The Redemption of the Bride

by. Lynda Cherry

The beautiful allegory of the Redemption of the Bride tells the story of the House of Israel: her covenant betrothal to Jehovah, her adulterous apostasy from that covenant, and her restoration through His tender mercies and compassion upon her.

 

The title “Bride” applies to both men and women. It is used to denote a special covenant relationship between the individual and God. Israel is an all-inclusive name to indicate God’s covenant family, to which all people are invited to belong.

 

Salvation and redemption is an individual affair. Although it is tempting to identify Israel as a nation of people, the scriptural use of the story of the Bride as a singular person invites us to explore our own particular relationship with the Lord.

 

The story of Jehovah and His Bride is a promise of hope to every individual who fears that they may have strayed too far from the Lord. Although, like the Bride, we may have traveled a dark road, His atoning grace and mercy can heal and restore us to a newness of purity and hope.

 

This is God’s love story. It is also our story — each one of us. We are the Bride of Christ, and He is waiting for us.

 

Our Redemption, should we choose it, is at hand.