Earthly marriage, as lovely as it may be, pales in comparison to the glories of the eternal marriage of Christ and His Bride. The Bible points many times to the marriage relationship between the Heavenly Bridegroom and the Heavenly Bride. This ultimate culmination of eternal marriage should be a strong motivation for us to reflect in our own earthly marriages the beauty of the heavenly relationship between Christ and His Church.

The Royal Wedding Psalm

Psalm 45 presents a glowing picture of a royal wedding between the King and His Bride. Furthermore, although Psalm 45 is set as a royal wedding, Hebrews 1:8 makes it clear that this is a Messianic psalm that speaks of the royal wedding of Christ and His Bride.

“Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre. Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad. Kings’ daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir” (Psalm 45:6–9).

The Song of Solomon

There is an entire book of the Bible that is dedicated to marriage, including the portrayal of the loving relationship between the Heavenly Bridegroom and His Bride. The Song of Solomon depicts in descriptive, poetic terms the joys of earthly marriage and the bliss of physical union between man and wife. This Scripture also demonstrates the spiritual bond between Christ and His Bride, the Church. While there are many mysteries in the Song of Solomon, there are also many comforting assurances awaiting the reader of this beautiful wedding song.

“I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love” (Song of Solomon 2:1–4).

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

The final glimpse in the Bible of the royal wedding of Christ and His Bride is in the glorious prophecy of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. This prophecy is recorded in Revelation Chapter 19.

“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God” (Revelation 19:7–9).

The glorious picture portrayed in Scripture reminds us within our own Christian marriages to consider the significance of this earthly testimony to a sublime, eternal truth. As Christ desires and loves His Bride, the Church, and in response, as the Church reverences and loves Him in return, so our marital relationships here on earth should emulate that divine illustration.