Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. | Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. |
Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. | But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven. |
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Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly. | Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly. |
Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of which he is the Savior. | For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the church. |
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. | So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. |
If any of you sin without knowing it, doing any of the things that by the Lord's commandments ought not to be done, you have incurred guilt, and are subject to punishment. | Suppose you sin by violating one of the Lord’s commands. Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin. |
Tell slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give satisfaction in every respect; they are not to talk back, not to pilfer, but to show complete and perfect fidelity, so that in everything they may be an ornament to the doctrine of God our Savior. | Slaves must always obey their masters and do their best to please them. They must not talk back or steal, but must show themselves to be entirely trustworthy and good. Then they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way. |
For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. | So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. |
But I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified. | I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. |