The English language has this word in its arsenal: husbandry. You can go to college and get a degree in it. It is defined as "the cultivation or production of plants or animals." It also includes the notion of "the control or judicious use of resources." There is no discernable connection between "husbandry" and "husband" in our current English usage. But ... there should be.
The biblical role of the husband (which is definitely distinct from society's version) is clear. Marriage is defined as the lifelong union of a man and a woman (Gen 2:24) for purposes of procreation (Gen 1:22) and mutual support (Gen 2:18). In that relationship, God ordained that the man is the head of a woman (1 Cor 11:3). Thus, in the function of mutual submission (Eph 5:21), wives are subject to their husbands as to the Lord (Eph 5:22-24) and husbands are subject to their wives in their job of self-sacrificially supplying her with what she needs -- physically, emotionally, spiritually ... in every way (Eph 5:25-32). Husbands are required to give their wives the understanding and honor she deserves and requires (1 Peter 3:7). Husbands, then, are tasked with the job of cultivating and producing life with their wives. They are the managers with the responsibility for their wives as well as their children (Eph 6:4; Col 3:21; Heb 12:9-10). They are, then, in the business of control and judicious use of resources. This isn't a "macho" job; it is the ultimate self-less-ness for the good of wife and family.
It is no accident that our English language has two words so closely connected. "Husbandry" in modern English refers to plants and livestock, and "husband" has devolved to merely mean "the guy in the marriage," but if the task of husband is properly understood, it much more closely resembles "husbandry" than just "the guy." And I would suggest that a huge portion of our problems in society today can be directly linked to the failure of "the guy in the marriage" in doing the husbandry tasks God has assigned. When will we Christian men learn that our job from God is to love all the way to giving up self (Eph 3:25)? What a different world it would be if we did.
2 comments:
I imagine that "husband" is just a shortened form of the original husbandsman, which aligns with the original meaning. But with all language drift, we've lost the proper meaning of a word that ultimately demeans everything attached to it.
Right away I saw the correlation of the two definitions of “husbandry” you mention. I instantly thought of Ex. 20:17, where a man’s wife is listed among his assets (i.e. “resources”)--after his house but before his servants and animals. You could say that both uses of the word began in the Garden of Eden--with Adam caring for his wife and cultivating his plants and animals.
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