Jewish Wedding - Yahweh and Israel

The following teaching is a continuation of my last blog, taken from Richard Booker's booklet, Here Comes the Bride.

God was His own matchmaker (shadkhan) and acquired Israel as His bride. In the exodus from Egypt, Yahweh said, "... I will take you as My people, and I will be your God" (Ex. 6:6-7). The words, "take you," indicate marriage. Isaiah said, "For your Maker is your husband ... the Holy One of Israel" (Isa. 54:5-6).

God gave Israel a formal, written marriage contract or covenant. He spells out the terms of the marriage covenant, (Ketubah) in the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Israel had to forsake all other gods (first term in the Ten Commandments) and love God "with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength" (Deut. 6:4-5). Yahweh would be jealous over His new bride (Deut. 4:24). If the Israelites went back to worshiping other gods, that would be spiritual adultery, a breach of the marriage contract. She would suffer God's curses and be scattered from her land and miss her Messiah.

Yahweh had offered His own bride price, the blood of the Passover lamb! The blood on the doorposts of their homes was the means of their rescue, their redemption from slavery. If the Hebrews accepted the terms of the covenant, they would be His "special treasure" (segulah) above all people (Ex. 19:5).

Israel accepted God's marriage covenant. She would drink the cup of wine at the Passover covenant meal to show this. In modern times the Jewish people drink four cups of wine at the Passover meal. When they drink the fourth cup, they are saying "yes" to God's marriage proposal, even if they don't know it.

Yahweh promised many gifts and blessings to His betrothed people - "a land flowing with milk and honey," making her the head of the nations, and making a new covenant with her through the Messiah, the Promised Seed of Abraham. God would be faithful to His covenant.

The bride made herself ready by cleansing herself in a mikveh. This cleansing happened before the Israelites met with God at Mt. Sinai. God gave her instructions for worship and serving Him. He provided a Tabernacle, the priesthood, sacrifices, and moral and civil instructions, so she could be the bride He wanted. He gave her a veil, the Torah. This set her apart from the pagan world. Israel was to be holy, as Yahweh was holy (Lev. 11:45).

Yahweh prepared a wedding chamber, the Sabbath, for the Israelites. God's bride was to shut herself in with Him and enjoy Him as the bridegroom and bride come to know each other in the wedding chamber.

The wedding celebrations were the feasts of the Lord. Three times a year the males were required to go to Jerusalem for a big celebration of their marriage covenant with God.

The marriage was a tragedy right after the betrothal! Israel made a golden calf and worshiped it! Her punishment was to wander forty years in the wilderness. God still had mercy on His wife and brought her into the Promised Land through Joshua. Israel was a faithful bride under Samuel and King David, but most of the time she played the harlot. God sent many prophets to warn His people. He pled with them to return to Him. Finally, God had to issue Israel a certificate of divorce! (Jer. 3:8-10). Yahweh showed His great mercy through His prophet, Hosea. Israel was scattered from her land as a result of her continual idolatry, but, finally, she would repent and return to her land and her God (Hos. 3:4-5). Yahweh would betroth her to him forever! (Hos. 2:16, 19-20)

Jeremiah explained this would be a new covenant marriage (Jer. 31:31-34). Until this marriage is renewed in the latter times, God would call a people from among the Gentiles (goyim) who would become part of the bride with Israel.

THE MESSIAH BRIDEGROOM - Yeshua (Jesus) would be the fulfillment of the promise of a new covenant to the Jewish people and a light to the Gentiles - the Jewish Redeemer and Savior of the Gentiles.

NEXT BLOG: Although the parallels with Jesus and the nation of Israel as the Bride of Messiah are obvious for one who understands the gospel, I will write about the ultimate fulfillment pictured in the Jewish wedding in the next blog. This will complete the summary of the booklet, Here Comes the Bride, by Richard Booker, Copyright 1995 by Sounds of the Trumpet, Inc. You can visit his ministry site at rbooker.com.