Betroth

bē̇ -troth ´, bē̇ -trōth ´ ( ארשׂ , 'āras ): On betrothal as a social custom see Marriage . Hosea, in his great parable of the prodigal wife, surpassed only by a greater Teacher's parable of the Prodigal Son, uses betrothal as the symbol of Yahweh's pledge of His love and favor to penitent Israel ( Hosea 2:19 , Hosea 2:20 ). In Exodus 21:8 , Exodus 21:9 the Revised Version (British and American) renders "espouse" for the "betroth" of the King James Version, the context implying the actual marriage relation.