The Bride, her Friends (attendants), and the pastor all gather before the wedding. Family, especially the mother of the Bride, may also be present.
SCRIPTURE
May be read by the pastor, the mother of the Bride, or the Friends of the Bride.
And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So shall your God rejoice over you. [Isaiah 62:5]
Again there shall be heard in this place… the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: “Praise the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His mercy endures forever.” [Jeremiah 33:10-11]
Go forth, O daughters of Zion,
And see King Solomon with the crown
With which his mother crowned him
On the day of his wedding,
The day of the gladness of his heart. [Song of Solomon 3:11]
I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,
My soul shall be joyful in my God;
For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
He has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. [Isaiah 61:10]
PROMISES
To the Bride:
Are these the women you have chosen to stand by your side at your wedding, to witness your vows and promises, to hold you to account, to help you in your vocation as wife, and to share with you in the joy of this day?
They are.
To the Friends of the Bride:
The Lord Jesus says of marriage, “What God has joined together, let no one separate.”
Do you believe that in the solemnity of the marriage rite about to occur, and through the power of God’s Word, God Himself will join this woman to her groom, and make the two into one?
I do believe it.
Are you ready to stand as a witness, to hear the vows and promises this bride will make to her husband?
I am ready.
Will you hold this bride to account through her entire life to the holy vows she will speak this day?
Will you encourage her to honor, respect, and submit to her husband the church submits to Christ?
Will you help turn her heart and mind, her strength and joy always toward home, as long as she shall live?
I will, with the help of God.
Will you pray for this bride and groom, for their home and family, that our Heavenly Father would bless and keep them in the security and joy of holy matrimony?
I will, with the help of God.
The Bible knows no greater joy than the joy of a wedding feast.
Are you ready for the joy of this day,
the joy of God’s making two to be one,
the joy of feasting and dancing,
the joy of promises, of family, of hope,
the joy of the Garden of Eden,
the joy of the foretaste of the Marriage Feast of the Lamb?
I am ready. Lord, give me Your joy.
The pastor addresses the Friends of the Bride:
You are Friends of the Bride. God enable you both to will and to do this faithful and loving work and with His grace fulfill what we are unable to do.
Amen.
The Friends of the Bride speak this charge to the Bride:
[Let your adornment] be the hidden person of the heart,
with the incorruptible beauty
of a gentle and quiet spirit,
which is very precious in the sight of God.
Go forth to meet your Groom, in the name of the Lord!
PRAYERS
The pastor prays for the Friends of the Bride.
Let us pray:
Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Friend of Sinners,
and the faithful Bridegroom who gave Yourself unto death for Your Bride, the Church.
We thank You for this day of wedding,
that You will give this woman to her husband,
and him to her,
making them one flesh.
We thank You for these Bridesmaids called to witness this wedding,
the promises we will hear and the work that You will do.
Make them good and faithful Friends,
quick to listen,
full of compassion and comfort,
wise with Your Word to guide and council.
May their prayers guard this marriage.
Grant to them Your Holy Spirit
to rejoice in what You have given,
to extoll what You have instituted,
to be wise in these difficult days,
and to have a share in the wedding feast of the Lamb that is to come. Amen.
The Friends of the Bride pray for the Bride.
Heavenly Father,
bless this Bride and the vows and promises she will speak today.
Give her humble joy in hearing and receiving the vows and promises
from the lips and heart of her husband.
Make her a good wife,
a wise woman,
and a faithful bride in her home,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Bride prays for her Friends.
Heavenly Father,
I give you thanks for the joy of this day,
these Friends who will stand with me
as You give me to my Husband, and give my Husband to me.
Give us all the wisdom of faith,
that through Your grace we might all stand together before Your glory in eternal life,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Altogether pray.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
The pastor blesses the Friends of the Bride.
Friends of the Bride, rejoice!
Today this woman becomes a wife,
and you are witnesses of this great wonder!
Therefore, my beloved [sisters],
be steadfast, immovable,
always abounding in the work of the Lord,
knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
Amen. [1 Corinthians 15:18]