What About Polygamy?

The next question in our Now That’s a Good Question series seems simple, Why did God allow polygamy in the Old Testament? Polygamy is the practice of having more than one spouse (husband or wife) at a time. Most of the time, it involves one man having multiple, simultaneous wives.

The practice of polygamy and bigamy has been outlawed in the United States since Congress put pressure on the only entity within our borders that openly practiced polygamy - the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS/Mormons). Through various acts Congress pressured the LDS church to officially outlaw the practice in 1890. As of 2008, however, there are no U.S. federal laws prohibiting polygamy on the books. The U.S. federal government merely considers polygamy “against public policy”. However, there are laws forbidding polygamy in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam.

Through television programs such as Big Love (HBO: 2006-2011), Sister Wives (TLC: 2010-present), Polygamy USA (Nat’l. Geographic: 2013), My Five Wives (TLC: 2013-present), and a variety of others, polygamy in the United States has gained some semblance of popularity among some; even if nothing more than a weak morbid curiosity.

The issues underlying this question, however, are more complex than would appear on the surface. Public fascination is only a surface issue when it comes to Scripture’s truth and trustworthiness. Opponents of the veracity of Scripture will raise the polygamy question; pointing out that on the one hand God endorsed the practice (e.g. Deut. 21:15-17; 25:5-10), while on the other hand it is forbidden for Israelite kings (Deut. 17:17). How can God simultaneously endorse and forbid the same practice? Scripture must be contradictory and untrustworthy, or God is a fickle, untrustworthy God. Either way, the opponents of God and His truth use this issue to impugn God’s character and cast aspersions on the truth of the Bible.

Let’s take a few minutes to ferret out the truth behind the issues.

God’s Standard for Marriage

When God created Adam, He gave to the first man a wife, Eve (Gen. 2:18-25). God did not create for Adam more than one wife, but only one. When studying Scripture, there is a hermeneutical principle known as the Law of First Mention. The Law of First Mention states that the first time something is mentioned in the Bible often provides the foundational understanding of that thing. In keeping with the Law of First Mention, if God only provided one wife for Adam, then God intended for men to only have one wife (and vice versa – only one husband per woman). Jesus Himself relied on the Law of First Mention when he said, "But at the beginning of creation God 'made them male and female. For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So, they are no longer two, but one flesh” (Mark 10:6-8). Notice that Jesus uses the singular tense when referring to “a man” and “a woman” and explicitly states that two individuals are to become one flesh not three, four, or more.

When Paul gave the expectations for Church leadership in the office of elder, he clearly stated that elders were to be monogamous (1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6). Whether this expectation was directly aimed at polygamy is uncertain. What is certain is that a polygamist could never be considered a “one woman man” as Paul directed. Some might object that this expectation is only for elders. However, it should rightly be held that Paul’s expectation on elders is merely an extension of God’s expectations on all believers. Ephesians 5:22:33 speaks specifically of the marital relationship. In this treatment of marriage, Paul speaks in the singular about spouses – “the husband…the wife” – not in the plural. If polygamy were normative, Paul’s instructions would be inaccurate. Furthermore, the illustration within marriage of relationship of Christ and the Church is completely destroyed if polygamy is normative in God’s plan for marriage. Again, some may object that in a similar passage on marriage (Col. 3:18-19), Paul uses the plural – “husbands / wives” – so perhaps polygamy is permissible in God’s standard for marriage. However, the context of the Colossians passage makes it clear that Paul is speaking collectively of all husbands and wives in the Colossian churches; not that he is allowing for or recognizing polygamous marriages.

There is no question that God’s original intent and ideal for marriage is monogamy. It stands to reason, then, that if monogamy is God’s ideal, then monogamy in marriage would be best blessed by God because it is within His prescribed boundaries.

