Polygamy in the Old Testament

Dale · Oct 5, 2020

Can Christians make sense out of polygamy in the Old Testament?

Who is the first man with two wives mentioned in the Bible? This happens quite early, in Genesis 4, but it doesn't say much for polygamy. The first man with two wives in Genesis is Lamech.

Lamech is a descendant of Cain.

The line is Cain --> Enoch --> Irad --> Mehujael --> Methushael --> Lamech.

19 Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times.”
Genesis 4:19-24 NIV

Cain is the first murderer, since he murdered his brother Abel. God put a curse on Cain for that deed.

10 And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
Genesis 4:10-12 NIV

Lamech, a descendant of Cain, is the first to take two wives, and also an unrepentant murderer.

This doesn't say much for polygamy.

Arc F1 · Oct 5, 2020

Dale said:
Can Christians make sense out of polygamy in the Old Testament?

Who is the first man with two wives mentioned in the Bible? This happens quite early, in Genesis 4, but it doesn't say much for polygamy. The first man with two wives in Genesis is Lamech.

Lamech is a descendant of Cain.

The line is Cain --> Enoch --> Irad --> Mehujael --> Methushael --> Lamech.

19 Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times.”
Genesis 4:19-24 NIV

Cain is the first murderer, since he murdered his brother Abel. God put a curse on Cain for that deed.

10 And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
Genesis 4:10-12 NIV

Lamech, a descendant of Cain, is the first to take two wives, and also an unrepentant murderer.

This doesn't say much for polygamy.

Marriage is a sacred vow between a man and woman, not a man and women.

Pavel Mosko · Oct 5, 2020

Dale said:
Can Christians make sense out of polygamy in the Old Testament?

Polygamy came with the Fall and was part of of the culture of the near East. It was tolerated but never really advocated. If you look at the Bible especially when it comes to that issue, much of family problems you see in the Bible comes directly or indirectly from it, especially when it came to jealousy, quarrels etc.

Most Jews however could not really afford to do it, because of paying for all the kids sired from having the extra wives and birth control was not to common and not really part of the culture... But the practice for those that could afford it brought instability David and Solomon being prime examples where not only their family was affected but the nation was affected since it brought things like civil war, idolatry etc.

Christianity around the time of the Apostolic Fathers, the age following the death of the original apostles essentially got rid of it ;because, bishops of the Church recognized that the scriptural standards given for ministers of the gospel being married to "one wife" were generally good for your average Christian and the Church in general.

Pathfinder627 · Oct 5, 2020

Dale said:
Can Christians make sense out of polygamy in the Old Testament?

Who is the first man with two wives mentioned in the Bible? This happens quite early, in Genesis 4, but it doesn't say much for polygamy. The first man with two wives in Genesis is Lamech.

Lamech is a descendant of Cain.

The line is Cain --> Enoch --> Irad --> Mehujael --> Methushael --> Lamech.

19 Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments and pipes. 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times.”
Genesis 4:19-24 NIV

Cain is the first murderer, since he murdered his brother Abel. God put a curse on Cain for that deed.

10 And the Lord said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.”
Genesis 4:10-12 NIV

Lamech, a descendant of Cain, is the first to take two wives, and also an unrepentant murderer.

This doesn't say much for polygamy.

The Bible is honest in displaying a lot of flaws of people. Or rather, it just deals with life on earth in all of it's facets. But it never explicitly promotes something like polygamy in the Torah. And in Eden, monogamy is the original model. In fact, as the other poster pointed out, polygamy is associated in a narrative that contained strife or calamity in one way or another.

Dale · Oct 6, 2020

The Jewish Encyclopedia finds no evidence of any OT prophet having two or more wives. The prophets seem to be monogamous.

"There is no Biblical evidence that any of the Prophets lived in polygamy. Monogamous marriage was used by them as a symbol of the union of God with Israel, while polygamy was compared to polytheism or idolatrous worship ..."

In other words, God never called a man with two or more wives to be a prophet.

We know what the New Testament says about marriage for Bishops and deacons.

