# Bible Verses About Marriage > Scripture describes marriage as a covenant that makes two people one household. Its instructions give responsibilities to both spouses. Ephesians 5 begins with mutual submission, then devotes about three times as many words to the responsibility of husbands. Read from the beginning, the passage centers self-giving love. _Scripture text is not reproduced in this file: the translations BibleHearth serves are licensed from their publishers and require a copyright notice beside the text. Every reference below links to the verse on BibleHearth, where the passage and its notice appear together._ ## Marriage is a covenant that forms a new household The foundational passages speak of leaving, joining, and becoming one. Their language describes a durable bond with public significance. - [Genesis 2:24](https://biblehearth.online/verse/genesis/2/24) — Jesus and Paul both return to this verse. Leaving and joining form a new household, described as becoming one flesh. - [Mark 10:9](https://biblehearth.online/verse/mark/10/9) — Jesus cites Genesis when asked about divorce, in a conversation where his answer protects the spouse made vulnerable by casual divorce. - [Hebrews 13:4](https://biblehearth.online/verse/hebrews/13/4) — Everyone is told to honor marriage, giving the covenant a public as well as private dimension. ## The obligations run in both directions Reading the household passages from their opening changes their emphasis. They begin with a mutual instruction and give husbands the longer, costlier assignment. - [Ephesians 5:21](https://biblehearth.online/verse/ephesians/5/21) — This sentence calls the whole church to submit to one another and introduces the household instructions that follow. - [Ephesians 5:25](https://biblehearth.online/verse/ephesians/5/25) — Husbands are given Christ's self-giving for the church as the standard for their love. - [Colossians 3:19](https://biblehearth.online/verse/colossians/3/19) — Paul's shorter instruction explicitly prohibits husbands from being harsh with their wives. - [1 Peter 3:7](https://biblehearth.online/verse/1-peter/3/7) — Peter ties considerate treatment of a wife to a husband's prayers being hindered, giving mistreatment a direct spiritual consequence. ## The practical case is companionship Alongside the covenant language, Scripture is plain that the ordinary good of marriage includes companionship and practical support. - [Genesis 2:18](https://biblehearth.online/verse/genesis/2/18) — A person's solitude is the first thing Genesis calls "not good." This establishes companionship as a basic human good. - [Ecclesiastes 4:9-12](https://biblehearth.online/verse/ecclesiastes/4/9) — Though it isn't specifically about marriage, this passage is often read at weddings. Two people can work, recover, and endure together. ## What these verses do not mean Ephesians 5 is the most misused passage in this collection. It is routinely quoted as "wives, submit", skipping verse 21's instruction to "submit to one another," and stopping before the far longer and costlier command to husbands. That fragment can become a warrant for control even though the passage sets self-sacrifice as its standard. More seriously, these verses are used to keep people in abusive marriages. Nothing in Scripture requires anyone to remain in danger; Peter explicitly ties a husband's mistreatment of his wife to his prayers being hindered, and the prophets treat covenant-breaking as the offense of the one who breaks it. If you are being harmed, these passages are not an instruction to stay. The opening of Ephesians 5:21 matters for everything that follows. Paul first tells the church to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ, then addresses wives and husbands within that shared frame. His longer instruction to husbands measures love by Christ giving himself for the church. The passage therefore places power under the demands of mutual care and self-giving love. ## Common questions about marriage ### What does Ephesians 5 say about marriage? It opens in verse 21 by telling the whole church to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ, then addresses wives briefly and husbands at roughly three times the length. The standard set for husbands is Christ giving himself up for the church. Quoting only from verse 22 leaves out the mutual frame and the longest instruction. ### What does "the two shall become one flesh" mean? Genesis 2:24 describes a new household formed by leaving one's parents and being joined to a spouse. "One flesh" names a union that is physical, economic, and social. Jesus cites it in Mark 10 to argue that marriage is not casually dissolved, and Paul uses it in Ephesians as a picture of Christ and the church. ## Related topics - [Bible verses about love](https://biblehearth.online/topics/love) - [Bible verses about family](https://biblehearth.online/topics/family) - [Bible verses about forgiveness](https://biblehearth.online/topics/forgiveness) --- Source: https://biblehearth.online/topics/marriage Reviewed: 2026-08-21 Original writing © BibleHearth. Licensed Scripture is not included in this file.