BRIDE OF CHRIST OR BRIDE OF DECEPTION? EXPOSING ‘SPIRITUAL MARRIAGE’ TO JESUS

Written by Abrie JF Kilian.

Within certain Christian circles, a peculiar claim has emerged. Veiled in piety but utterly foreign to the Scriptures: “I am married to Jesus.” This assertion, most often proclaimed by devout women, heralded as a mark of spiritual devotion—a personal union with Yahshua. Such a proclamation is mostly coupled with a renunciation of earthly marriage due to previous relationship cynicism. Some wield it as a poetic flourish, others as an ironclad vow. Yet, beneath its veneer of sanctity, it is not the language of Torah, but the echo of Gnostic mysticism and Catholic asceticism. A false doctrine with no rightful place in the architecture of divine covenant.

Marriage, as decreed by YHWH, is no ethereal abstraction, nor a spiritual escape hatch, but a covenant of flesh and faith, binding a man and a woman in sacred unity. A woman is not designed for self-made vows to the heavens, but to be joined to a righteous man, just as a man is commanded to follow Yahshua ha’Messiah. Yet, history is littered with mankind’s attempts to defy divine order, and like the builders of Babel, these women seek to forge their own ascent to the divine. Circumventing covenant in favour of invention.

Scripture leaves no room for ambiguity: Yahshua is not the bridegroom of solitary mystics, but of Israel and Judah—the assembly (ekklesia) (Jeremiah 31:31-33, Matthew 15:24, Revelation 21:2). Nowhere does He claim an individual woman as His bride; rather, Yahshua redeems a covenant-bound nation. And as mentioned previously, the myth of ‘spiritual marriage’ is not the fruit of holy writ. On the contrary, it is fruit from the poisonous vine of Gnostic heresy, Catholic mysticism, and modern evangelical distortion. A defiance of divine order borne by Asheroth and cloaked in religious sentiment.

This article will rent back the curtain, exposing the Gnostic roots of ‘spiritual marriage’, tracing its infiltration into Catholic monasticism, and dismantling evangelical distortions of intimacy with Yahshua. Finally, it will restore the actual Biblical role of women within YHWH’s covenantal order—where marriage is a mandate, not an option, and submission is a calling, not a concession.

Truth must be measured in the balances of Scripture, not in the scales of sentiment. Marriage is an earthly covenant, not a celestial fantasy. Let no one seek to rewrite what YHWH has already decreed.

I. THE BIBLICAL MODEL OF MARRIAGE

Divine Hierarchy and Covenant Marriage

Genesis 2:18 affirms: "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him."

From the beginning, YHWH created woman as the glory of man, just as man is the image and glory of YHWH (1 Corinthians 11:7). Marriage is a covenantal structure, not a personal, mystical experience.

1 Corinthians 11:3 establishes divine hierarchy:

• YHWH reigns supreme.

• Yahshua leads man in righteousness.

• Man is entrusted with headship over woman—to guide, protect, and lead.

There is no Biblical provision for mystical unions or ‘spiritual brides.’ Marriage reflects this hierarchy (Ephesians 5:22-33), mirroring Yahshua’s relationship not with individuals, but with Kol-Israel—the corporate assembly of Judah and Israel restored (Jeremiah 31:31-33, Revelation 21:2).

The Role of Women: Seeking a Righteous Man, Not an Imaginary Groom

The modern world glorifies emotional impulsivity, but wisdom calls for discernment. YHWH did not design women to wander in romanticized mysticism, but to find strength, security, and fulfillment in Biblical marriage:

This decree is not an outdated relic but a divine blueprint:

• A woman is not called to isolation, but to be a helpmeet.

• She is not to govern herself by emotional whims but by wisdom.

• Her role is to be a counterpart to a righteous man, not a lone mystic wandering aimlessly seeking Yahshua as her ‘husband.’

A woman should not settle for a man who does not fear YHWH, but neither should she abandon the pursuit altogether. She must learn to discern righteousness, seeking a man who:

• Submits to Yahshua’s authority.

• Leads with wisdom and integrity.

