Wedding at Cana: Complete Series

Introduction

John 2 v 1-11

On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

“Woman, why do you involve me?”Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

I have always found this story strange.  In the context of the Gospel according to John and even the other Gospel narratives, it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Firstly, it’s the only miracle prior to the start of His ministry.  And secondly, Mary seems to order Him to act, even after Jesus says it’s nothing to do with them.

Structure of the Story

Many of the stories around Jesus end in surprises.  The Feeding of the Multitudes concludes with Him multiplying the food to feed all who were there.

The miracle of the coin found in the mouth of the fish.  You’d think Jesus would just pay it out of the money bag.  But no, He surprised everyone.

The ultimate surprise was the Resurrection.  Not only was it unexpected by the disciples, but He tricked the powers of darkness.  Broadly speaking, Jesus out-tricked the trickster.

The wedding at Cana fits into this pattern.

You’d think Jesus would go out and buy wine from a local merchant.  Or He would explain that the wedding could still be joyous without drinking wine.

But Jesus does something so surprising.  No one would expect Him to do this.  He turned the water in wine!

Nathanael of Cana

Before the story of the Wedding at Cana, John introduces Nathanael.  We find in John 21 v 2 that Nathanael came from Cana.

Could this be the reason why Jesus, Mary and the disciples ended up in Cana for a wedding.  Maybe the bride and groom were relatives of Nathanael.

Why Cana?

There are several suggested sites for Cana.  But I don’t think where the wedding took place is as meaningful as the possible interpretations of the word ‘Cana’.

It could be that Cana is linked to the Aramaic word for zealot.

In the story of the Wedding at Cana, Jesus’ identity as the miracle worker remains hidden. Only the servants, Mary and the disciples knew it was Jesus who turned the water into wine. Effectively, John is saying Jesus’ zeal was hidden.

But in the next story, His zeal is openly revealed as He removes the money changers from the temple. His disciples consequently quote Psalm 69.

John 2 v 17

His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me“

Another link could be with the Land of Canaan.  John may be linking Cana with the ancient name for Palestine.  Though the roots of the words of Canaan and Cana have different meanings, they have a similar sound.

So this event would represent a marriage in the Promised Land.  This links with John’s description of the Wedding of the Lamb in the Book of Revelation, where Jesus marries His bride in Heaven.

Revelation 19 v 6-8

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah!

For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory!

For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.

Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”

This series will look at why John includes the Wedding at Cana in the Gospel, the rituals surrounding Jewish weddings and what this story means for Christians today.

Jewish Marriage Ritual

Before moving through this series, we need to understand the rituals around the 1st Century Jewish wedding practices.

Below, I have set out the process by which a bride and groom would become married.

It is unsurprising to see similarities between the stories found in the Gospels and the Jewish marriage rituals.

1 The Bridegroom’s Father Chooses the Bride

The first step is for the bridegroom’s father to find a bride for his son.

We first see this in Genesis, where Abraham sends his head servant to find a bride for Isaac.

Genesis 24 v 1-4

Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”

2 The Bride Price

This was paid to the father of the bride to compensate for a loss of a worker and to show how much the bridegroom loved the bride.

3 The Betrothal

The first part of the marriage ceremony was the betrothal or engagement. It started at least twelve months before the actual wedding. Once the couple began the betrothal period, they were legally married, except they had not physical consummated the marriage.

At the betrothal ceremony, a marriage contract was made with the father of the bride. The contract included the bride price and other provisions that the bridegroom agreed to make for his new bride.

This is why Mary and Joseph were married, even though they had not gone through a wedding ceremony.

4 The Bride’s Consent

Although a bride was selected for a bridegroom, she had a say in the proposed marriage contract. In Genesis 24, we see Rebekah agrees to accept the marriage proposal. She was not press-ganged into the arrangement.

Genesis 24 v 57-58

Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.” So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,” she said.

5 Cup of the Covenant

After the terms of the betrothal was accepted, a cup of wine was shared to seal the marriage covenant. The bride and groom would drink from the same cup. A second cup of wine would be shared at the marriage ceremony.

6 Gifts for the Bride

During the time of the betrothal, gifts were given to the bride from the bridegroom.

