For the sake of procreation
God creates connubial love.
Duties Of The Husband To The Wife.
Great are the responsibilities resting upon the husband. The wife is termed the “weaker vessel,” unto whom the husband is to give honor and to dwell with according to knowledge. 1 Pet. 3:7. The Word of God gives instruction how the husband should dwell with the wife. It is his duty to glean knowledge from the same and dwell with her accordingly. He is her example. She looks unto him as her instructor, both in precept and example. She is to be honored by receiving the benefits, by way of counsel, support and protection, of his superior strength. He in his strong, courageous construction, and she in her feminine frailty, are both heirs together of the grace of life. When each understand their true position and dwell together according to knowledge their prayers rise unhindered to the throne of grace.
The Scriptures grant man authority over the wife: “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.” 1 Cor. 11:3. “For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church.” Eph. 5:23. You understand the protection and care Christ has for his bride—the church: in like manner man is responsible for the protection and care of the wife. He takes the position of head of the wife as Christ takes the position of head of the church—in love. “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.” Eph. 5:25. “Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.” Col. 3:19. The love of the husband must be as deep and true for the wife as the love of Christ for the church. He gave himself for it. Man considers not his life for the care and protection of his wife when he loves her. Where there is bitterness there is wanting true love. Bitterness drives love and heaven away from the home. “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted.” Eph. 4:31, 32.
Man should take the wife into his confidence and entrust her with the secrets of his private life. He should respect and regard her counsel. Jacob has given us an example. Gen. 31. Elkanah has set us an example of comforting the wife. 1 Sam. 1:8. It [pg 249] is a comparatively easy thing, unless you are abounding in the love of God, to become neglectful of the comfort, welfare and happiness of the wife. She in her tender, sympathetic nature seeks for attention and delights in being loved. Do not therefore be sparing in your attention toward her. The fond, affectionate wife will meet the duties, trials, afflictions and responsibilities of life without a murmur does she but know that she is loved. Enter into her joys and sorrows with a regard. “Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.... Be thou ravished always with her love.” Prov. 5:18, 19. Malachi exhorts the husband to faithfulness. “Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.” Chap. 2:14. Such are some of the duties of a husband, and he who has cast aside regard for such duties, is a stranger to the covenant of grace.
Duties Of The Wife To The Husband.
It is a just cause of lament that so comparatively few wives have a perfect knowledge of their rightful position in the domestic circle. We will briefly give a few texts from the Holy Book showing the wife her true place in the family and her duty toward her husband, trusting God to give her a desire to be all that a wife should be. The fundamental principle [pg 250] is love. Without sincere, conjugal love she can scarcely fill the mission of wife. When woman becomes a wife she takes a position fraught with the greatest responsibilities. Oh, how many idle dreamers take such positions with little feeling, thought or comprehension of its responsibilities, and pass through life away below the true mission of a wife. The instruction of the inspired apostle is that the young women be sober, love their husbands, love their children, be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Titus 2:4, 5.
Such are the demands of the young wife made by the Word of God. The demand made of the aged wives is that they set a proper example in all these things. When they do not fill these demands the Word of God is blasphemed. When wives professing to be Christians and a light in the world are neglectful of home, of husband and children, they bring Christianity into disrepute. Wives are commanded to be sober. Instead of sobriety how often we see them gay, silly, foolish and worldly-minded. Their thoughts are trashy, and their conversation the same; talking about one another, busybodies, no depth of thought or feeling of their mission in life, but are concerned more about the fashions and society than the duties of home. Such characters disgrace the cause of Christ. True love will manifest itself, and where the wife loves the husband, home is her dearest [pg 251] place. Her great life work is to make home happy and attractive. She has a deep regard for the comforts of her lord, and love lightens all her labor for him. The true wife loves her children, which will also find its manifestation.
Among the coarse and vulgar we have heard mothers in provocation speak thus to their children: “Haven't you any sense?” “You are the foolishest thing I ever saw.” “I'll box your head off.” “I'll beat you to death.” “I wish you were dead,” and other like expressions. Such is awful language, but it has escaped the lips of many a mother. Before the public they like to appear gentle, mild and sweet tempered, while in the privacy of their homes they are snarly, snappish and cross. When it pleases God to remove one of their little ones to a more peaceful home above they mourn most bitterly; more because of remorse of conscience than from a fountain of pure love. There is, however, many a mother who longs to be tender and kind to her loved ones, but because of her bondage to the tyrannical power of an ill, impatient temper, she utters, under provocation, unfeeling, inhuman speech toward her little ones. In her calmer hours she weeps because of bondage. To all such we would say, There is help for you in God. Jesus can set you free. Yield yourself to him. He will pardon your sins and sweeten your life by his grace. To be discreet, wise, prudent, selecting the best means to accomplish a noble purpose is the wife's mission in her home.