The Old Testament Problem

The New Testament, frankly, does not address the problem of polygamy head-on. The polygamy problem is foremost an Old Testament problem. The first mention in the Genesis account of polygamy does not occur until the life of Lamech (Gen. 4:19-23). Lamech was the great-great-great grandson of Cain who had been cursed by God for killing his brother Abel. Now, because of sin, Lamech who is six generations removed from Adam is the first to practice polygamy. Nowhere prior to Lamech does the Bible say that polygamy was practiced; nor does it say that it wasn’t.

The problem gets worse the further we read. Several men of renown, and not a few righteous men, in the Old Testament were polygamous - Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon (just to name a few). Deuteronomy 17:17 specifically states that Israelite kings were not to amass for themselves wives (among other things). It has been rightly pointed out by many commentators that this refers to the kings using marriages to establish political alliances, as in the case of Jehoram (2 Kgs. 8:18, 25-26). Never does the Old Testament say that a polygamous man may not be king. In fact, nowhere in the Old Testament does God outlaw polygamy or even call it sin.

The Solution

Where God treats the subject of polygamy directly in the Old Testament, it is with laws regulating the treatment of wives and their children in polygamous marriages (Deut. 21:15-17). Does this mean that God approves – even sanctions – polygamy?

There is a thought that God allowed polygamy for several reasons when the world was young. There is some research that suggests that there are slightly more male babies than female, and that due to women having longer lifespans than men, there have always been more women in the world. Current statistics demonstrate that approximately 50.5% of the world’s population is female. If that statistic holds true in ancient times, and multiplied by millions of people, there would be tens of thousands more women than men. Additionally, war in ancient times was particularly brutal and mortality rates were high in battle. This would increase the ratio of women to men as women did not typically engage in battle directly. Ancient societies were largely patriarchal; making it nearly impossible for unmarried women to provide for themselves. Women were often uneducated and untrained. They relied on fathers, brothers, and husbands for provision and protection. Unmarried women either entered slavery or prostitution to provide for themselves.

This thought pattern suggests that God allowed polygamy to protect and provide for women who could not otherwise find a husband. A man would marry multiple women; serving as their provider and protector. While not ideal, polygamous relationships were preferable to the alternative: prostitution, slavery, or death. Additionally, proponents of this line of reasoning suggest that since the world was young, and there were far more women than men anyway, that God allowed polygamy to expedite His mandate to “be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it” (Gen. 9:7). Men are capable of impregnating multiple women at the same time; causing humanity to grow much faster than if every monogamous marriage produced one child annually.

While such a line of reasoning seems to make sense, it doesn’t line up with what we have already said about God’s ideal intent for marriage. It suggests that God established His ideal, but compromised it to expedite refilling the earth after His original plan failed. No, the answer to the polygamy question is simpler than this.

Compare polygamy with another topic in Scripture: divorce. God’s ideal for marriage is that one man marries one woman and that they remain faithfully married until one of them dies. However, God prescribed several regulations regarding the practice of divorce (e.g. Deut. 22:19, 29; 24:1, 3). Does this mean that God approved of divorce? Jesus said, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning” (Matt. 19:8). God allowed Moses to prescribe laws regarding divorce to keep Israel from allowing the practice to run amuck and to keep the sinfulness of man in check. The presence of regulations cannot be considered condoning on God’s part. Jesus specifically states that the regulations regarding divorce were established because Israel’s hearts were hard.

The same could be said of polygamy. Polygamy is a result of sin. Because of sin, mankind twisted and perverted God’s original ideal for marriage. God’s regulation of polygamy in the Mosaic code is clearly to protect the wives and children of polygamous marriages. This cannot be inferred to be condoning the practice; merely regulating it to keep man’s sinfulness in check. We must remember that even the great saints of old were sinful human beings like we are. Polygamy was part of many cultures in ancient times and polygamous marriages occurred for varied reasons. God permitted the sinful practice, but regulated it to keep its debilitating results from running amuck. This is not out of line in God’s character. Paul said that, “In the past God overlooked such ignorance…” (Acts 17:30). It is God’s grace at work for Him to allow polygamy and regulate it to protect the women and children involved. God “overlooked” polygamy, even among His righteous men, because of His grace.