7 Ritual Purification

Before the wedding, the bride must go through a purification ritual, where she is washed in water. Symbolically, after she comes out of the water, she no longer is under the authority of her father, but her husband.

8 Departure of the Bridegroom

Once the marriage covenant was sealed, the bridegroom left his bride to go to his father’s house to prepare a wedding chamber for her. He would be gone for up to twelve months. During this time, his wife-to-be would prepare herself to leave her parents’ home, to live with her husband’s family and become part of their household.

9 The Consecrated Bride

The bride was now set apart, consecrated, separated for her bridegroom.

10 Return of the Bridegroom

A bride would not know what day or hour her bridegroom would return and when he would take her to the wedding chamber. Also, the groom didn’t even know when he would go to claim his bride. The bridegroom’s father would decide when everything was ready for the wedding and when the bridal chamber was complete.

The bridegroom would usually came for their bride around midnight. Shofars (trumpets) would sound as he approached. This would give the bride a few moments to make final preparations before he came to her house.

The bride was then placed into an aperion or carriage with two poles and lifted up by four people.

11 The Huppah

The second half of the wedding ceremony is called the Huppah, or “the home-taking.” The bride in her aperion is taken to the Huppah. This was a special room built in the bridegroom’s father’s house.

The bride and groom would meet the father’s guests and then be taken to the bridal chamber where they would be alone for seven days. Here the marriage would be consummated.

The best man or “friend of the bridegroom” stayed outside the wedding chamber. Once the marriage had been consummated, the groom would tell the best man. He would then announce that the week long celebration could begin.

12 The Wedding Supper

After the seven days of celebrations, a feast would be laid before the couple and their guest. All the locals of the town would be invited too.

Moses and the Wedding Ceremony

We see the pattern of the wedding rituals in the story of the Children of Israel’s encounter with God on Mount Sinai.

God selected Israel as His bride.

Exodus 19:4

‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians. You know how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.’

God presented Israel with a wedding contract.

Exodus 19:5

Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me.

Israel gave her consent to the marriage.

Exodus 19:7-8

So Moses returned from the mountain and called together the elders of the people and told them everything the LORD had commanded him. And all the people responded together, “We will do everything the LORD has commanded.” So Moses brought the people’s answer back to the LORD.

Israel was consecrated to her Lord.

Exodus 19:6,10

And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.”

Then the LORD told Moses, “Go down and prepare the people for my arrival. Consecrate them today and tomorrow, and have them wash their clothing.

God invites Moses and the elders to ascend the cloud covered mountain, almost like a covered Huppah. God then reveals Himself to them.

Exodus 24 v1

Then the LORD instructed Moses: “Come up here to me, and bring along Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of Israel’s elders. All of you must worship from a distance.

God and Israel have a marriage supper.

Exodus 24:11

And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!

This is why, when Israel rejects God and worships other gods, the prophets compare this to adultery. Israel was spiritually married to God at Mt Sinai.

The Wedding at Cana

In this story, we see the celebration was three days into the Wedding Supper. The bride had been chosen, the price was paid, the year long engagement was over and the marriage had been consummated. The wedding was about to end. And this was when they realized they had run out of wine. I feel for the bridal party. After all that preparation and they ran out of wine, just before the end of the marriage ceremony.

Jesus is the Bridegroom

In Mark 2, Jesus refers to Himself as the Bridegroom.

Mark 2 v 18-20

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

So if Jesus is the Bridegroom, who is the Bride? The Church is never explicitly called the ‘Bride of Christ’ in the New Testament, but there are verses which suggest this.

For example, in Ephesians, Paul writes that husbands should love their wives as Christ loved the Church. This suggests the relationship between husbands and wives is similar to that of Christ and the Church, a marriage relationship.

Ephesians 5 v 25-29

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind, so that she may be holy and without blemish. In the same way, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own flesh, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does for the church

So where is the Church, the Bride, in this process of a marriage ceremony?

God chose the Bride for Jesus, the Church.

Ephesians 1 v 11

In him we were also chosen

The engagement has begun and the bride price was paid (the death of Jesus). Christians accept the proposal when they confess Jesus is Lord and believe it in their hearts.

Spiritual gifts were given to the bride. The cup of the covenant, the Eucharist, is shared. The Christian is washed and purified through the waters of baptism and is separated for Him.

