Treat Your Wife With Respect As The Weaker Partner

Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. (1 Peter 3:7 NIV)

What does the above scripture mean? This scripture does not mean “weaker partner” in the sense of moral or intellectual ability, but in physical ability. What is Peter trying to teach to husbands? I think Peter is telling husbands to honor and respect their wives by protecting them against outside influences and criminal abuses. If a husband is a man of God he will protect his wife from harm.

Can you beat your husband in an arm wrestle? Most likely not. Back in Peter’s days when a wife was not protected by her husband she was taken advantage of in every which way. She was vulnerable to being attacked and abused physically by ungodly men. Some women were even financially taken advantage of because men did not believe a woman should be in charge of finances, even if she were single.

Let’s compare those days to these days. A woman’s life may be a bit easier today than it used to be back in the bible days, but women are still very much vulnerable to criminal attack and physical abuses just because she won’t let her man protect her. More and more women are getting beaten, raped, and murdered because they have a rebellious attitude toward being protected by their men.

Statistics also show that much of the poverty in this world is from single mothers trying to eke out a living for themselves and children. Many of them don’t have the money to get an education and that leaves them working, usually factory and minimum wage jobs to support a family. So nothing has changed.

Oh yes, more women are climbing up the corporate ladder than ever before, and more women who once had a man supporting them, are getting divorced and raising children on their own and both of these types are still getting raped, manhandled, manipulated, beaten and murdered. So what has changed?

I think that if a husband were allowed to protect and care for his wife the way that is instinctive for him according to his masculine and protective abilities then he would do it. But unfortunately, many wives believe they are not in control when their husband protects them in this way. They want to go out at night when it is dark, they want to travel alone, and they want to do all the things that men do, and without their man beside them. 

In the above scripture, Peter is implying, if the husband does not take care of his wife properly by protecting her from outside influences and other maltreatments and abuses of society, then his prayers for himself and family may become hindered.

God wants us to live righteously by having a right relationship with Him first. So the bottom line is a husband is to submit to God’s will first, so he can respect and care for his wife properly so his prayers for his family will not be hindered and his relationship with God will not suffer. 

Husbands treat your wives with RESPECT as the weaker partner in the area of protection and headship. Wives, let your husband be your man and let him lead the way God instructs him to. A devoted husband will not divorce is wife and leave her unprotected, and a devoted wife will let her husband protect her.