[1.] On the wife's part; no privilege of birth, parts, breeding, can exempt her from it. If she be a wife, whatever she be, she must be in subjection to her own husband. We cannot dispense with God's ordinance. She still ought to look upon her husband as one placed by God in a degree of superiority above her ; and the law of nature, and the ordinance of God, and her own covenant, bind her to submission and
444 SERMONS UPON EPHESIANS V. [SeR. XXVII.
dutifulness to liim. God hath not said, Such women shall be subject, and such not, but speaketh to all indefinitely : ' Wives, submit your- selves to your own husbands.' If any have peculiar gifts of wisdom and prudence, it is to make them the more serviceable, and to cover and supply their husband's defects ; as Abigail did Nabal's.
[2.] On the husband's part ; no personal infirmity, no frowardness of nature, no error in religion (1 Cor. vii. 13), deprives him of it. The Imsband's wickedness and disobedience to the gospel doth not lessen the relation, or vacate the duty belonging thereunto. No ; rather the conscientious party is more strictly tied to a faithful discharge of their duty, to gain upon the other party. The relation is only loosened in case of adultery, and lawful divorce thereupon, Mat. v. 32, or wilful desertion, 1 Cor. vii. 15. In other cases you must bear your burden. If you object, They are unfit ; you should not have chosen such to rule you ; but having chosen them, you must assist them the best you can in a dutiful, not a masterly way.
3. It reproveth them that have no reason to allege but their own imperious and peevish humour causeth them to live discontentedly and disobediently in this relation ; they stand in no awe of their husbands, and will not be subject. These live in plain rebellion and defiance of God's ordinance ; and they should bethink themselves how it will stand with the profession they make of being christians, or what account they shall give in the judgment, when they are to pass their doom and trial, how they have glorified God in this relation ; what they have done as wives for his honour.
4. It reproveth those husbands that by their own default lose their authority and dignity, and are themselves causes that their own power is lessened and diminished, either by their intemperance, behaving themselves as beasts rather than men, that they are altogether unfit to judge what is meet and good for the family ; so that if the prudent wife did not contribute her assistance, all would go to ruin ; or by their faulty easiness, giving way to evil ; as Adam permitted himself to be seduced by his wife, and Jezebel's overruling her husband Ahab in the matter of Naboth's vineyard, which proved both the ruin of her, and her husband, and the whole family, 1 Kings xxi. 7, 22-24. It is true the husband is to govern not by fear, but by love. He is the image of Christ in governing his church, and the wife is not a slave, but a meet help ; but this love should not be a snare to him. And it is true the wife should not be despised, for God saith to Abraham, * Hearken to the voice of Sarah.' But there is a difference between hearkening to good counsel, and swallowing a temptation, and being driven to evil by the woman's imperiousness.
Use 2, Is to exhort wives to submit to their own husbands.
Here I shall take notice — (1.) Of tte impediments; (2.) The motives.
1. The impediments.
[1.] Pride. When they think of their own birth, beauty, wisdom, beyond what is meet, and so take upon them more than they ought, contemning the husband's authority ; but they should remember their duty dependeth not upon their birth, beauty, portion, but God's ordinance. On this is founded the husband's authority, and subjec-
VeK. 22.] SERMONS UPON EPHESIANS V. 445
tion of the wife, which neither can nor ought to be abrogated and changed by these accidental things. They should also consider that pride is no great sign of their worth, and these are soonest blown up, and it is conceit rather than solid worth, and that this motive of pride is from the devil to draw them into rebellion against God.
[2.] A defect of true love ; for love maketh all services easy and cordial : Gen. xxiv. 20, ' Jacob's seven years seemed to him but a few days;' Ps. cxix. 167, 'My soul hath kept thy testimonies, and I love them exceedingly.' And it is so to a woman also ; she that loveth will study to please, for love will always mind us of our duty. There- fore parents should not force their children to marry whom they do not love : Gen. xxiv. 57, 58, ' We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth.' Let them also take care of themselves, that they do not for honour or riches make choice of such husbands as they cannot love ; and after marriage let them avoid all, even the lightest, causes of offence. Things glued together may be easily disjointed. God must be sought to keep up this love ; especially let it not be weakened by impure and straggling thoughts.