The Bridegroom ascended into Heaven, and is preparing a place for His bride.

The Church is now waiting for their Bridegroom’s return. God the Father, the father of the bridegroom, has not yet said it is time for Jesus, the groom, to return for His bride, the Church.

[While reading this part, I can guess you are probably recalling Bible verses which link in with this narrative]

I will finish with the words of St John, ‘Come, Lord Jesus.’ (Revelation 22 v 20)

Third Day

At the beginning of the story of the Wedding at Cana, we see the phrase ‘on the third day’. This phrase occurs at certain points in the Bible.

When it is used in a story, it normally means there is something significant about to happen. It’s like the Bible is saying, ‘pay attention’.

Esther and the King

Esther 5 v 1 - 2

On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king’s hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne in the hall, facing the entrance. When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her and held out to her the gold scepter that was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter.

This verse relates to Esther approaching the King to petition him.

This is a key point in her story, and is a life and death decision. If the King did not invite her to come to him, he had every right to execute her. Esther fearlessly approached him, but he showed favour to her, and subsequently listened to her petition.

The Cloud and the Lightning

Exodus 19 v 16 - 19

On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him.

This is where they meet the One who rescued them from Egypt at Mt Sinai. God’s presence fills the mountain and it is covered in a cloud. There is thunder and lightning. And an accompanying trumpet which grew louder and louder.

This is a key point in the story of the Children of Israel and it happened on the third day.

Abraham and Isaac

Genesis 22 v 3-5

Abraham, Isaac and two servants head out. God has asked Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac. On the third day, Abraham sees the place where he will do this and leaves the two servants behind.

Here we see, God is testing Abraham. Will Abraham trust Him and confirm that God is still his Lord? Or will Abraham place his own desires above God’s command?

Abraham, unlike Adam, trusted God. He goes through with God’s plan, who then tells Abraham to hold back from sacrificing Isaac. And instead provides a ram.

This key event in the life of Abraham happened ‘on the third day’.

From these stories, we see there is a link between the phrase, on the third day, and key moments within a story.

Jesus’ Death and the Three Days?

I used to think that for Jesus to die and be resurrected after three days, he must have died on Maundy Thursday and not Good Friday. This would then mean at least 72 hours had past to make up the three days.

This is clearly unbiblical, but I struggled with how to match up the Gospel accounts and a modern calendar. It made little sense to me.

However, I understand the way the Semitic mind counted days was different to us modern people.

So if an event happened during the first 24 hours, that event would have been considered to be ‘one day’. The next day would then be two days after the event, even though it may not have even been 48 hours since the event had occurred.

The following sunrise would bring about the third day. Counting the days like this would rarely mean three days would constitute 72 hours.

So Jesus died on Good Friday or Day 1. He then is in the tomb on Easter Saturday, which is Day 2. Christ is resurrected on Easter Sunday, which is the third day. So in the Jewish mind, that was three days.

Wedding at Cana

By using the phrase, on the third day, John could be saying that this wedding is a key event in Jesus’ life.

He could also be referencing the three days between the death and resurrection of Jesus. Again which is the key event in Jesus’ incarnation.

So is John linking the resurrection and this wedding? Is John saying, that the Gospel is actually part of a wedding ceremony?

Is he saying that the death of Jesus is the ‘bride price’ to obtaining the hand of His Bride, the Church?

Mary and Eve

John 2 v 3-5

When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

I think this is one of the weirdest exchanges in the Bible. Their is no tenderness from Jesus to His mother. Unlike the end of John, where Jesus is dying on the Cross and asks John to look after Mary.

In fact, in the exchange at the wedding, Jesus is quite rude to Mary, by calling her Woman rather than mother.

A Common Interpretation

A common way of understanding this story is that Mary notices the wine has run out. She then petitions Jesus to solve the problem. He initially says ‘No’, but Mary ignores this and tells the servants to listen to Him and do what He says. Jesus then obeys His mother.

I find this strange as Jesus is obeying His mother over His own will. She appears to ignore His authority.

So as Jesus is God, we have a situation where God is submitting Himself to the authority of a human.

A Different View

A different interpretation is to view this as a rerun of the temptation in the Garden of Eden.

