Taken from a WayForward training in 2024.
All throughout the Old Testament we see the prophets describing Israel’s idolatry and rejection of God metaphorically as adultery. But remarkably, God does not reject them completely but explicitly points out that He has not divorced them as many would expect him to (see Isaiah 50:1). That’s when we surprisingly read the following passage that is both beautiful and scandalous at the same time:
“…as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).
In the face of adultery and spiritual infidelity, God’s response is not to divorce his people but to show mercy, joy, and delight over his people. He even gives them a new name, “My Delight is in Her” (v.4). God does not treat His people as they deserve but treats them with mercy. The marriage imagery in Isaiah 62:4–5 foreshadows the New Testament metaphor for the Church as the Bride of Christ (see 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 5:25–27; Rev. 19:7–9). This New Testament metaphor is based on the Old Testament representations of Yahweh’s relationship with Israel as a marriage. The marriage metaphor expresses the intimacy of the bond between God and His people and the seriousness of violating that bond.
Today, we can agree with the New Testament writers when they saw the Church in the role of Israel’s righteous remnant, so the imagery of a marriage is appropriate to describe the Church’s relationship with Jesus Christ. With this amazing grace and mercy from God, he now rejoices and delights in His people. Today, what this mean for us as His Church is:
- God delights in us, His people receiving protection and favor from Him
- We should maintain a spiritual fidelity and union in Christ at all costs
- We now get to delight in His expanding Kingdom mission as He delights in us
For positive uses of the marriage metaphor, see Isa. 54:1–7 and Ezek. 16:8. For negative uses of the broken marital union by Israel, see Hos. 2 and Jer. 31:32.
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