MH page 356

He who gave Eve to Adam as a helpmeet, performed His first miracle at a marriage festival. In the festal hall where friends and kindred rejoiced together, Christ began His public ministry. Thus He sanctioned marriage, recognizing it as an institution that He Himself had established. He ordained that men and women should be united in holy wedlock, to rear families whose members, crowned with honor, should be recognized as members of the family above.

Marriage is a divine institution sanctioned by Christ's presence at Cana and designed for family life. The paragraph recounts biblical history and Christ's first miracle, establishing a theological perspective on marriage rather than an empirical claim.

Christ honored the marriage relation by making it also a symbol of the union between Him and His redeemed ones. He Himself is the Bridegroom; the bride is the church, of which, as His chosen one, He says, “Thou art all fair, My love; there is no spot in thee.” Song of Solomon 4:7 .

The marriage relationship serves as a divine symbol of the union between Christ and the church. This paragraph expresses a spiritual analogy regarding Christ and the church without making testable scientific assertions.

Christ “loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it; ... that it should be holy and without blemish.” “So ought men to love their wives.” Ephesians 5:25-28 .

Husbands are instructed to love their wives sacrificially, reflecting Christ's devotion to the church. The text consists of biblical quotations regarding marital ethics and Christian devotion.

The family tie is the closest, the most tender and sacred, of any on earth. It was designed to be a blessing to mankind. And it is a blessing wherever the marriage covenant is entered into intelligently, in the fear of God, and with due consideration for its responsibilities.

The family tie is sacred and functions as a blessing when entered into thoughtfully and responsibly. It presents a moral and relational principle concerning the sanctity of the family covenant.