20 Bible Verses for Your Christian Wedding Ceremony

Tie the Knot With These Inspiring Scriptures

"And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Colossians 3:14, NIV)

Learn Religions / Vin Ganapathy

As you enter into a divine covenant with God and your spouse at your Christian wedding ceremony, you might consider including some verses from the Bible. Here are some themes that cover a variety of topics—love, marriage, loyalty—that you can work into your wedding vows.

The Holy Union

God outlines his plan for marriage in Genesis in the Old Testament, where Adam and Eve are united into one flesh in the inaugural wedding. The following words from Genesis 2:18, 21-24, ESV make for a powerful addition to any vows:

"Then the Lord God said, 'It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.'...So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, 'This, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman because she was taken out of Man.' Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh."

Love and Loyalty

This famous passage from Ruth 1:16-17, NKJV, is a popular choice for Christian couples for their wedding ceremony. The words are spoken in the Bible by a daughter-in-law, Ruth, to her mother-in-law, Naomi, a widow. When Naomi's two married sons also die, one of her daughters-in-law pledges to accompany her back to her homeland:

"Entreat me not to leave you,
Or to turn back from following after you;
For wherever you go, I will go;
And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people,
And your God, my God.
Where you die, I will die,
And there will I be buried.
The Lord do so to me, and more also,
If anything but death parts you and me." 

Happily Ever After

The Book of Proverbs is packed with God's wisdom for living happily ever after. Married couples can benefit from its timeless advice for avoiding trouble and honoring God all the days of their lives:

"He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
And obtains favor from the Lord"—Proverbs 18:22, NKJV

"There are three things that amaze me—
no, four things that I don't understand:
how an eagle glides through the sky,
how a snake slithers on a rock,
how a ship navigates the ocean,
how a man loves a woman."—Proverbs 30:18-19, NLT

"Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies."—Proverbs 31:10, KJV

Spiritual and Physical Love

The Song of Songs, a sensuous love poem about the spiritual and sexual love between a husband and wife, provides a touching portrait of love and affection within marriage. While celebrating the gift of romantic love, it also teaches husbands and wives how to treat each other:

"Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—for your love is more delightful than wine."—Song of Solomon 1:2, NIV

"My lover is mine, and I am his."—Song of Solomon 2:16, NLT

"How delightful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!"—Song of Solomon 4:10, NIV

"Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame."—Song of Solomon 8:6, NIV

"Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away. If one were to give all the wealth of his house for love, it would be utterly scorned."—Song of Solomon 8:7, NIV

Lifelong Companionship

This passage from Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, NIV, lists some of the benefits and blessings of companionship and marriage. Practically speaking, two are stronger than one—life partners are better able to weather the storms of adversity, temptation, and grief:

"Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

Two Becoming One

In Matthew 19:4-6, NLT, Jesus Christ quotes Old Testament Scriptures from Genesis to emphasize God's desire for married couples to understand their unique union. When Christians are married, they no longer ought to think of themselves as two separate people, but one integrated unit because they have been joined as one by God:

"'Haven't you read the Scriptures?' Jesus replied. 'They record that from the beginning "God made them male and female."' And he said, 'This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together."

What Love Is

Known as "The Love Chapter," 1 Corinthians 13 is a favorite passage often quoted in wedding ceremonies. The Apostle Paul describes 15 characteristics of love to the believers in the church at Corinth:

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."—1 Corinthians 13:1-3, NIV

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails ..."—1 Corinthians 13:4–8a, NIV

"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."—1 Corinthians 13:13, NIV

Protection and Sacrifice

The book of Ephesians paints us a picture of companionship and intimacy in a godly marriage. Husbands are encouraged to lay down their lives in sacrificial love and protection for their wives in a manner similar to how Christ sacrificed for us. In response to godly love and protection, wives are expected to respect and honor their husbands and submit to their leadership:

"Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace."—Ephesians 4:1-3, NLT

And from Ephesians 5:22-33, NLT, we get a series of passages that offer a wealth of wonderful advice:

"For wives, this means submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of his body, the church. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything."

"For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God's word. He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault. In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife shows love for himself. No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church. And we are members of his body."

"As the Scriptures say, 'A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.' This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."

God Is Love

Many more worthy Bible verses appropriate for wedding vows can be found throughout the Old and New Testaments. God, the author of the Bible, is love—not just one of His attributes, but His very nature. He alone loves in the completeness and perfection of love, and so His Word presents the standard for how to love one another in marriage:

"And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."—Colossians 3:14, NIV

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins."—1 Peter 4:8, ESV

"So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us."—1 John 4:16-19, ESV

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Fairchild, Mary. "20 Bible Verses for Your Christian Wedding Ceremony." Learn Religions, Apr. 5, 2023, learnreligions.com/wedding-bible-verses-701949. Fairchild, Mary. (2023, April 5). 20 Bible Verses for Your Christian Wedding Ceremony. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/wedding-bible-verses-701949 Fairchild, Mary. "20 Bible Verses for Your Christian Wedding Ceremony." Learn Religions. https://www.learnreligions.com/wedding-bible-verses-701949 (accessed March 28, 2024).