Listen, daughter, and pay careful attention: Forget your people and your father’s house. – Psalm 45:10

Today’s Scripture Reading (July 29, 2016): Psalm 45

I recently read an article that argued that the Bible does not instruct a woman to take her husband’s name when she enters into a marriage relationship. I would agree, but with a caveat. There are no instructions that could be considered moral or prescriptive (as in instructing that you must do it this way.) But there is evidence that even in the Bible this was considered to be the traditional practice. We need to understand that the Bible was written in a patriarchal culture and that our culture is not drawn on strict patriarchal – or matriarchal - lines. Because of this, it is sometimes dangerous to draw comparisons between the biblical culture and our own. But there are places where the Bible is descriptive on this practice. And this is one of them.

Psalm 45 is a marriage Psalm. And as the psalmist turns from the man to the woman, he reminds the woman to forget her people and her father’s house. This is not literally ‘forget’ as to not have memory or relationships with her own family, but this is a description of what is essentially taking the man’s name in marriage; shifting her identity from the house of her father to the house of her husband. And in this process, she becomes one with her husband and part of the family and of the tribe of her husband. But this only descriptive in nature.

Having said that, Psalm 45 also provides an illustration that is pertinent to our Christian lives. Repeatedly, the Christian Testament reminds us that the Church is the Bride of Christ. And as his Bride, we take his name. Essentially that is what the word Christian is – us taking and identifying with the name of Christ as his Bride. This Psalm might also shed some light on what Jesus meant with these words - If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple … In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples (Luke 14:26-33). As Christians, we are expected to leave our own alliances, beliefs and purposes so that we can join in the purposes of Jesus. All of this is part of the process of us really becoming the Bride of Christ – and taking his name as our own.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 4