Mary felt compassion for the wedding party. She knew Jesus could help. She asks Him to intervene.

He responds with the phrase, ‘What has this got to do with us, Woman’. This language reminds me of the temptation of Adam and Eve. Where Adam complains to God about the ‘Woman’ God gave him.

Genesis 3 v 11-12

And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

Whereas Adam succumbed to Eve’s request to eat the fruit of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Jesus does not respond in the same way to Mary.

If Adam and Eve had successfully resisted the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and trusted God rather than their own desires, they would then be ready to approach and eat from the fruit from the Tree of Life.

They failed, and had to leave the Garden.

At the Wedding of Cana, Jesus resists listening to Mary. He sticks with His/God’s plan to not reveal Himself yet.

Mary recognises His authority and tells the servants to do anything He says. This was not Mary overriding Christ’s authority, but accepting her position as subordinate to Him, even though she was His parent.

Jesus then chooses to bless the wedding party and addresses their problem. He did this in secret. He did not have to provide more wine, but He showed abundant grace to them.

I need to make it clear, Mary was not tempting Jesus like Eve tempted Adam. Mary was clearly acting out of compassion. Eve, however, was acting out of selfishness.

Adam Resisted, But Eve Did Not

This is an interesting ‘What If?’.

What if Adam did not succumb to Eve’s request to eat the fruit and stayed within God’s will? How would have God and Adam reacted?

We see in Scripture how God dealt with His wayward wife, Israel. He continually showed compassion to her, hoping she would remain faithful. Would this have been Adam and Eve’s future? Would Adam have continued to love Eve and she would have continued to disappoint him and fall short of his expectations. And what of their children too? Would they have stayed faithful to God.

We see in Christ, how He sacrificed Himself to pay the bride price for the Church. Would Adam have been expected to die for His wife, in order to redeem her?

Water into Wine

John 2 v 9

When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew).

Wedding and Wine

Wine was a key part of an ancient Jewish wedding. Wine filled the Cup of Covenant, which was then shared between the bride and bridegroom. It was one of the rituals which sealed their relationship.

We can see the Eucharist as a reflection of this. If we assume the Cup of Covenant in a Jewish wedding ceremony is similar to the Chalice, then this implies that when we partake in the Blood of Christ, we are participating and becoming part of a wedding between Christ and His bride, the Church.

Moses and the Blood Red Nile

In Exodus, we see God commands Moses and Aaron to take a staff and place an outstretched hand over the waters in Egypt. God then turns it all into blood.

Exodus 7 v19

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.

This was the first of ten plagues brought upon Egypt because Pharaoh would not let the enslaved Hebrews go. This killed all the fish in the Nile River. Even then, Pharaoh did not yield to God’s request.

Whereas this plague of Egypt turned the waters to blood (red), the miracle at the Wedding turned the waters to wine (red). This miracle in Exodus, cursed the land of Egypt. A similar miracle became a blessing in the Gospel according to John.

In a similar way, the final plague of Egypt caused the death of Pharaoh’s first born son. This caused Pharaoh to set God’s people free. In the Gospels, we see God’s own First Born Son die, which again sets God’s people free.

It is common to see the reversal of the Old Testament stories in the New Testament. Think about the Tower of Babel and Pentecost as a good example of this. The examples are numerous.

Jesus Providing the Wine

This miracle places Jesus in the position of the bridegroom. The bridegroom’s family was to make sure there was enough wine for the celebration. This could be one of the reasons why Jesus is reluctant to perform this miracle. Jesus was not the bridegroom here. Which could be why He said, ‘My hour has not yet come’ and He performed the miracle in secret.

Reject Skeptical Materialism

The miracle of turning water into wine seems completely fantastical. This was a supernatural event, much like the first plague in Egypt. It is easy for us to employ our skeptical materialistic mindset and reject these events.

But much like with every recorded miracle Jesus does, there are deeper layers of meaning. It isn’t just the miracle which is being communicated here, but so much more. By rejecting this miracle, we deny ourselves the opportunity to understand why Christ came and came for us.

Water Jars

John 2 v 6-8

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

The water jars mentioned here were used as part of ritual washing. The Jews would ceremonially wash themselves before and after every meal, when they woke in the morning and after using the toilet. There was a significant amount of hand washing during the seven day wedding feast.

