Inner Betrothal to Christ

Neville's Inner Vision

See the verses as an invitation to a state of consciousness. The 'folly' Paul mentions is the ego's drama of separation; the 'godly jealousy' is the zeal of a mind determined not to share its beloved with any rival. When he says he has espoused you to one husband, he is naming an inner covenant by which your entire being is drawn to a single Life—Christ within. To present you as a 'chaste virgin' to Christ is to reveal the purity of consciousness that arises when you recognize the oneness already accomplished in I AM. In Neville terms, the inner atmosphere of awareness is what consecrates the self; outward rules pale beside the truth that there is one Life, one Lover, one Mind. The rival images—fear, doubt, idols—are thoughts you have mistaken for life. By assuming the truth of this inner union and feeling it as real, you become the bride in your awareness, and the outer world follows as expressions of this single allegiance.