obtains its most enduring and successful patterns for the tapestries formed by our social fabric. The institution of marriage is no exception. Given to us by God at the very beginning of His creation, marriage was to be the bedrock of all societies; and over the millennia since God first gave Adam and Eve life in the garden of Eden, this bedrock remains essential to His will for mankind. While this book will neither exhaust the topic of biblical marriage nor address every verse of Scripture or nuance in the union of two unique individuals, it will present practical revelation that we pray you find useful in building your marriage, and thereby empowering your family.

Beginning with the biblical foundation of marriage, a foundation unaltered since God ordained it, this book will take you on a journey that will reveal the genius of God's blueprint for marriage and ultimately His manifestation of the gospel in the institution itself. As with all great institutions, marriage and family are God's idea, not mankind's. He is the Creator and Sustainer, and the purposes for which He creates and sustains a marriage are not mysterious--He desires godly offspring. In perpetuating the gospel of Jesus Christ through all generations and around the world, God reveals time and again in His Word that the primary vehicle for the perpetuation of that Gospel (good news) is family.

Just as no person is perfect, no family is perfect. Here, too, in the ashes of divorce, abuse, and failed families, God wishes to show Himself not only capable but eager to restore and heal. We pray you will enjoy and profit greatly from the revelation God has given us on this important subject.