Spoke 3

John 3 Friend of the Bridegroom

And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him. John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all. And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony. He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.

John 3

John the Baptist and the Holy Spirit

The relation between John the Baptist and the Holy Spirit began before he was born, for he was "filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb." Jesus testified of his special position, saying "Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist." He also testified of his unique role in the Gospel, saying, "this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee." John had the incomparable honor of baptizing the Lord Jesus and bearing witness of "the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove" It is for these reasons, and many more, that John bore the sign of Gimel, wearing, as stated in Matthew 3, "a raiment of camel's hair."

Friend of the Bridegroom

John's role as the "Friend of the Bridegroom" - called a Shoshabin in Hebrew and a paranumph in Greek - foreshadowed the work of the Holy Spirit. There are profound links to elements from Spoke 3. The purpose of the Friend of the Bridegroom was threefold, including activities before, during, and after the marriage. This is presented in some detail by Adam Clarke (below is an abreviated version of the online article):

1. Before the marriage: it was the business of the shoshabin:
   1. To procure a husband for the virgin, to guard her, and to bear testimony to her corporeal and mental endowments; and it was upon this testimony of this friend that the bridegroom chose his bride.
      
   2. He was the internuncio between her and her spouse elect; carrying all messages from her to him, and from him to her: for before marriage young women were very strictly guarded at home with their parents or friends.
      
2. At the wedding: it was the business of the shoshabin, if necessary:
   
   1. To vindicate the character of the bride.
      
   2. To sleep in an apartment contiguous to the new-married pair, to prevent the bride from receiving injury.
      
   3. It was his office to see that neither the bride nor bridegroom should be imposed on by each other; and therefore it was his business to examine and exhibit the tokens of the bride's purity, according to the law, Deuteronomy 22:13-21.
      
   4. When they found that their friend had got a pure and chaste virgin, they exulted greatly; as their own character and the happiness of their friend, were at stake. To this the Baptist alludes, John 3:29, This my joy is fulfilled.
   5. They distributed gifts to the new-married couple, which, on their marriage, were repaid either by their friend, or by his father. The same thing is done at what are called the biddings, at marriages in Wales, to the present day.
3. After marriage.
   1. The shoshabin was considered the patron and advocate of the wife, and in some sort her guardian, to which the apostle alludes, 2 Corinthians 11:2 (Spoke 3, Cycle3). He was generally called in to compose any differences which might happen between her and her husband, and reconcile them when they had been at variance.

Clarke also noted that the shoshabin "were chosen out of the most intimate and particular friends of the parties: a brother might be shoshabin or paranymph to his brother." This cohere's with John the Baptist who was Jesus' cousin. In keeping with this pattern, it is on Spoke 3 that Paul portrays himself as the Friend of the Bridegroom, saying in II Corinthians 11:2 (Spoke 3, Cycle 3):

I am jealous over you with godly jealousy; for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."

Endersheim expounded on this verse in his Sketches of Jewish Lives:

[H]e speaks, as it were, in the character of groomsman or "bridegroom's friend," who had acted as such at the spiritual union of Christ with the Corinthian Church. And we know that it was specially the duty of the "friend of the bridegroom" so to present to him his bride. Similarly it was his also, after marriage, to maintain proper terms between the couple, and more particularly to defend the good fame of the bride against all imputations.

In this, Paul was fulfilling the law of the High Priest given in Leviticus 21 (Spoke 3, Cycle 1):

And he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that is consecrated to put on the garments ... shall take a wife in her virginity.

It is the Holy Spirit that makes the Bride of Christ worthy, cleansing us of all impurity and sanctifying us. Many scholars have explored the "Friend of the Bridegroom" as a Type of the Holy Spirit, who "runs to and fro throughout the world" to gather the People of God together, to "present a chaste virgin to Christ." The ramifications of these parallells with the Holy Spirit are greatly amplified by their geometric integration with elements of Spoke 3 - Leviticus, II Corinthians, and John 3.