Reconciliation

"3Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. 4Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight. 5For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful. They were submissive to their own husbands, 6like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear. 7Husbands, 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 3:3-7

We see a general theme emerging as Peter continues to moves from one social relationship to another--relationship to government, employee relationships, marital relationships. We find the theme of reconciliation. "By his wounds you have been healed" v. 2:24. . . Here "you" is plural. We are not talking merely about individual healing--though that is at the heart of it. But it is also talking about collective healing which in the language of Ephesians Paul calls reconciliation. In marriage equality is not diminished to uniformity but the beauty of gender differences is maintained through mutual appreciation. A woman's inner beauty takes center stage--it needs no formal authority to rule!-- and the captivated husband responds with humble respect.