Today is Pentecost Sunday. Christians remember the events recorded in Acts 2, when the Holy Spirit filled those gathered at “the house” (aka The Temple). This gift of the Holy Spirit is so important to remember, but there’s even more to celebrate!
Many Christians do not realize that Pentecost is one of the three pilgrimage feasts of the LORD, mentioned in Deuteronomy 16:16 as the Feast of Weeks. Fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection, Jewish people gathered for this celebration in Jerusalem and God sent his Spirit. Originally a festival for the wheat harvest, at the time of Jesus it also celebrated the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai.
Because of the link between Pentecost and Mt. Sinai, today we will look at another perspective of what happened at Mt. Sinai.
Remember the anniversary!
Memorial Day is tomorrow in the U.S. The Bible uses the Hebrew word for “remember” (zakar) 222 times (in various forms), so we can see it’s an important concept. It means more than calling to mind. The word often reflects on the past which leads to praise or a prompt to change one’s behavior — these may be responses when we remember God and his teaching.
One specific command at the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) is: “You shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall be careful to observe these statutes.” (Deuteronomy 16:12) The Israelites were commanded to rejoice and give God a gift, in response to reflecting on how God rescued them. (Deuteronomy 16:10-11)
If we understand why Mt. Sinai is associated symbolically with God’s “marriage” covenant with Israel, we can remember this “wedding anniversary” with joy.
Who said the events at Mt. Sinai were a wedding?
Israel’s prophets looked back and remembered this as a wedding. They repeatedly made marriage links between God and Israel.
For your Maker is your husband, the LORD of hosts is his name. (Isaiah 54:5)
The prophets often refer to Israel’s worshipping other gods as adultery (e.g. Jeremiah 3:9, Jeremiah 5:7). Despite their frequent adultery, God promised a new covenant with them:
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 31:31–32
God as Israel’s husband is clearly stated, but how do we know the wedding metaphor refers to Sinai? Note the covenant mentioned above; the one after leaving Egypt.
How is Sinai viewed as a wedding?
Jewish tradition views the Scriptures of Israel’s Exodus and the events at Mt. Sinai symbolically as a wedding.
God announced his intent to marry Israel while they were in Egypt in Exodus 6:7: “I will take you to be mine“. The Hebrew behind “take” (lakah) can imply taking a wife. This begins the betrothal process.
When they arrive at Mt. Sinai, God covers it with a cloud, symbolic of his presence. A Jewish wedding custom done as a reminder of Israel’s national wedding is having a chuppah/canopy over the couple. God brings his chuppah cloud over Mt. Sinai and invites his betrothed to accept his marriage covenant.
As in wedding agreements, the bride of Israel agrees to the covenant that God spells out. After Moses gives them God’s words, the Israelites respond, “we do” (Exodus 19:8). A Jewish wedding tradition is to sign a written marriage covenant (a ketubah) and hang it on their wall to remember the promises made before God. The promises we call the Ten Commandments include not having any other god because God is jealous and spending time with him each week on the Sabbath. After this, God gave instructions for building the tabernacle so he could live with them.
Wooing his people
The prophets use marriage language, also, after Israel becomes unfaithful and their loving husband woos them back, reflecting on when he did this to their ancestors:
Behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness…she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt…“And in that day, declares the LORD, you will call me ‘My Husband…And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the LORD.
Hosea 2:14a, 15b, 19-20
“Know” in the biblical sense involves intimacy and experiential knowledge. God desires personal relationships with his people.
The bride of Messiah
According to Jewish tradition, God’s voice went out to all the nations from Sinai, but only Israel responded. At Pentecost in Acts 2 God’s voice came through many languages to people from many nations, as once again God reached out to the world.
Jesus enlarged this bride by taking both Jew and Gentile into his family. The New Testament continues to use wedding imagery.
Jesus announced he was bringing the New Covenant that was predicted by the prophets (Luke 22:20). His followers are called the bride of Christ. After becoming “betrothed”, he goes away to prepare a place (John 14:2). When Jesus returns there will be a wedding banquet:
Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready.
Revelation 19:7
Wedding reminders
We can look back and remember God’s love for Israel, “marrying” them at Sinai and giving them the gift of Torah. We can look forward to the future return of our groom and his wedding banquet. One of Jesus’ parables (Matthew 25:1-13) had a wedding setting, about virgins waiting for the bridegroom, since grooms came unannounced. Some of the women prepare (having enough lamp oil) and some do not.
What can we learn from these marriage metaphors?
- God’s grace and mercy caused him to choose us; we are to respond back in love, with holy living, obedience
- God covers us with his protective love and care (like a chuppah)
- Jesus expects us to live as his betrothed, faithful to him and ready for his return
How is your relationship with your bridegroom/husband Jesus, our loving God?