Wives be submissive to their husbands.

In Jewish and Greco-Roman culture women were seen as secondary citizens. The male Jew could at any time for no reason write a letter of dismissal to divorce his wife. In fact, the devout Jew would recite a prayer daily thanking God that he was not a woman. Such behavior was well understood to Paul, who being a devout Jew himself. Paul begins his lesson on marriage by first stating that women are to be subject/submissive to their husband as an expression of their submission to Jesus. Paul does not say that they are to be just as submissive to their husband as they are to Jesus nor that women were to be submissive to all men nor that women were inferior to men. Submission does not mean inferiority or a loss of one’s identity it means giving oneself up to someone else. Our universe is an example of authority and submission; which is a natural necessity to maintain order: God has authority over man, man has authority over nature, husbands have authority over their wives, parents over their children, governors over which they govern, employers over their employees, and spiritual leaders over those they lead spiritually. I believe Paul is trying to show that submission leads to voluntary organization which leads to completeness and oneness in marriage. In Greco-Roman culture men had no responsibilities towards their wives, as wives had many toward their husbands. Paul summarizes the wives duty as submission and the men’s job as love (agapate) which means seeking the highest good for another person; just as Christ gave up his life for the salvation of mankind. He gave up his rights in order to fulfill his responsibilities, so must the man in relation to his wife. This love must consist of unconditional acceptance, sacrificial action, and self-denial of your passions when hers are at risk.