Is a contract valid if acceptance precedes the offer?

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A contract is invalid if the acceptance precedes the offer, according to one narration. This invalidity applies whether the offer uses past tense, such as one saying, "I married your daughter," followed by the other saying, "I married you to her," or if the offer uses the imperative form, such as one asking, "Marry your daughter to me," followed by the response, "I married her to you." The reasoning is that acceptance requires a prior offer to have meaning; thus, if acceptance occurs before the offer, it lacks its essential meaning and is void. Furthermore, if acceptance following an offer made in the imperative form is invalid when delayed, then acceptance preceding the offer must be invalid. Finally, if a legally prescribed phrase is used in reverse order, such as someone saying, "I accept this marriage," and the guardian responding, "I married my daughter to you," the contract is invalid, making it more certain that if non-prescribed phrasing is used first, it is invalid.