Compare Song of Solomon 6:5 with Ephesians 5:25 on love and respect.

Song of Solomon 6:5 — Love That Delights

“Turn your eyes away from me; they overwhelm me. Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from Gilead.”

• The bridegroom is captivated by his bride’s gaze; her mere look “overwhelms” him.

• Love here is personal, affectionate, fully engaged with the beloved’s personhood.

• Respect is implicit—he esteems her beauty, worth, and presence so highly that it literally stops him in his tracks (cf. Songs 4:9).

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Ephesians 5:25 — Love That Sacrifices

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.”

• Christ sets the pattern: love expressed through self-giving sacrifice (John 15:13).

• The command moves beyond emotion to deliberate action that seeks the other’s highest good.

• Respect accompanies this love—valuing a wife enough to lay down one’s life, time, and ambitions for her flourishing (1 Peter 3:7).

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Shared Threads: How the Two Verses Interlock

• Captivated Affection → Songs 6:5 shows a husband mesmerized by his wife; Ephesians 5:25 calls husbands to hold their wives in similarly high regard.

• Sacrificial Devotion → The bridegroom’s wholehearted focus anticipates the self-sacrifice Paul describes. Genuine honor produces willing self-denial.

• Mutual Honor → While Songs 6:5 stresses the wife’s beauty and worth, Ephesians 5:25 highlights the husband’s duty; together they model a cycle of love and respect (Proverbs 31:11–12).

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Living It Out in Marriage

• Notice and verbalize admiration—let your spouse know they “overwhelm” you in the best way.

• Choose daily acts of self-sacrifice: small preferences, protective leadership, servant-hearted chores (Philippians 2:3–4).

• Cultivate an atmosphere where both partners feel valued: affection from Songs 6, security from Ephesians 5, woven into everyday life.

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Further Scriptural Echoes

• Colossians 3:19 — “Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.”

• 1 John 4:19 — “We love because He first loved us.”

• Songs 2:4 — “His banner over me is love.”

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Circle of Love and Honor

When delight (Songs 6:5) meets sacrifice (Ephesians 5:25), marriage reflects Christ’s love for His church—a relationship radiant with respect, sustained by self-giving devotion, and grounded in the unchanging truth of God’s Word.