Marriage and Baptism

In the marriage ceremony, the bride would have to fully immerse herself in water. This would prepare her for the bridegroom and indicate that she was no longer under the authority of her father, but her husband-to-be.

The Christian baptism appears to be linked to this part of the marriage ceremony. This suggests that when someone is baptised into the Church (Body of Christ), the person comes under the authority of Jesus, as the Bridegroom.

In this context, baptism would be instrumental in preparing the Christian for the return of Christ. Where He would claim His bride (The Church).

Six Days and Six Jars

The six jars were filled with water. This reminds me of the beginning of the Genesis 1 story, where we have water and the six days of Creation.

Genesis 1 v 2
Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

This verse fills me with expectation every time I read it. I get the same feeling in the story of the Wedding at Cana, just before the servants draw the wine from the jars.

At Cana, I get a sense that God is doing something new, something extraordinary, something hyper-natural. Who would have thought Jesus would do something as incredible as turning the water into wine. It feels to me like a new beginning, the beginning of a new Creation.

Washed in Jesus’ Blood

In this story, we see vessels of water used in ritual washing turned into jars of wine.

Wine represents Jesus’ blood. This means John is suggesting that the early Christians would be washing in the Blood of Jesus.

But how can people be washed in blood? Surely, it will make someone more unclean.

Blood was used in ancient Israelite religion to atone. Atonement means to cover. By being washed in the Blood of Christ, our sins are atoned or covered.

An alternative way of looking at this is to think of a river which breaks its banks and covers the surrounding ground. The river covers and washes away the soil.

Similarly, the way I see it, the Blood of Christ covers us and washes away our sin.

Wedding Feast of the Lamb

Revelation 19 v 6

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)

Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

At the end of the Bible, we see the Wedding Supper of the Lamb. How does the wedding ceremony fit within the symbolism of the Book of Revelation?

Two witnesses

Revelation 11 v 3-4

And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”

We see Revelation refer to Two Witnesses. In Jewish weddings, two witnesses must attest to the marriage.

These Two Witnesses in Revelation seem to have the ability to burn up those that attack them, cause droughts and bring plagues. They sound like Moses and Elijah. Elijah was taken bodily up to Heaven (2 Kings 2 v 11-12), while Moses’s body was never found (Deuteronomy 34 v 5-6).

The Book of Jude and fragments of the Assumption of Moses (1st Century AD extra-Biblical text) talk about a fight for the body of Moses and how he was taken up to Heaven.

Jude 9

But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”

Trumpets

In the Jewish wedding ceremony, when the bridegroom returns, he comes to the town with shouts and trumpets sounding. In Revelation, we hear several trumpet-blast throughout the book. All the mention of trumpets happen before the Wedding Supper of the Lamb, before the consummation of the marriage and the feasting. This fits into the progression of a wedding ceremony.

Rapture

Even though it is not explicitly mentioned, the Church being brought up to Heaven reminds me of when the bridegroom comes to take his bride to his father’s house. There are many discussions over the rapture, which I will not go into here, but I thought it was of interest to mention.

Who is the Lamb?

According to John the Baptist, it is Jesus. He is the Bridegroom.

John 1 v 29

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Who is the Bride?

This is more complicated as the Bible does not specifically say.

Revelation 19 v 7-8

Let us rejoice and be glaD and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)

However, in the above verse, we learn the Bride is clothed in bright, clean, fine linen. John goes on to say that this fine linen represents the righteous deeds of the saints.

The saints are anyone who has been set apart for Christ, e.g. the Church. The bride is therefore most likely the Church.

Revelation 21 says that after the Wedding Supper, the bride is the New Jerusalem coming down from Heaven.

Revelation 21 v 9-10

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.

The Church becomes a City. Cities generally get bad press in the Bible. For example, Lot chooses the city of Sodom and, in contrast, Abraham chose the countryside. One of Cain’s first deeds is to found a city.

Therefore, the idea of the city is redeemed through the New Jerusalem, the Bride, the Lamb’s wife, otherwise known as the Church.

Jesus is God’s King of Kings ruling the nations, the Church will be His Consort, and the Church will be His New Jerusalem.