Polygamy Today

I want to take the matter of polygamy’s permissibility to the next level and answer the question of whether the practice is permissible today.

Before looking at whether polygamy if allowable by God today, it must be pointed out that even when it was “overlooked” by God (Acts 17:30), it was still sin, and all sin comes with consequences (Gal. 6:7). The Biblical truth is that monogamy is God’s standard and intent for marriage; not polygamy. Whenever man violates God’s intent, the consequences are never beneficial. Take, for instance, the Bible’s serial polygamist, Solomon. This king amassed 700 wives and 300 concubines. The unrest, unhappiness, and spiritual degradation that resulted in Solomon’s life can be found in some detail in 1 Kings 9:6-9 and 11:1-11. I believe Solomon’s polygamist problems are best summarized in 1 Kings 11:4, “As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.” Elkanah, the father of the great prophet-priest Samuel, had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. His polygamy caused unrest and unhappiness in his home because his wives became rivals to one another (1 Sam. 1:6-7). Regress in the biblical timeline to the third of Israel’s patriarchs and national namesake, Jacob (a.k.a. Israel). He too was a polygamist who married sisters. Sure, he was tricked into marrying Leah when he really wanted Rachel, but he kept his marital vow and stayed married to Leah nonetheless. Being married to two sisters surely did not make for a harmonious home life for Jacob and put undue stress on his marriage with Rachel. Genesis 30:1 states, “When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So, she said to Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!" These are but a few biblical examples that demonstrate the consequences of violating God’s standard, even for Godly men and women.

Turn to modern polygamists on television and you’ll find supporting evidence for the biblical trends cited above. TLC’s celebrated Brown family is rife with in-fighting, sister-wife jealousy, and domestic problems. They object; stating that their problems are no different than those of monogamous families. This may be true, but in their case, it is multiplied by four wives to one husband. If polygamy was normative and beneficial, why would A&E run a program like Escaping Polygamy? The interviews with the wives who have left polygamous scenarios demonstrate the harm and, shall I say, less than ideal relationships these women were enduring.

We need to recognize that God knew what He was doing when He gave Adam one wife and laid out the ideal of a one man-one woman ratio in marriage. Marriage, since the Fall of mankind into sin, is difficult. Being able to meet the needs of one spouse is hard enough without multiplying it with more than one spouse. God’s standard for marriage is designed the way it is on purpose; He didn’t make a mistake.

With that said, let’s answer the question of whether or not it’s permissible today.

Attitudes toward polygamy in the United States are changing. In 2011, Kody Brown, patriarch of the Sister Wives show, along with his 4 sister-wives, filed suit challenging Utah’s anti-polygamy law. The district court ruled in the Brown’s favor in 2013, but was overturned on standing grounds in 2016 by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Brown family has appealed to the United States Supreme Court. What was once considered immoral in our shores is now open for possible acceptance and tacit approval by the courts; making it normative and accepted societally.

If God graciously allowed and regulated polygamy in the Old Testament, then it must be permissible today. Not so. Like the Law of First Mention, there is another hermeneutical law of import in this topic: The Law of Reiteration. The Law of Reiteration states that we can be sure of a thing continued validity from the Old Testament when it is reiterated in the New Testament. For example, God allowed and regulated divorce in the Old Testament and repeated and expanded upon His regulations in the New Testament (Matt. 5:31-32; 19:9; 1 Cor. 7:10-17). From this we can conclude that while divorce still violates God’s original intent for marriage – something Jesus reiterated repeatedly when addressing this topic – God still allows for and regulates divorce because of our sinfulness. Thus, divorce falls under the Law of Reiteration. No such claim can be made for polygamy. Nowhere does the New Testament address, much less reiterate, the topic of polygamy. Therefore, it is safe to say that since the practice of polygamy is not reiterated or regulated by God in the New Testament, but the standard of monogamy, as has already been demonstrated, is upheld, that polygamy is not permissible in this New Testament dispensation.