2 Now a bishop must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, dignified, hospitable, an apt teacher, 3 no drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money.
1 Timothy 3:2-3 RSV

12 Let deacons be the husband of one wife, and let them manage their children and their households well ...
1 Timothy 3:12 RSV

Link
POLYGAMY - JewishEncyclopedia.com

tturt · Oct 6, 2020

God's marriage design. He made Eve and brought her to Adam as his help meet (Gen 2).

With the exception of David, the examples of polygamy in Scripture were not God's idea.nor with His stamp of approval.

Dale · Oct 7, 2020

tturt said:
God's marriage design. He made Eve and brought her to Adam as his help meet (Gen 2).

With the exception of David, the examples of polygamy in Scripture were not God's idea.nor with His stamp of approval.

Tturt: "God's marriage design. He made Eve and brought her to Adam as his help meet (Gen 2)."

This is certainly true.

Dale · Oct 7, 2020

tturt said:
God's marriage design. He made Eve and brought her to Adam as his help meet (Gen 2).

With the exception of David, the examples of polygamy in Scripture were not God's idea.nor with His stamp of approval.

Did polygamy work for King David and his wives?

King David's desire to add Bathsheba to his collection of wives led to his greatest sin.

The following series of events happened when David's son, Absalom proclaimed himself King in Hebron with the intent to overthrow and replace his father. You might recall that David first became King in Hebron.

With most of Israel's fighting men on the side of Absalom, David flees Jerusalem.

16 The king set out, with his entire household following him; but he left ten concubines to take care of the palace.
II Samuel 15: 16 NIV

20 Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give us your advice. What should we do?”
21 Ahithophel answered, “Sleep with your father’s concubines whom he left to take care of the palace. Then all Israel will hear that you have made yourself obnoxious to your father, and the hands of everyone with you will be more resolute.” 22 So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
II Samuel 16:20-22 NIV

The former wise counselor Ahithophel treats David's concubines as property. He advises Absalom to treat them as property inherited from his soon-to-be-deceased father, King David. Absalom takes this advice and sleeps with his father's concubines.

Against all odds, the revolution fails. Absalom winds up dead. The former wise counselor Ahithophel goes home and commits suicide.

23 When Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He put his house in order and then hanged himself. So he died and was buried in his father’s tomb.
II Samuel 17:23 NIV

It doesn't turn out well for David's ten concubines either, although David holds no grudge against them.

3 When David returned to his palace in Jerusalem, he took the ten concubines he had left to take care of the palace and put them in a house under guard. He provided for them but had no sexual relations with them. They were kept in confinement till the day of their death, living as widows.
II Samuel 20:3 NIV

Polygamy and concubinage always results in women being treated as property.

tturt · Oct 7, 2020

Oh no I didn't mean to imply that it worked for David. Saying polygamy was man's idea except one Scripture that might mean it was OK with God according to some. "And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things." II Sam 12:8

Read several explanations and I agree with - God wanted David to only protect and provide for them.

Dale · Oct 9, 2020

tturt said:
Oh no I didn't mean to imply that it worked for David. Saying polygamy was man's idea except one Scripture that might mean it was OK with God according to some. "And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things." II Sam 12:8

Read several explanations and I agree with - God wanted David to only protect and provide for them.

I wasn't arguing with you. I just decided to expand on my earlier comments.

Dale · Oct 9, 2020

King David's desire to add Bathsheba to his collection of wives led to his greatest sin.

Solomon's multiple wives, including foreign ones, proved disastrous for Israel. Marrying foreign princesses may have helped keep the peace but at the price of building pagan temples in Jerusalem, served by pagan priests. Many of Solomon's wives did not share Solomon's religion and letting them worship the same gods and goddesses they had grown up with was part of the deal.

When we look at the kings after Solomon, we see a vastly increased influence of paganism, with even the kings of Israel serving pagan, foreign, gods.

tturt · Oct 9, 2020

What is your perspective of that II Sam 12:8 Scripture?

Dale · Oct 9, 2020

tturt said:
What is your perspective of that II Sam 12:8 Scripture?

7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9 Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’
II Samuel 12:7-10 NIV

That verse is where Nathan is chastising David for the Bathsheba affair. I'm not aware of any other verse that says that David inherited Saul's wives or concubines when he became king.

The point that Nathan is making is that David should have stopped looking for more wives when he was ahead.

Polygamy in the Old Testament

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