an affectionate, sympathetic, selfless love that always seeks the best for them] and do not be embittered or resentful toward them [because of the responsibilities of marriage].
American Standard Version
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Bible in Basic English
Husbands, have love for your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Hebrew Names Version
Husbands, love your wives, and don't be bitter against them.
International Standard Version
Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh withbitter toward">[fn] them.Ephesians 4:31; 1 Peter 3:7;">[xr]
Etheridge Translation
Men, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Murdock Translation
Husbands, love ye your wives, and be not bitter towards them.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Husbandes, loue your wyues, and be not bitter agaynst them:
English Revised Version
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
World English Bible
Husbands, love your wives, and don't be bitter against them.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.
Weymouth's New Testament
Married men, be affectionate to your wives, and do not treat them harshly.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Men, loue ye youre wyues, and nyle ye be bittere to hem.
Update Bible Version
Husbands, love your wives, and do not be bitter against them.
Webster's Bible Translation
Husbands, love [your] wives, and be not bitter against them.
New English Translation
Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them.
New Living Translation
Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly.
New Life Bible
Husbands, love your wives. Do not hold hard feelings against them.
New Revised Standard
Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Ye husbands! be loving your wives, and be not embittered against them;
Douay-Rheims Bible
Husbands, love your wives and be not bitter towards them.
Revised Standard Version
Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Husbandes love youre wyves and be not bitter vnto them.
Young's Literal Translation
the husbands! love your wives, and be not bitter with them;
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Ye hussbandes, loue youre wyues, and be not bytter vnto them.
Mace New Testament (1729)
husbands, love your wives, and do not exasperate them.
THE MESSAGE
Husbands, go all out in love for your wives. Don't take advantage of them.
Simplified Cowboy Version
Guys, love your wives and don't be mean to them. This is your way of submitting to them.

Contextual Overview

18 Ephesians 5:21-6:9">[xr] Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them. 20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. 22 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. 23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for [fn] you serve the Lord Christ. 25 But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

love: Genesis 2:23, Genesis 2:24, Genesis 24:67, Proverbs 5:18, Proverbs 5:19, Ecclesiastes 9:9, Malachi 2:14-16, Luke 14:26, Ephesians 5:25, Ephesians 5:28, Ephesians 5:29, Ephesians 5:33, 1 Peter 3:7

bitter: Colossians 3:21, Romans 3:14, Ephesians 4:31, James 3:14

Reciprocal: 1 Corinthians 7:33 - how

Cross-References

Genesis 3:12
Then the man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."
Genesis 3:13
And the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
Genesis 3:16
To the woman He said: "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you."
Genesis 3:21
Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.
Genesis 3:22
Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"--
Genesis 18:27
Then Abraham answered and said, "Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord:
Genesis 23:4
"I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight."
Job 1:21
And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD."
Job 19:26
And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God,
Job 21:26
They lie down alike in the dust, And worms cover them.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Husbands, love your wives,.... :-.

and be not bitter against them; turning love into hatred of their persons; ruling with rigour, and in a tyrannical manner; behaving towards them in a morose, churlish, and ill natured way; giving them either bitter words, or blows, and denying them their affection, care, provision, protection, and assistance, but using them as servants, or worse. All which is barbarous, brutish, and unchristian, and utterly unbecoming the Gospel.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Husbands, love your wives ... - Notes, Ephesians 4:25-29.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 19. Be not bitter against them. — Wherever bitterness is, there love is wanting. And where love is wanting in the married life, there is hell upon earth.


 
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