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The typical Jewish wedding in Jesus’ day was not preceded by a “live-together” arrangement.
Today many young people are just living together and may decide to marry later. Some couples skip the dating
part and just “hook-up.” But the Jewish people in Jesus' day desired to obey God and consequently
waited until marriage to engage in sexual relations.
The wedding would start when the bridegroom arrived at the bride’s home with his companions
at night. Both the bridegroom and bride were crowned. They would be king and queen for a week. The bridegroom
would then walk with his bride to his home, along with the bride’s father. They were joined by the bridegroom’s
companions and others who carried lanterns to provide light during the walk. The processional included singing,
the throwing of grain on the ground, and other activities.
When they arrived at the bridegroom’s home, the feast started. It could last as long as seven days. The feast included speeches, dancing, skipping, prayers, music, and of course food. At the end of the feast, the bride’s parents escorted her to the Nuptial Chamber where the bridegroom and bride had sexual relations. When they were finished, her parents were handed a blood stained cloth as proof that she was a virgin. Her parents would then show the wedding guests the blood on the cloth as proof that their daughter was a virgin. This is disgusting to us today, but in Jesus’ time weddings were legal contracts.
Legal Contract. The wedding contract required that the bride be a virgin. The
contract often included the details of what would happen at the wedding as well as what would be provided at
the feast. So it is not surprising that Jesus’ mother was concerned when the wine ran out.
When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come.” (NASB) John 2:3-4 |
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| Life & Heart of Jesus | |||||
