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NASB | Deuteronomy 7:3 "Furthermore, you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor shall you take their daughters for your sons. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Deuteronomy 7:3 "You shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughter to his son, nor shall you take his daughter for your son; |
Subject: Wife or wives? |
Bible Note: Greetings SBGTF! My name is "Nolan" and not "Nick".. :) Yes, Titus 1:6, 1 Timothy 3:16 and Deuteronomy 17:17 are stated with the 'overtones' of leadership. However, the Bible gives us a clear message about polygamy. Is polygamy permissible in light of what David and Solomon did? (or for anyone, for that matter?) Absolutely not! In the Old Testament, we read that David (1 Sam. 25:39-44) and Solomon (1 Kings 11:1-3) had many wives. However, God forbade polygamy (Lev. 18:18) when He gave the law to Moses and the Israelites. In Deut. 17:17, we read that a king 'shall not multiply wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away' which foretells Solomon's ultimate undoing (1 Kings 11:4). David's misery came about from the children of his many wives (2 Samuel)- one raped their sister, two others sought to take the kingdom from their father's grasp- further 'punishing' David for his many wives. In the garden of Eden, God gave to Adam one wife and not several, and the one man and one woman would join together and become 'one flesh' (Gen. 2:21-25). This is a relationship that is exclusive between one man and one woman, not shared between one man and several women. So God does not look favorably on polygamy nor did He ever endorse it! In the New Testament, we read in Titus 1:6 and 1 Timothy 3:2 that a man should be the husband of but 'one wife'. So God remained steadfast against polygamy in the New Testament as He does today. Scripture does not give us room to interpret this any differently. It is clear that God intends marriage to be between one man and one woman, since marriage itself is a reflection of God's relationship to His church, whom He will rejoice over (Isaiah 62:5). Will God have many brides? Absolutely not! Scripture is clear that God will be married to His one and only bride, the church. And the church is the only bride of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2, Revelation 19:7, 22:17). In this way, we can see that polygamy is soundly denounced by Scripture and that God does not look favorably upon it. As far as Leviticus 18:18 is concerned, this clearly states, "sisters", but it is not as confusing as you think. A sister could be described as a member of the wife's own family or any other woman, since the focus here is to 'uncover her nakedness' rather than the relationship that the two (or more) women share. To 'uncover a woman's nakedness' is a serious offense that violates the sanctity of the marriage covenant itself! In Genesis 9:21-27, Noah even condemned one of his own sons (Ham) for looking upon 'his nakedness' (whether this means his own or his wife's) and we see the consequences for this serious act, which is done in violation of God's will, in the curse of the Canaanites, which where Ham's descendants. Clearly, the Bible denounces polygamy and soundly displays it as a 'sin' that is contrary to the leading of the Holy Spirit and will of God. If you say, "Well, the Lord seems rather lax on this issue based on the Bible", then you are totally forgetting the consequences that everyone who committed this sin eventually faced in their lives. Blessings, Nolan |