Dr. Jim Somerville: A Prayer for Your Wedding Night

I have one of those big study Bibles that includes theApocrypha, although we Baptists don't read that part of the Bible very often.  It's more of a Catholic thing, since Catholics include those books in the canon of Holy Scripture.  Us?  If we look at them at all it's often only to marvel at the strange things you can find in there (not that there aren't a lot of strange things in the 66 books we include in our canon.  Just take a look at Ezekiel sometime).  But since I probably bought the big study Bible to impress people, and since it looks more impressive with the added bulk of the Apocrypha, well...there it is.

But this morning when I was finishing up my devotional reading I thumbed through that part of the book, and stumbled on this interesting wedding night prayer.  It's from the Book of Tobit, chapter 8, verses 4b-7, and it's offered in unusual circumstances. Tobias wants to marry this girl named Sarah, see?  She is "sensible, brave, and very beautiful."  There's only one problem: she has married seven men and each of them died in the bridal chamber.  Things don't look good for Tobit.  But he asks for her hand anyway, brave lad that he is, and when he goes into the bridal chamber he puts the heart and liver of a fish on the glowing embers of the incense in the room.  It gives off such a stink that it drives the evil spirit (the one that was killing all of Sarah's husbands) to the remotest parts of Egypt, but Tobias' guardian angel-Raphael-follows and binds the demon hand and foot, just so it won't do any more mischief.

Now, you would think that this would be the end of it, but Tobias isn't taking any chances.  Before he gets into bed with his new bride, Sarah, he invites her to join him in prayer.  I've printed the prayer below, and I think it's one of those things every couple could pray on their wedding night, and maybe should, just to keep the evil spirits away (wink). 

Tobias began by saying:

'Blessed are you, O God of our ancestors,

   and blessed is your name in all generations for ever.

Let the heavens and the whole creation bless you for ever.

You made Adam, and for him you made his wife Eve

   as a helper and support.

   From the two of them the human race has sprung.

You said, "It is not good that the man should be alone;

   let us make a helper for him like himself."

I now am taking this kinswoman of mine,

   not because of lust,

   but with sincerity.

Grant that she and I may find mercy

   and that we may grow old together.'

And they both said, 'Amen, Amen.'

Then they went to sleep for the night.

And when they woke up the next morning, they were both still alive.  How's that for the power of prayer?

[Taken with permission from Jim Somerville's blog. Originally posted Feb. 2, 2012.]