The LORD is my portion;
I have promised to keep Your words.
I sought Your favor with all my heart;
Be gracious to me according to Your word.
I considered my ways
And turned my feet to Your testimonies.
I hurried and did not delay
To keep Your commandments.
The snares of the wicked have surrounded me,
But I have not forgotten Your Law.
At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You
Because of Your righteous judgments.
I am a companion to all those who fear You,
And to those who keep Your precepts.
The earth is full of Your goodness, LORD;
Teach me Your statutes. Psalm 119:57-64 (NASB)
The Hebrew letter Heth of Psalm 119 means marriage. Understanding the meaning of this letter in a Hebrew context, really helps us to understand our relationship with God.
When we are bound with another person in life, that person becomes our portion – that is, our happiness and reason for living. The shape of the letter itself, looks like the Jewish marriage canopy, the chuppah. When thinking about marriage, Raskin (2003) talks about how the couple must work together to bond by nourishing communication. Marriage is a covenant that says, even 
when things get rough, we will stay together, sustain each other, and protect each other.
Looking at the number of ח also helps understanding of this part of Psalm 119. ח symbolizes the number 8 which represents transcendence. This is a number which is beyond the natural order and represents our covenant with God. Raskin (2003) states wisely, in order for a marriage to work, each person must change. This can only happen with God, who helps the two natures of the couple merge together into one.
The letter ח not only helps us understand how God intends the covenant of marriage on earth to work, it also helps us understand our covenantal relationship with God, Himself. In fact, the marriage relationship is an example of our relationship with God. Isaiah used the analogy of a young marriage to describe the Millennial Kingdom. He basically said that Believers are the bride and God is the groom.
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning.
The nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name
Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.
You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
And a royal headband in the hand of your God.
It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,”
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”;
But you will be called, “My delight is in her,”
And your land, “Married”;
For the LORD delights in you,
And to Him your land will be married.
For as a young man marries a virgin,
So your sons will marry you;
And as the groom rejoices over the bride,
So your God will rejoice over you. Isaiah 62:1-5
This beautiful imagery of a bride and groom is picked up in the New Testament where there are many references to Christ being the groom and the church His bride. Revelations 19:7-10 gives us a look at the wedding feast set for all Believers.
Let’s rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, because the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has prepared herself.” It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.’” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Revelations 19:7-10
“The great multitude shouts the final hallelujah hymn. The focus of their joy is that God’s eternal reign has begun and the moment of the Lamb’s wedding to his bride has arrived. The Greek word translated “bride” here is literally “wife” (cf. Eph. 5:23). It reflects the Jewish custom in which the formal wedding is preceded by a legally binding betrothal. During this period, which normally lasted no longer than a year, the pair were called husband and wife. To dissolve the betrothal required a formal divorce, which Joseph briefly considered doing with Mary (Matt. 1:18–20). As part of the betrothal, gifts were exchanged between the families. The bridegroom paid a bride-price to the family of the bride (Ex. 22:16–17), while the bride’s father presented a dowry to his daughter (Judg. 1:14–15). When the wedding day arrived, the bride prepared herself by dressing in finery, such as an embroidered garment (Ps. 45:13–14), jewels (Isa. 61:10), ornaments (Jer. 2:32), and a veil (Gen. 24:65). The wedding is a familiar metaphor used in Scripture to describe God’s relationship with his people. God likened Israel to a bride in the Prophets (Isa. 49:18; Jer. 2:2). In the Gospels, John the Baptist compared Jesus to a bridegroom (John 3:29) as does Jesus himself (Luke 5:35). In the eschatological parable of the ten virgins, the bridegroom (unnamed but surely Jesus) found only five virgins prepared to attend the wedding banquet (Matt. 25:1–13). Paul explicitly identified the church as the bride (2 Cor. 11:2). Revelation’s four references to the church as the bride of Christ are the most in the New Testament (cf. Rev. 21:2, 9; 22:17), (Arnold, 2002, on Biblegateway.com).”
Just as Raskin (2003) tells us that only God can help two people merge together into a marriage, only His Son, Jesus’ sacrificial blood can make us holy in order to come into a complete relationship with God. It takes Jesus to be the chuppah over our relationship with God so that God sees us as His pure and holy bride who can come into His presence. Reflecting on the letter ח not only teaches us about our relationships with each other and with the Most High God, it also points to the future when we will live in Heaven with Him.
Resources:
Arnold C. (Ed.). 2002. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary – Hebrews to Revelation Vol.4. on Biblegateway.com. Zondervan Academic ILL ed.
Raskin, A. 2003: Letters of Light. (audio book). Sichos Publishers.
Photo Credit:
Lin & Jirsa, 2021. Premier Wedding Photography in Los Angeles & Orange County
Mathes, G. May 5, 2011. https://glendafayemathes.com/2011/05/05/covenantal-promise-of-psalm-119-heth. Retrieved on June 22, 2021.
