3:1 In the same way, wives, be subject to your own husbands. Then, 1 even if some are disobedient to the word, they will be won over without a word by the way you live, 2 3:2 when they see your pure and reverent conduct. 3 3:3 Let your 4 beauty 5 not be external – the braiding of hair and wearing of gold jewelry 6 or fine clothes – 3:4 but the inner person 7 of the heart, the lasting beauty of a gentle and tranquil spirit, which is precious in God’s sight.
1 tn Grk “that…they may be won over,” showing the purpose of “being subject” (vs. 1b). Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
2 tn Grk “by the wives’ behavior.”
3 tn Grk “behavior,” the same word translated “the way you live” in vs. 1.
4 tn Grk “whose,” referring to the wives.
5 tn Or “adornment.”
6 tn The word “jewelry” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate that gold ornaments or jewelry is intended; otherwise the reader might assume wearing gold-colored clothing was forbidden.
7 tn Grk “the hidden man.” KJV’s “the hidden man of the heart,” referring to a wife, could be seriously misunderstood by the modern English reader.