Biblical Answer

The Purpose of Marriage: A Biblical Perspective

The Bible teaches that God created marriage for several purposes. The first purpose of marriage is relationship or fellowship, oneness, wholeness, and love. This is evident in the biblical account of creation, where God saw that it was not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18-25). He created Eve to be a companion for Adam, and their union was described as a "marriage" (Genesis 2:24). This relationship is not just a human institution, but a reflection of God's own nature, as He is a Trinity of three persons in one Godhead.

The second purpose of marriage is procreative. God created marriage to allow for the multiplication of humanity and the filling of the earth (Genesis 1:28). This is evident in the biblical account of the first marriage, where Adam and Eve were given the responsibility to "be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28). However, this purpose is not the primary reason for marriage, but rather a secondary one. The primary purpose of marriage is to reflect God's own relationship with humanity.

The third purpose of marriage is sanctification. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:22-23 that marriage is a picture of the relationship between Christ and the Church. This means that marriage is not just a human institution, but a reflection of God's own relationship with humanity. As we live out our marriages, we are to reflect God's love and character to one another and to the world around us. This is the ultimate purpose of marriage, and it is the one that is most closely tied to God's own nature and character. In this sense, marriage is not just about happiness or fulfillment, but about reflecting God's own love and character to the world.