There were no marriage licenses in Bible times. You were married in the eyes of God.
There was, at the time of Jesus, what was called the marriage covenant, whether a licence or covenant they are both based in law.
Below is a post I included in another thread some time ago, you may find it interesting.
What was marriage in at the time of Jesus.
Is what we do today in the western world right? No!
Now a days, people have a marriage ceremony, then reception, then go on honeymoon, Was it like that at the time of Jesus in Galilee, No!
We cannot say, well we are a different culture, this is what we do today, or Christian's do it this way, and Jews did it their way.
When we look at the marriage, at Canaan in Galilee, at the time of Jesus, we see the massive differences.
1 - The groom approaches his hopeful bride.
2 - He offers her wine as a way of saying, will you marry me, if she accepts they say their vows in public.
It was common for them to do this near the gates of the city because this was where the law makers would be.
Once she accepted the wine he offered, a covenant was made and they pronounced their vows to each other,
at that point they were legally married, they then started the betrothal period; a little like the engagement today except they were then separated and would not meet with each other again for approximately 12 months. But meanwhile they were considered to be legally married from making of the Covenant.
During the 12 month, approximately, the bride would returned home and she would purchased the material for her dress, and make it or have it made, the same applies also for her ladies in waiting, we call bridesmaids. Meanwhile the groom, returned to his father's house, he started to prepare a room there for him and his wife. But they would not see each other again until, the grooms father said, 'go get your bride.'
She, the bride, had to be ready and waiting at all times, lamps trimmed, oil in the lamps and ready, she does not know the day of hour her groom will return for her. The groom prepares the place for his bride; he too has to wait; only his father can say when the groom can 'go get his bride'.
When the father says 'son go get your bride' the shofar is sounded, the trumpet call, and at that point he goes to get her, everyone comes out into the street and will see him, he goes and receives his bride unto himself. Then follows the wedding ceremony and wedding feast.
The Jewish wedding, in Galilee, is totally different to what we see today, and the couple never had sex until they were legally married, in the sight of God, when the Father said the time was right, not before.
The picture of a traditional wedding/marriage at the time of Jesus is a wonderful picture of how a wedding should be. As always, our Lord Jesus Christ, did what he always did, he took everyday things, here the wedding of a man and woman, and showed us heaven through them. It is important to note, the wedding at Canaan in Galilee was Jesus' first miracle, co-incidence, certain not, God-incidence certainly. This first miracle is the thread that leads to the last one, when we, the bride of Christ, the virgin church, the ekklesia, the born again from above believers, will be with our Lord and the Wedding Feast can begin. Jesus, the groom, is longing for his bride, the bride, the church is longing for her groom, but we meanwhile are to prepare ourselves, to be righteous in the sight of God, and wait patiently for the Father to say to Jesus, go get your bride.
Jesus showed us the example of the Wedding feast with the lamb through a wedding in Canaan in Galilee, which our Lord by example show us what a wedding is in the sight of God.
The groom offered his future bride some wine, at this point she accepted or rejected his invitation to marriage; this is God calling us to Jesus, to be born again, to be His Bride, the church, if we accept Jesus unconditionally the covenant between God and us was prepared through Jesus,
it happens the moment we accepted Jesus, as brother Curtis says, this is the ring on the finger.
Then comes the betrothal period which we are in now, the church, the bride, the ekklesia, the born again from above believers are preparing ourselves for our groom, for our Lord's coming. The groom went away for a while, to the Father's house in Heaven, He is creating a place for His bride, but He cannot return until the Father says so. Only the Father knows the day and the hour. Like so much in scripture, one item is an image of what is to come, marriage and the wedding feast is one also. Jesus was the master of revelations, his parables give us an insight of heaven, in this first miracle at Canaan in Galilee, we hear the words of Mary, 'do whatever he tells you', or the miracle of the changing of water into 'the best wine', but under the sackcloth of this story is wrapped another incredible parable, I stand in awe praising God.
We are taught what a marriage was like, what a marriage should be like, yet we don't see it in the world we live, weddings today are sex first, ceremony later, which so often as to be as quick as possible as the couple cannot wait to get on honeymoon. Wedding ceremony's have become a means for yet another party and commercial gain for many.
But it wasn't like that, it was not intended to be like that, it wasn't like it at the time of Jesus, and what happened at the time of Jesus was a picture of a true wedding between our Lord and His Church, between the groom, the bride and the father of the groom. The pattern was set for us to learn from, the time line was set for the wedding feast, we are to be virgin brides, preparing for the grooms return, he is coming, our lights must always be trimmed and filled with oil, we are to be ready any hour, any minute, it only needs one step to be fulfilled... the Father saying, 'Son go get your bride'.
Today
1 - The groom approaches his hopeful bride.
2 - He offers her wine (a ring) and asks will you marry me, if she accepts they are betrothed, engaged, promised to each other.
3 - It is not until the wedding ceremony that the covenant is signed, at that point, making the wedding official.
They should not, according to God's Word, have sex before marriage, it is Sin.
Marriage was created by God, from the beginning, it is a worthy study.
