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Verse:“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.” 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. —Revelation 19:7, 8, NASB
Wedding ceremonies are designed to be as perfect as possible —the decorations, the participants, the ceremony, and, above all, the bride and her dress. One of the most glamorous was the wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine (Kate) Middleton, on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey, in London.
Kate’s wedding dress was designed by Sarah Burton, creative director of the luxury fashion house Alexander McQueen.
The main body of the dress was made of ivory and white satin, with fifty-eight buttons of gazar and organza in the back.
The bodice was decorated with floral motifs cut from machine-made lace. In designer Mark Badgley’s words, “It’s the kind of gown that will stand the test of time. Not all gowns do. Any bride across the world will want to wear it.” It’s no surprise that soon after the royal wedding, replicas of the dress were produced for sale.
The Bible uses various wedding images to describe the relationship between Christ and His faithful church. In the parable of the wedding feast (Matthew 22:1–14), the church is portrayed not as the bride of the King’s son but as the guests at the wedding feast. For that special occasion, all guests were required to wear a wedding garment. A guest without the garment was cast out into outer darkness. In the apocalyptic scene of the marriage of the Lamb (see Revelation 19:7–10), “fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” If “all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment” (Isaiah 64:6, NASB), how can the wedding garment be defined as “the righteous acts of the saints” (Revelation 19:8)? According to Ellen White, that garment is “a gift from the king.” “It is the righteousness of Christ, His own unblemished character, that through faith is imparted to all who receive Him as their personal Saviour.”48 As in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11–32), Christ wants to clothe us with the spotless garment of His own righteousness and prepare us for His wedding feast.