Traditional and Contemporary Christian Wedding Vows Every Couple Can Use (2023)
For the couple who wants to have a strong and life long, Christian marriage, these Christian wedding vow samples will help to create a bridge from engagement into a secure married life together. Whether a traditional or non-traditional wedding, these sample wedding vows include a range of Bible verses, vows to husband and vows to wife that are both spiritual and non-spiritual alike. The wedding vow samples below should provide you with an idea of the perfect mix of Christian wedding vows for your upcoming wedding ceremony.
Related post: How To Write Wedding Vows Step by Step: Useful Tips, FAQs and Examples
What does the Bible Say about Marital Vows?
While many believe that the holy law of matrimony has some type of requirement for couples to use Christian wedding vows, technically there is nothing to be said about wedding vows in the Bible. Formally, they are not a requirement of marriage or the wedding ceremony, although many couples choose to adopt them in one form or another. They might choose the traditional route or write their own and include some of the more traditional verbiage.
Whichever they choose, the outlined wedding vow examples below should provide some guidance for the couple.
It’s difficult to pinpoint when the tradition of wedding vows originally started. Vows have been a long-standing tradition, specifically for Christain marriages for some time, while the modern rendition comes from the Bible verses of James I in 1662 and the Angelican Book of Common Prayer.
Included within this book is the solemnization of matrimony ceremony, which is commonly used in both Christian and non-Christian wedding ceremonies today, although not always word for word.
The most commonly used verbiage from the Anglican Book of Common Prayer includes the traditional; “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today,” and the traditional statements about having and holding each other in sickness and in health and until death do them part.
Christian Wedding Vows Examples
The great thing about including these types of wedding vows in your ceremony is that they don’t have to adhere to a specific format. Depending on the couple and their personality, they can be a bit of traditional with some funny overtones. While non-traditional vows can be spiritual and include statements about the holy spirit and other religious aspects. A Christian marriage is based on the principles and promise to love one another through all that life will throw their way. Below you will find some Christian wedding vow examples that you can adopt and use in your upcoming wedding ceremony.
HUSBAND: (Bride’s name), we read in Genesis, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife,” and in Proverbs “Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing.” He has ordained that the husband be the head of the wife. He instructs me, as the one who will be your husband, to love you as Christ loves the Church. It is my desire and delight to follow this scriptural teaching. With all my heart, I make this pledge to you.
WIFE: (Groom’s name), the Lord instructs me as the one who will be your wife to submit to you as unto Him. Our Father created woman to be man’s helper. It is my desire and delight to follow this scriptural teaching. With all my heart I make this pledge to you.
I, ______ , take you, to be my (wife/husband), and these things I promise you: I will be faithful to you and honest with you; I will respect, trust, help, and care for you; I will share my life with you; I will forgive you as we have been forgiven; and I will try with you better to understand ourselves, the world, and God; through the best and worst of what is to come, and as long as we live.
Minister (to Groom): Will you have this woman as your lawfully wedded wife, to live together after God’s ordinance in the holy estate of Matrimony? Will you love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness and in health; for richer and for poorer, forsaking all others, and keep yourself only to her, so long as you both shall live?
Groom: I do.
Minister (to Bride): Will you have this man as your lawfully wedded husband, to live together after God’s ordinance in the holy estate of Matrimony? Will you love him, comfort him, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health; for richer and for poorer, forsaking all others, and keep yourself only to him, so long as you both shall live?
Bride: I do.
In the name of Jesus, I ___ take you, ___, to be my (husband/wife), to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, for as long as we both shall live. This is my solemn vow.
______, I give you this ring, wear it with love and joy. I choose you to be my (husband/wife): to have and to hold, from this day forward. For better, for worse, for richer for poorer; in sickness and in health; to have and to cherish, as long as we both shall live. And hereto, I pledge you my faithfulness to show to you the same kind of love as Christ showed the Church when He died for her, and to love you as a part of myself because in His sight we shall be one.
For Male
I love you, __, and I thank the Lord for the love that has bound our hearts and lives together in spiritual fellowship of marriage. I will love, honor and cherish you always. As we enter upon the privileges and joys of life’s most holy relationship, and begin together the great adventure of building a Christian home, I will look to Christ as Head of our home as I have looked to Him as Head of the Church. I will love you in sickness as in health, in poverty as in wealth, in sorrow as in joy, and will be true to you by God’s grace, trusting in Him, so long as we both shall live. – bible.org
For Female
I love you, ______, and I thank the Lord for the love that has bound our hearts and lives together in spiritual fellowship of marriage. I will love, honor, cherish and obey you always. As we enter upon the privileges and joys of life’s most holy relationship and begin together the great adventure of building a Christian home, I will look to you as head of our home as I have looked to Christ as Head of the Church. I will love you in sickness as in health, in poverty as in wealth, in sorrow as in joy, and will be true to you by God’s grace, trusting in Him, so long as we both shall live. – bible.org
For Female
I ____ in faith, honesty and love take you ___ as my wedded husband. To share with you in God’s plan for our lives together united in Christ. To be a loving helpmate to you with God’s help and strength seeking Him always no matter the trial; whether sickness, health; joys or sorrows, till death do us part. I commit to you this day all that I am and all my love; I pledge to you, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Before Him I offer this ring as a symbol and seal of my love for you and a symbol of unity. I pray to faithfully fulfill my place as your helpmate; to be obedient to God’s purpose for me in your life and our lives together. To uphold you in prayer and submit my heart to you; to always be by and on your side, that the presence of the Lord reside in our home, In Jesus Name.
[Note: a male part was not provided in the submission of this wedding vow, we welcome all submissions.] – bible.org
For Male
For the Glory of God the Father, through Jesus Christ, I make this covenant of marriage with you ______, beloved and most precious treasure. The Lord has made it clear that I am made for you and you for me, to fulfill the purpose that God has created us both to accomplish. In so doing I covenant with you, as Jesus does with the Church, to be your servant all of my life, to wash your feet and to sacrifice all of my self-centered thoughts and desires in order to serve you, our family and the Lord Jesus. I covenant with you to lead and to guide our family as Christ does the Church, building you up in love, cleansing you with the washing with water through the Word, to present you radiant, without spot or blemish, before Jesus. In so doing I will protect and fight for you against all attacks of the enemy, teaching and being guided by the Truth as the only way to keep our path free from snares. I will make intercession for you and our family all of the days of my life, as Christ, the Most High Priest of God, does for the Church. In imitating Christ as your husband, I will also give myself to providing for you and our family, physically and spiritually, trusting God and working hard so that our family will have life that is truly life. Above all things, I choose to love you with joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, especially when we reach our darkest moments, just as Christ showed His ultimate love on the cross when He looked down in love and asked that we would be forgiven, because we knew not what we did. I surrender my very life to you, holding nothing back, so that you and I may be one in thought, word and deed. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.
[Note: a female part was not provided in the submission of this wedding vow, we welcome all submissions.] – bible.org
Related Post: Catholic Wedding Vows 101: An Ultimate Guide for Couples Tying the Knot
Final Thoughts!
The day of the wedding ceremony is a special day where the bride and groom declare their eternal love for one another. This can be done by using traditional or non-traditional Christian wedding vows with a bit of personality thrown in. The bride and groom should include wedding vows that speak directly to the couple as well as to their spiritual beliefs. This will help to set the tone for a strong and secure marriage for the happy couple for many years to come.
