Colossians 3:19 (DRB)

Passage

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

Nearby Context

Colossians 3:17 All whatsoever you do in word or in work, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

Colossians 3:18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as it behoveth in the Lord.

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

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

Colossians 3:21 Fathers, provoke not your children to indignation, lest they be discouraged.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "husbands", "love", "wives", "bitter", and "towards". 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.