In the Bible’s very beginning, we find a lonely bachelor named Adam. He had a six-pack, a reliable job with benefits, and a gorgeous house with a beautiful garden and a creek full of fish in the back. But he wanted friendship. He wanted a wife.

There were no prospects in his neck of the woods. So, God graciously stepped in and fashioned a suitable companion named Eve. He brought her to Adam, nudged him, and said, “Wake up. I want to introduce you to someone special.” His jaw dropped. She filled in the missing pieces, and he supplied what she needed. Together, they made an unbeatable team. With God officiating, they were married. Adam ended the ceremony with a song, “This is now bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh…” (Genesis 2:23). After consummating their union sexually, they were soul mates for life.  

It was a wedding in the nude. Genesis 2:25 says, “Genesis 2:25 – Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” In other words, they were vulnerable because of total trust and transparency, connection, support, and love. There was nothing to hide. They had nothing to be afraid of. It was a marriage without sin. They were free to be themselves.  

What a divine gift marriage can be. Intimacy. Friendship. Procreation, Fulfillment. Family. Joy. Legacy. God’s design for marriage is indispensable for the human race to survive and thrive. 

In the Bible, the institution of marriage as a metaphor for his relationship with Israel. He chose them while they were enslaved people in Egypt. He brought them to Sinai, where they had an outdoor ceremony. God said, “I choose you. I want to be in a relationship with you. You are my treasured possession.”  

Exodus 19:4-5 – ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession.  

Standing there at the altar, they said, “We do. Forsaking all others, we give ourselves completely. Until death do us part!” And with Pastor Moses presiding, God and Israel were joined in holy matrimony. 

The marriage started with a blaze, but forty years later, when they settled into their dream home, Israel had repeated affairs. God pleaded with her to return, but she wouldn’t shake her wayward ways. Eventually, she left the Lord. She ran off with some dirtbag in an old Silverado smoking Marlboro lights, with a flea-bitten dog in the back and no job. The deadbeat promised God’s wife a life of ease and pleasure, but ended up abusing her. After he had his way, he dumped her on the side of a country dirt road with bruises on both eyes.

In Jeremiah two, we find one of the young prophet’s earliest sermons. The setting was somewhere in Jerusalem, probably outside the temple, where there was a lot of spiritual activity and hubbub.  

In this sermon Jeremiah unpacks the different stages of a broken marriage. Let’s take a look…