• Honors YHWH’s commandments above worldly ambition.

This is not weakness, but wisdom. This is not subjugation, but alignment with divine order.A woman is at her strongest when she is joined by a righteous man, as YHWH designed. (Proverbs 31)

II. DIVINE ORDER REFLECTED IN CREATION

The heavens declare the glory of YHWH, and within their celestial movements lies a profound reflection of divine order. Just as Yahshua is the radiant center of all righteousness, so too does the sun govern the heavens. Man, created in Yahshua’s image, is the earth—firm, steadfast, given dominion and responsibility. Woman, in turn, is the moon, reflecting the light she receives from her rightful head, tethered in orbit to either her husband or father.

This celestial hierarchy is not arbitrary; it is divinely ordained. Just as the moon does not blaze with its own light but reflects the brilliance of the sun through its connection to the earth, so too must a woman receive her spiritual illumination through the righteous leadership of her husband or father. A woman who seeks to bypass this structure, attempting to shine independently, only falls into darkness—just as the moon, without the earth, would drift into cold oblivion.

Biblical Foundations of Divine Order

This alignment is not a matter of opinion, but a pattern written into creation and affirmed in Scripture:

• Yahshua as the Sun – "The Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings" (Malachi 4:2). Yahshua is the source of all spiritual life, radiating truth and authority.

• Man as the Earth – "YHWH God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it" (Genesis 2:15). Man was created from the dust of the earth, charged with dominion and stewardship, orbiting Yahshua as the source of his strength and wisdom.

• Woman as the Moon – "The head of every man is the Messiah; the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Messiah is YHWH" (1 Corinthians 11:3). A woman’s role is not to blaze her own path but to reflect the righteousness of Yahshua by supporting and walking alongside the man placed in her life.

A Woman’s Role in supporting a Man to grow Closer to Yahshua

The modern world teaches women to pursue direct intimacy with Yahshua while ignoring or rejecting the men whom YHWH has placed over them. Yet, Scripture teaches that a woman does not grow closer to Yahshua by forging an independent path, but by supporting the man in her life.

• Supporting His Spiritual Growth – "A wise woman builds her house, but the foolish one tears it down with her own hands" (Proverbs 14:1). A woman who honours her husband or father strengthens the entire household’s faith.

• Encouraging His Righteousness – "Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands, as unto the Master. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Messiah is the head of the assembly" (Ephesians 5:22-23). A woman must encourage her husband’s walk with Yahshua, reinforcing, not resisting, divine order.

• Tethered, Yet Glorious – Just as the moon is most beautiful when it faithfully follows its orbit around the earth, a woman flourishes when she submits to her YHWH-appointed role. A woman seeking to grow in holiness must ask herself not, How can I have a direct relationship with Yahshua?, but How can I uplift and support the man in my life so that together, we may grow closer to Yahshua?

III. THE TOWER OF BABEL: BYPASSING DIVINE ORDER

The Babelite impulse did not die with ancient Babylon. It is alive today in women rejecting Biblical marriage, male headship, and instead declaring themselves ‘spiritually married’ to Yahshua.

Just as Babel sought to reach heaven without obedience, so do these women seek direct union with Yahshua without male covering. But Scripture is clear:

"For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man." (1 Corinthians 11:7-9)

Women bypassing male headship to claim direct spiritual authority are not ascending in righteousness—they are building Babel anew. And as Babel fell, so too shall every attempt to circumvent YHWH’s order.

IV. THE GNOSTIC POSITION: A REJECTION OF THE FLESH AND COVENANT

To understand the origins of the ‘spiritual marriage’ doctrine, one must first grasp the fundamental tenets of Gnosticism—an esoteric worldview that stood in direct opposition to the Biblical paradigm of covenant, marriage, and creation itself.

The Gnostic impulse was rooted in dualism, the belief that the material world was a corrupt prison, formed by a lesser deity (the Demiurge), and that salvation lay in escaping the flesh to reunite with the ‘true’ divine realm. Unlike the Hebraic worldview, which celebrates creation, marriage, and family as divinely ordained, the Gnostics despised these institutions, seeing them as barriers to spiritual enlightenment.

