A Wedding That Jesus Attended

Jesus and his disciples were invited to attend a wedding in Cana of Galilee. They accepted the invitation, and Jesus even contributed to the joy of the occasion. When the wine ran short, he miraculously produced an extra supply of the finest quality. After the wedding, what remained over no doubt served the needs of the grateful bridegroom and his family for a time.​—John 2:3-11.

There are several lessons we can learn from the wedding attended by Jesus. First, Jesus and his disciples did not crash the marriage feast. The Bible specifically states that they were invited. (John 2:1, 2) Likewise, in two illustrations of marriage feasts, Jesus repeatedly spoke of the guests as being present because they were invited.​—Matthew 22:2-4, 8, 9; Luke 14:8-10.

Though Jesus was God’s Son who “came down from heaven,” there is no indication that he took over and directed most matters at the wedding in Cana. (John 6:41) Rather, the Bible account tells us that someone else was appointed to act as “the director of the feast.” (John 2:8) This man, in turn, was answerable to the new family head, namely the bridegroom.​—John 2:9, 10.

Careful Planning and Balance

Evidently, there was plenty of good food at the wedding Jesus attended, for the Bible describes it as a marriage feast. As has been noted, there was also plenty of wine. No doubt, there was appropriate music and dignified dancing because this was a common feature of Jewish social life. Jesus showed this in his famous illustration of the prodigal son. The wealthy father of that story was so happy for the return of his repentant son that he said: “Let us eat and enjoy ourselves.” According to Jesus, the celebration included “a music concert and dancing.”​—Luke 15:23, 25.

Interestingly, however, the Bible does not specifically refer to music and dancing at the wedding in Cana.

From the amount of wine Jesus provided, it appears that the wedding in Cana was a large, elaborate one. However, we can be sure that the occasion was not boisterous and that the guests did not abuse alcohol as was the case at certain Jewish weddings. (John 2:10) How can we be sure of this? Because the Lord Jesus Christ was in attendance. Of all men, Jesus would have been the most careful to obey God’s command regarding bad association: “Do not come to be among heavy drinkers of wine.”​—Proverbs 23:20.