Wedding Theology - the Meaning Behind the Rings

When you spot a hot specimen of the opposite sex, you may check out their left hand to see if they're sporting a wedding ring. The results of your investigation may well determine if you have to muster up the courage to make your move. After all, there's no sense making your move on someone who already has a ring because people with rings are taken. They are in a marriage covenant and are off the market!

We exchange rings in weddings because covenants in the Bible had signs attached to them as reminders of the covenants that were made. You may recall that after God flooded the world he made a covenant with the earth that he wouldn't flood it again and wipe everything out.

"I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." (Genesis 9:11 -- NIV Holy Bible)

Having established his covenant, God now provides a sign as a reminder of the covenant that was established.

"And God said, 'This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³I have set my rainbow in the clouds. It will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind."'(Genesis 9:12-15 -- NIV Holy Bible)

In practical terms, if I go outside and spot a rainbow in the sky, I can rest knowing I'm not going to drown today from a mass flood intended to destroy the earth. The rainbow is meant to be a reminder of the promise God made on that day long ago.

God also made a covenant with Abraham and his descendants. God promises to make him the father of many nations, to be their God, and to give him and his descendants the land of Canaan where he was a foreigner at the time[1]. The sign of this covenant is recorded in Genesis 17:11, "You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you."[2] After making a covenant with Abraham, and his yet to be born descendants, God creates a sign that will be a reminder of the covenant that was made. Apparently, if God's people ever needed a reminder of God's promises to them, they need not look any further than in their own trousers.

When a couple get's married, they enter into a covenant. Like the covenants made to the earth and Abraham, promises and vows are made that could be forgotten if they were not accompanied by a sign to remind the participants of the covenant. The sign that most couples use to remind them of their marriage covenant is a wedding ring.

Every time you look down at your wedding ring, you are to be reminded of the words you spoke on your wedding day to your betrothed. You are to remember the vows you made and the covenant you entered into. It is a wonderful sign of a wonderful covenant. And though your ring may not be glisten with the splendor of a techni-colored rainbow, take comfort that the sign of your marriage covenant isn't the sign from Abraham's covenant!

[1]Genesis 17:7-8 (New International Version of the Holy Bible)

[2]Genesis 17:11 (New International Version of the Holy Bible)