“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:31–32

This is one of my favorite passages in the New Testament, and not for reasons that most might think. In Ephesians 5, Paul outlines the requirements for husbands and wives in light of the gospel, comparing a husband’s love for his wife to Christ’s love for the church. This type of love is costly and sacrificial, and by loving his wife, the husband is loving himself since they are united as one flesh through the bond of marriage. This is often a go-to text for weddings, and rightly so. It presents a beautiful vision for newlyweds, and it’s the passage that inspires me when I think about marriage.

But Paul isn’t just talking about marriage here. After quoting Genesis 2:24 in verse 30, Paul takes a surprising turn:

“This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.”

Paul’s quotation of the Old Testament comes from the creation account of Adam and Eve. God created the world and placed Adam in the garden of Eden, and after observing that it was not good for Adam to be alone, God created a helper for him by taking a rib from Adam’s side and forming Eve.

How did Paul understand this passage from Genesis? Max Turner in the New Bible Commentary explains it well:

Paul was perfectly aware of the literal meaning of Gn. 2:24, but he saw the mystery of cosmic unity in Christ, and especially the union between Christ and his body, as in a sense prefigured in the marriage bond. For him there is a typological relationship between creation in unity with God and redemption into unity with God. That original unity was nowhere better focused than in Adam’s prefall union with Eve, and Paul holds that Christ’s union with the church is its redemptive counterpart.

Genesis explains the origin of marriage, and Paul redefines marriage as an example of the relationship Jesus wants to have with His people. As in marriage, this relationship is much more than a physical bond; it is deeply spiritual and mysterious. In 1 Corinthians 6:16–17, Paul also quotes Genesis 2:24 and says, “But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.” Believing in Christ means receiving Christ (John 1:12) and entering into a mystical union through the Holy Spirit living in us (1 Corinthians 6:19). As partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), we have the same divine essence and life of Jesus Christ in us (Galatians 2:20). The New Testament uses other means to describe our life-union with Jesus, such as branches abiding in the Vine (John 15:5), a plant rooted and grounded in the soil (Colossians 2:6–7), putting on a garment (Romans 13:14), and members of His Body (Ephesians 4:15–16).

And that’s the beauty and transcendence of marriage. It points to our living, intimate, transformative union with God. The intimacy and joys of the marriage union are a foretaste of the eternal joys we will have when Christ returns to consummate the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6–10).