Questions and Answers: Is the Bride the Body of Christ?

From: Questions and Answers in Christian Treasury

Narrator: Chris Genthree

• 4 min. read • grade level: 7

QUESTION: Is the bride the body of Christ? Some say Israel is the bride, and believers now are the body.

ANSWER: Israel is earthly, called to an earthly inheritance. The Church is heavenly, called to share with Christ in heavenly glory. The purposes of God for Israel and the nations are from the beginning of the world; the purposes of God for the Church are before the foundation of the world. It is the mystery of Christ and the Church which was hid in God, kept secret since the world began, till it was given to Paul to communicate, and was revealed then to His holy apostles and prophets. (Rom. 16:25, 26²⁵Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, ²⁶But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: (Romans 16:25‑26); Eph. 3:2-10²If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: ³How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, ⁴Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) ⁵Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; ⁶That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel: ⁷Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power. ⁸Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; ⁹And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: ¹⁰To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, (Ephesians 3:2‑10); Col. 1:24-27²⁴Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church: ²⁵Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; ²⁶Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: ²⁷To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: (Colossians 1:24‑27).)

Israel rejected and crucified their King. God raised Him from the dead and glorified Him, then the Holy Spirit came down to dwell in the Church, and every believer became in this way a member of the body of Christ. (1 Cor. 12:12, 13¹²For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. ¹³For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:12‑13).)

In Eph. 5:22-33²²Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. ²³For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. ²⁴Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. ²⁵Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; ²⁶That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, ²⁷That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. ²⁸So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. ²⁹For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: ³⁰For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. ³¹For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. ³²This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. ³³Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband. (Ephesians 5:22‑33), the wife pictures the Church, and the husband pictures Christ. This mystic union is seen here in both ways, as His body and His bride.

In 2 Cor. 11:2, 3²For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. ³But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. (2 Corinthians 11:2‑3), the saints, or members of His body, are espoused to Christ as a chaste virgin, and warned not to be like Eve, who hearkened to Satan's wiles.

Following out Rom. 16:26²⁶But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: (Romans 16:26), we go back to the prophetic scriptures (Gen. 1:26²⁶And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. (Genesis 1:26)). There in figure is Christ and the Church reigning. (Rom. 8:17¹⁷And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. (Romans 8:17); 1 Cor. 6:2, 3²Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? ³Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? (1 Corinthians 6:2‑3); 2 Tim. 2:12¹²If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: (2 Timothy 2:12).)

In Gen. 2 we have Adam, the figure of Him that was to come (Rom. 5:14¹⁴Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. (Romans 5:14)), set over all things, but no companion is found for him, and it is not good for him to be alone. The Lord God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep, and from his side took one of his ribs and made a woman out of it. When Adam saw her he said, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh." He recognized her as part of himself, and this was needed to make the complete man (Gen. 5:2²Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created. (Genesis 5:2)). What a picture this is of Christ and the Church. It could not be Israel, for Christ must die before He could have His heavenly bride. She is taken out of His side, made for Him and made from Him, and she is His fullness or complement. (Eph. 1:19-23¹⁹And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, ²⁰Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: ²²And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, ²³Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:19‑23).)

In Gen. 22 the figurative death and resurrection of Isaac pictures the Father and Son in the work of atonement. Then in chapter 24 the Father sends His Servant to call a bride for His Son, and He meets her at the well. He, the Servant, adorns her, and fits her to be the bride of Christ with jewels of silver (redemption), jewels of gold, and raiment suited for her heavenly calling. Then the journey follows, led by the Holy Spirit (the Servant) who takes care of her all the way till she meets her Bridegroom. The Holy Spirit is leading home to the Lamb His bride.

We might speak of Joseph as type of the risen Christ and His bride, and of Moses and his bride. Joseph's bride answers to Eph. 1:3³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: (Ephesians 1:3), and Moses' bride answers to Phil. 1:29²⁹For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake; (Philippians 1:29), for Moses was at that time a type of the rejected Christ (Ex. 2).

Then John in Revelation tells us of the marriage of the Lamb, and His wife who has made herself ready.

But that is in heaven, and Israel could not be there. Then in chapter 21:1-8, we get eternity, and there we see the Church, the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, that is, in all her fresh virgin beauty (Eph. 3:21²¹Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. (Ephesians 3:21)). Think of it, transformed out of such sinners as you and I had been. Wonderful grace! And she is the dwelling place of God at the same time.

From Rev. 21:9⁹And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. (Revelation 21:9) to 22:5, we see her as the bride, the Lamb's wife, displaying His glory to the world in the millennium. (John 17:23²³I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. (John 17:23); Eph. 1:12; 2:7¹²That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. (Ephesians 1:12)
⁷That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:7) 'Thess. 1:10.) There Israel is at her gates, and angels also are under her, because she is the bride, the Lamb's wife.

Israel is compared to a divorced woman now, who shall be restored, but always earthly. The Song of Solomon is about this earthly One. Jerusalem is the spouse, and the cities of Judah her companions, spoken of in this way as the object of her King's affections. We must remember it when we use that language in speaking of the Church.

John the Baptist in John 3:29²⁹He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. (John 3:29), spoke of the Bridegroom. Israel's King was there, and he, a friend of the Bridegroom, rejoiced that He had come. But He, the King, was rejected, and John was beheaded, that God's great purpose concerning Christ and the Church should be fulfilled.

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