God has His own standard of solemnization of every marriage between two children of God, who have not defiled the bed before marriage. There are two marriages in the scripture, one of which is the marriage at Cana of Galilee, and the other marriage, which is a very notable one, and a pattern for all believers in Christ, is the marriage between Isaac and Rebekah.
These two marriages were conducted and solemnized in the brides’ fathers’ houses. None of these marriages, and no other marriages in the scripture, were solemnized in any Jewish synagogues. And none of the brides in these two marriages, put on wedding garments, neither were they joined together by Jewish priests. Therefore, church wedding and the putting on of wedding garments by brides, and the joining together of couples by clergymen, is not the doctrine of Christ. It is one of the doctrines of Mystery Babylon, the Great, the Mother of harlots and abominations of the earth, mentioned in REVELATION 17:5.
The scripture that is wrested in MATTHEW 22:12, talked about A MAN, NOT HAVING ON HIM A WEDDING GARMENT. And this wedding garment is symbolic of the righteousness of the saints of God- REVELATION 19:7-9.
The marriage between Rebekah and Isaac is so important and a notable one in the history of the militant church left behind by Jesus Christ, because it marked the beginning of the generation of Jesus Christ- MATTHEW 1:1-16. The solemnization of this marriage and its simplicity, is written in GENESIS 24:53 and I quote, “And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold and raiment and he gave them to Rebekah. He gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.”
In VERSES 50-51, it is written and I quote, “Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, the thing proceedeth from the Lord, we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the Lord hath spoken.” The picture will be clearer as you read GENESIS 24:1-67.
Bethuel, the bride’s father, was given nothing, neither in kind nor in cash.
Therefore, that fixed amount, usually given to the bride’s father by the bridegroom’s family, as tradition commands, is a FINE or a PENALTY, under the Law of Moses, when a DAUGHTER IS BEING DEFILED BEFORE MARRIAGE, written in DEUTERONOMY 22:28-29, and I quote, “If a man find a damsel that is a virgin, which is not betrothed, and lay hold on her, and lie with her, and they be found; then the man that lay with her shall give unto the damsel’s father, fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife; because he hath humbled her, he may not put her away all his days.” Tradition transgresses the commandment of God- MATTHEW 15:3. The bride’s father who receives this kind of fixed amount, while giving out his daughter in marriage, is of the works of the Law, therefore under the curse of the Law.
Christians have been redeemed through Christ’s death from the curse of the Law- GALATIANS 3:10-13. Christians are therefore commanded to stand fast in this liberty, and never go back to the bondage of the Law- GALATIANS 5:1.
Dowry is an English word, which by Dictionary definition, simply means the property that a woman brings to her husband’s house in marriage, or the gift (in kind and in cash), given to a wife, in marriage, as was the case of Rebekah, who was given jewels of silver and of gold and raiment in marriage. The mother and the brother were given precious things as gifts by Abraham’s servant.
It is worthy of note, that Bethuel, Laban, Rebekah’s only brother, and the mother were the ones that gave out Rebekah in marriage, and not any of the extended family members.