1. The Gnostic Rejection of Marriage and Procreation

Marriage and procreation, according to Gnostic thought, were not sacred but sinful. Since the body itself was seen as a trap, anything that perpetuated the material world—such as sexual union and childbearing—was regarded as a hindrance to salvation.

The Gospel of Thomas, a Gnostic text, records Yahshua as allegedly saying:

"When you make the two one, and when you make the male and the female into a single one … then you will enter the kingdom." (Saying 22)

This deceptive reinterpretation suggests that true spiritual attainment required abandoning gender roles, marriage, and family—a notion utterly foreign to Torah.

The Valentinian Gnostics took this further by developing the concept of a ‘celestial marriage’, where believers—particularly women—were taught that sexual abstinence elevated the soul into a mystical union with Messiah or other divine beings.

2. The Feminization of Messiah and the 'Spiritual Bride' Illusion

In many Gnostic sects, Yahshua was not seen as a betrothed bridegroom to Israel and Juda, but as a genderless or androgynous being, offering mystical union to individuals who sought esoteric knowledge (gnosis). This idea blurred the Biblical covenantal framework of marriage, replacing it with private, self-determined ‘unions’ between the soul and the divine.

This paved the way for later Catholic mysticism, where nuns would take wedding vows to Yahshua, and for modern evangelical distortions, where women are encouraged to 'romance' Yahshua as their spiritual husband.

3. Gnostic Celibacy vs. Biblical Sanctity of Marriage

Unlike the Gnostic worldview, the Bible does not condemn the body or marriage. Torah commands: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth." (Genesis 1:28)

Paul, in refuting early Gnostic tendencies, warned:

"Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits … forbidding marriage and requiring abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving." (1 Timothy 4:1-3)

Here, Paul directly identifies Gnostic influences creeping into early Christian circles, exposing their false asceticism as a departure from the faith.

The doctrine of ‘spiritual marriage’ is not the product of Biblical faithfulness, but Gnostic corruption. It seeks to separate women from Biblical marriage, replacing covenantal union with an illusory romance with Yahshua. This deception sought to distort the role of women in modern evangelicalism, where they are encouraged to bypass righteous men and declare themselves ‘brides of Yahshua.’

Yet, Scripture stands unshaken—Yahshua’s bride is not an individual woman, but the redeemed nation of Israel. The Gnostic path leads to delusion, while the Biblical path leads to covenant.

V. FINAL VERDICT: A RETURN TO BIBLICAL WOMANHOOD

The doctrine of ‘spiritual marriage’ is not Biblical—it is a mirage masquerading as truth. It was:

• Conceived in Gnostic corruption

• Adopted by Catholic asceticism

• Repackaged in evangelical romanticism

But truth is eternal—Yahshua does not take private brides, and His covenant remains with Israel and Judah, not with scattered souls cloaked in self-declared revelation.

A Call to Women: Seek Covenant, Not Illusion

• Seek a righteous man—one who submits to Yahshua and walks in obedience.

  (See blog post BIBLE BELIEVING WOMEN'S GUIDE IN CHOOSING A HUSBAND).

• Embrace marriage and motherhood (Titus 2:4-5) as the foundation of YHWH’s covenant.

  (See blog post IS BIBLICAL MARRIAGE THE KEY TO UNLOCKING HUMAN POTENTIAL?)

• Reject Gnostic, Catholic mysticism and evangelical distortions—they offer illusion, not truth.

  (See blog post FROM TEMPLES TO SCREENS: HOW ANCIENT GODDESS IDOLATRY BECAME MODERN FEMALE WORSHIP)

Marriage is a covenant, not a concept.

The brides are a people, not a women seeking to bypass YHWH's hierarchy.

Let women forsake mysticism and embrace their rightful place in YHWH’s covenantal structure. Seek wisely, righteously, and with honor—as Yahshua seeks women to be clothed in virtue and be brides for righteous men. There is no greater success than being wife to a righteous man, raising children together. There is no greater honour than walking in YHWH’s ordained ways.

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