Yom Teruah Drama
Leviticus 23
The Betrothal
Frequently the
Bride had not
met the
Bridegroom
The Bride Price
The
Wedding Contract
The Bride's
Consent
The Wedding
Garments
The Cup
of
Wine
Betrothal Gifts
The
Bridegrooms
Departure
The Mikvah
(Ritual Bath)
The Bride is
Concealed &
Set-Apart
The
Catching Away
The Bridal
Chamber
The Chuppa
The Bride
Circles the Bridegroom
7 Days Alone
in the Bridal
Chamber
They are
Seen as a
King & Queen
The Wedding Feast
The Second
Cup of Wine
The Ancient Jewish Wedding Parallels
We use our church Family Life Center when we're celebrating the Biblical Festivals to allow for a larger crowd. The Family Life Center is divided into several section: (1) Seating consisting of folding chairs, (2) Round Tables for the meal at the end of the evening, (3) Rectangular Tables for the "covered-dish" foods that guests bring, and (4) the Various Play Sets.
The Family Life Center at Covenant Bible Church in Lincolnton, NC
The play was performed using 5 sets: (1) A fake lake for the Bride's Mikvah, (2) The Bride's Home with Table & Backdrop, (3) Chuppa, the Bridegroom's home, (4) Throne - a chair covered with white & gold fabric & flowers, and (5) The Wedding Feast Table.
Everyone was encouraged to wear white - the actors as well as the congregation.
Dancing during our time of Praise & Worship at the beginning of the evening
CAST
Narrator 1: Andy
Narrator 2: Carolyn
Bridegroom/Messiah: Jeremy
Bride: Jeanne
Father of the Bride: Barry
Father of the Bridegroom: Doug
First Witness / Friend of the Bridegroom: Chuck
Friend of the Bride: Myrl
The Narrators tell the beautiful love story of the Bridegroom and his Bride
Leviticus 23
24 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.Matthew 9 15Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
A. The first part of the Ancient Jewish Wedding was The Betrothal.
The Bride (left) with her friend - busy with their daily responsibilities
The Scripture says in Hosea 2:19-20 I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, In love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD.
B. Frequently the Bride had not met the Bridegroom before their Betrothal.
1 Peter 1:8 Though you have not seen Him, you love him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy. (This refers to the Bride’s love for her Bridegroom - Messiah Yeshua.)
The Bridegroom (right) and his father watch the girl from afar
C. The Bridegroom, his Father or his servant, would approach the father of his prospective Bride with the “Bride Price”.
1 Peter 1:18-19 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Messiah, a lamb without blemish or defect.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 You are not your own; You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
The Bride's Father (left) examines the Bride-Price,
presented by the Bridegroom and His friend
D. During the Betrothal process, the Bridegroom would present a Wedding Contract to his Bride.
The Holy Scriptures are our Ketubah.Jeremiah 31: 31-33 “The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
And again in Hebrews 8:10 it says… This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts.
The Bridegroom presents the Ketubah/Wedding Contract to the Bride's Father
E. The father of the Bride would then go and ask her about the proposed Betrothal and Marriage.
Romans 10:9-10 …If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
The Bride's Father tells her of the proposed Betrothal
Psalm 30:11-12 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness.
Ezekiel 16:8-13 8“When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed your time was the time of love; so I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness. Yes, I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine,” says the Lord GOD. 9“Then I washed you in water; yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood, and I anointed you with oil. 10I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk. 11I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrists, and a chain on your neck. 12And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth.
In Revelations 3:5 Yeshua says… “He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.”
G. The Bride and her Father returned to the room where the Bridegroom was waiting.
Matthew 26:27-29 (At the Pesach Meal with His disciples Yeshua …) … took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
The Bridegroom & His Bride drink the Betrothal cup of wine together
H. The Bridegroom would then present Betrothal Gifts to his beloved Bride.
James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father ...
1 Corinthians 12:1, 4, 8-10 Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant. There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
The Bridegroom presents gifts to His Bride
I. At this point the Bridegroom would depart from the home of his Bride’s family.
In John 14:1-3 Yeshua said: Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
(Left) The Father congratulates His son on the accepted Betrothal
(Right) The Bridegroom & His Father examine the Chadar (Chuppa)
J. The Bride went through a ritual washing before the wedding, called a Mikvah, which we as Believers in Messiah call Baptism.
Mark 16:16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved.
The Bride's Mikvak
K. The Bride was consecrated and set apart for a period of time while the bridegroom was away building the house.
Hebrews 10:19-23 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
Matthew 25 1Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. 11Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 13Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
L. Perhaps the Bride had even seen the room that was being added on to His Father’s house.
Mark 13:32 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.
2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.
The Bride watches for the coming of her Bridegroom
M. When the time was right, the Bridegroom’s Father would tell His son that the room was completed and that it was time to go and “catch away” the Bride.
The Bride is presented with a gold crown resembling the Jerusalem skyline
Joel 2: 16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.
Sounding of the SHOFAR
1 Thessalonians 4 16For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of G-d: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
N. At Midnight, the Bridegroom would go to meet his Bride.
Matthew 25 6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
1 Corinthians 15 51Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed 52in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
The Bridegroom "catches away" His Bride
The Bridegroom takes the Bride to the Chuppa (Wedding Chamber)
Jeremiah 31:22 ...A woman shall compass a man.
The Ketubah was signed by the Bridegroom, Bride and the two witnesses.
The Bridegroom & Bride with His Father, holding the Ketubah
P. The Bridegroom and His Bride would spend 7 days alone in the Bridal Chamber or Chuppa.
The look in their eyes says it all!
Q. On their wedding day, the Bridegroom is seen as a king and his Bride as a queen.
Dancing at the Wedding
The Coronation of the King Yeshua is another major theme of Rosh Hashanah. Messiah’s Coronation will happen in heaven prior to His physical return to Earth. Revelation 5:11-14 11Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” 14The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
The Coronation of the Bridegroom (Messiah)
R. After the marriage was consummated, there was an enormous Wedding Feast or Marriage Supper - a major Theme of the Festival of Sukkot.
Revelation 19:7-9 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white; for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
Baruch Atah YHWH Eloheynu Melech Ha’Olam, Bore p'ri ha’gafen.
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe,
Who creates the fruit of the vine.
The 2nd Cup of Wine is drunk by the Bridegroom and His Bride
Messiah Yeshua is coming back for a bride that is without spot or blemish.
1 Thessalonians 5:1-2
Now as to the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.
Isaiah 62: 5 … as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.Lift up your heads, your redemption draweth nigh. “L’Shanah Tovah” - May you be inscribed for a good year.
Other "Ancient Jewish Wedding Performances"
2008 2009
Check out this Link for Yom Teruah - The Feast of Trumpets - CLICK HERE
A special thanks to Paul & Duke for all the great photos
