Colossians 3:19 (DBY)

Passage

Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.

Nearby Context

Colossians 3:17 And everything, whatever ye may do in word or in deed, [do] all things in [the] name of [the] Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by him.

Colossians 3:18 Wives, be subject to [your] husbands, as is fitting in [the] Lord.

Colossians 3:19 Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.

Colossians 3:20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing in [the] Lord.

Colossians 3:21 Fathers, do not vex your children, to the end that they be not disheartened.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "husbands", "love", "wives", "bitter", and "against". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "husbands" and "love", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "Wives be subject to your husbands as..." into verse 20's "Children obey your parents in all things...", so "husbands" and "love" belong inside that flow. In Colossians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "husbands" and "love" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.