Related commentaries – Encouragement

Ruth meets Boaz – Ruth 2:1 – 2:13

The best man reads the wrong verse

A young couple, very much in love, were getting married in church. However, Sue the wife was very nervous about the big occasion and so the vicar chose one verse that he felt would be a great encouragement to them. The verse was 1 John 4:18 which says: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear”. Rather unwisely, the vicar asked the best man to read it out and to say that the vicar had felt that this would be a very encouraging verse for Sue and that he would be preaching on it later in the service. However, the best man was not a regular churchgoer. And so, he did not know the difference between John’s Gospel and the first letter of John. So, he introduced his reading by saying that the vicar felt this was a good verse for Sue. But he read John 4:18, which says “You have five husbands and the one that you now have is not your husband.” (Source Unknown).