What makes a marriage according to the Bible?
People marry for many reasons, but usually one or more of the following: A public declaration of love, legitimizing sexual relations, legal, social, and economic stability; the formation of a family unit; procreation and the education and nurturing of children; to fulfil religious obligations; to obtain citizenship or just to change the personal and social status of the individuals who enter into it called a marriage of convenience or sham marriage.
Marriage is a social, spiritual, or legal union of two heterosexual individuals, only male and female. Marriage may take many forms: for example, a union between one man and one woman as husband and wife is a monogamous heterosexual marriage. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock.
Marriage is an institution in which interpersonal relationships (usually intimate and sexual) are acknowledged by the state, by religious authority, or both. It is often viewed as a contract. Civil marriage is the legal concept of marriage as a governmental institution, in accordance with marriage laws of the jurisdiction. The act of marriage usually creates normative or legal obligations between the individuals involved and, in many societies, their extended families.
Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that "Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
Is not easy to answer this difficult question because the Bible doesn't explicitly states at what point God considers a couple to be married. We can take three common viewpoints and examine them:
1- God only considers a couple married in his eyes when the couple is legally married in a christian church wedding ceremony.
2- When the marriage is consummated, (when they have sex) then couple is considered married.
Let’s check these viewpoints: Starting with governmental laws on marriage.
#1 The scriptural support typically given to this view are the verses that advocate submission to the government (Romans 13:1-7; 1 Peter 2:17). Depending on what country of the world the couple resides or is a citizen of. Maybe their government requires certain “paperwork” to be completed before a marriage. What is called in USA, a "Marriage License". This piece of paper is needed for a church wedding and it is requirement of certain countries in the world. It is used to demonstrate that the couple is legally married according to the society and governmental codes of the couples country or residence. If the couple wants their government to recognize and uphold their marriage as legal then the couple should submit themselves to the governmental process.
As long as the government marriage legality does not conflict, (go against) with the word of God, couples do better if they acknowledge and submit to their government requirements for a legal marriage. Read: Bible Romans 13:1-2 It says, “Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Those who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do will bring judgment on themselves.” We can see that submitting to the governing authorities that require a marriage license is biblically mandated.
There are some potential problems with this view. For openers, there were marriages before any government was organized. People were getting married with no such thing as a marriage license for many generations. Next, there are some countries that have no governmental recognition of marriage, even today, and/or no legal requirements for marriage. Some governments place unbiblical requirements on a marriage before it is legally recognized. In some countries is require to have a Catholic church wedding overseen by a Catholic priest. For those who strongly disagree with the Catholic Church, and its Catholic sacramental views of marriage, they will find it unbiblical to submit to the Catholic Church wedding rules.
#2 Some couples believe they are not really married in the eyes of God if they haven't completed a formal wedding ceremony. In many cultures a father gives away his daughter at the wedding. In Genesis 2:22, God brings Eve to Adam and God oversees the first wedding “ceremony.” In John chapter 2, Jesus attends a wedding ceremony. Jesus wouldn't have attended such an event if He did not approve of what was occurring. But this is not to say that Jesus attending a wedding ceremony indicates that God requires a wedding ceremony, but it most definitely indicate that a wedding ceremony is acceptable in God’s sight.
Many cultures in the history of humanity has had some kind of formal wedding ceremony. In nearly every major human civilization found throughout world history, such an event, action, covenant, or proclamation is culturally recognized in declaring a man and woman to be married.
# 3 The marriage consummation, (sexual intercourse) is to be the final “seal” on a marriage covenant. It's considered the unity of two persons, male and female coming to be one body. God considers the two of them to be married as per fulfillment of the “one flesh” principle found in (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5; Ephesians 5:31). But if a couple is legally and ceremonially married, but for some reason are unable to consummate their marriage by having sex, that does not mean they are not considered married.
On the other hand biblically, a couple cannot be declared legally married just because they had sexual intercourse and are cohabitating with each other.. There are principles that should be followed in order to considered a couple legally married in God's eyes.
(1) Those principles cannot be against the Bible. (2) A couple can and should follow whatever cultural and familiar practices are used to recognize them “officially married.” (3) The couple should, If possible, consummate the marriage, fulfilling the physical aspect of the “one flesh” principle.
If one or more of these principles are not fulfilled? The legallity of their marriage is questionable
in the eyes of their government, society and church but ultimately, that is situation between the couple and God. God is not fool by our ways to make marriage legal and in our hearts we are violating the sacred covenant by falsehood. God knows our hearts (1 John 3:20). God knows the difference between a true marriage covenant and an attempt to explain away, or justify, sexual immorality.
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