The Greek ekgamizō means to give in marriage (specifically of a father giving a daughter). Jesus uses it in Matthew 24:38 to describe the days before the flood — and therefore the days before his return: 'For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage (ekgamizontes), up to the day Noah entered the ark.' Normal life continued until the moment of judgment.
The ekgamizō saying of Matthew 24:38 is not a condemnation of marriage or eating and drinking — these are normal human activities. The warning is about the normalcy itself becoming a spiritual anesthetic. People were so absorbed in ekgamizō — the ordinary institution of family formation — that they missed the approaching flood. The same will be true before Christ's return. The antidote is not to stop marrying but to 'keep watch' (Matthew 24:42) — to live fully in the present while remaining watchful for the eternal. The Bridegroom's arrival will interrupt the wedding plans of those not waiting for him.