The Bedeken takes place before the ceremony starts. Stemming from the Bible story of Jacob marrying the wrong woman due to her veil, this tradition avoids such trickery for any other groom-to-be. During the Bedeken, the groom covers his bride-to-be’s face with a veil. This signifies his love for not just her outward beauty, but also her beauty within. A ketubah is a wedding contract that, traditionally, both the bride and groom sign before the wedding ceremony. In ancient times, a ketubah was a legally binding document, signed by witnesses, describing a groom’s “acquiring” of a bride and stating the amount that the groom would have to pay the bride in case of divorce.