A deeper look at the wedding in Cana reveals Jesus as Creator.  Jesus was at the wedding with his mother and his disciples.  He quickly establishes that He is the authority of both what He does and when He does it.  He was the sole authority in Genesis also.  The flow of time during the wedding is not recorded but the wedding appears to start on the third day after He called his first disciples. Jewish weddings can take several days before the groom consummates the marriage.  Toward the end of the ceremony the time "was right" that Jesus gave the command for six stone jars to be filled with water.  Because these stone jars were used for ceremonial washing, they would only be filled with pure water.  Obediently they were filled to the brim.  They were then presented to the Lord that He might proclaim what would be done next.

The filling of the six earthen jars to the brim appears to be representative of the earth being filled in six days. Each day of creation was full, nothing was left out and nothing needed to be added.  The water in the Genesis creation is the initial and central ingredient.  The Spirit hovered over it, the heavens divided it, the dry land was drawn out of it, and the ground was nourished by it.  Therefore, the plants would produce "fruit after their kind" and "the seed bearing plants … would be for food".  The water in the ceremonial jars became the central element of the wedding as Jesus commanded that a portion of it be drawn out and taken to the "governor of the feast".  The governor was responsible for all events leading up to and including the consummation of the marriage.  Truly God is the  "governor" of marriage, assuring that those who bare His image will procreate to complete His creation.

The New Testament "governor of the feast" uses the Greek word "apciTpikhinox".  It appears only three times in scripture and is the conjunction of three Greek words.  The first word is "apxn" and is the word "beginning" as found in John 1:1 and Revelation 1:8.  It denotes primary authority.  The second word is "Tpia" and simply means three.  The last word is "Klivw" and implies resting in a very relaxed position.  The accepted translation is that at a Jewish wedding the "the primary authority does rest on three pillows".  Another possible reading of this word is "three primary authorities that are very relaxed".  This would be in complete agreement with the very first wedding that was preformed "In the beginning."  The triune God of Creation was resting as He sealed His reation with the marriage of the first man and woman.  He blessed it and promised that the two individuals would become one flesh.  Then God announced, "It is very good".  Jesus repeated this performance in John 2 and His Jewish disciples could not ignore God's almighty work in their presence.

The grandeur of this wedding was in the behind-the-seen event of changing water into wine.  Something inorganic instantly became organic!  The bonding of created carbon atoms to the existing hydrogen and oxygen atoms without the presence of either time or enzyme-catalyzing photosynthesis is the essence of a "true creation".  Jesus is recorded in doing such a miracle only once.  All other miracles that He did were either for "restoration" as in his many healings, "multiplication" as in his feeding of the people, or "glorification" as in raising a few from the dead.  This miracle alone was destined to affirm Him as The Creator, as He had done "in the beginning".

Creation and marriage are bound together inseparably.  These two "absolutes" of human existence are the foundation for humankind to believe in the God of all Life.  It is therefore not surprising that the Creator Himself chose the marriage of two humble servants, Mary and Joseph, to facilitate His entry into His created order that He might become the perfect redeemer of all that was created.  We celebrate this event at Christmas, no matter where in the universe we might be.  It was all done properly.  It was all done GLORIOUSLY!

By Lynn Hofland
September 2000
stiffneck@juno.com