They acknowledge God as the Creator of mankind, joy, bride and groom. They also praise God for having created man in His image, and for giving him the ability to reproduce that image. The first blessing is recited over the second cup of wine as a sign of rejoicing. The second thanks God for creating the world and at the same time it honors those assembled at the wedding. The third and fourth acknowledge God's physical and spiritual creation of mankind. These blessings are recited at weddings, since it is only then that the couple begins life as complete human beings. In the fifth, we pray for the restoration of Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple, the edifice which so expressed God's special relationship to the Jewish people that the memory of its destruction rises above even our highest joys. The sixth expresses the hope that the bride and groom grow in their love for each other, focusing their love as exclusively as Adam and Eve, when there was no one else in the world. In the seventh blessing, we pray for the time when Moshiach will come to redeem us from exile so that peace and tranquility will reign over the world.
The concluding portion of the marriage ceremony is the seven blessings. Several different people are called upon to recite these blessings in the presence of a quorum of at least ten men, because of the communal emphasis of the blessings. The blessings are also recited over a full cup of wine.
