The origin of Bigamy?

[Poetpeace]

Well, I watched a documentary about a man in America who had 4 wives. They all lived in the same home, raised each others children,loved the husband to pieces…and I was interested whether anyone knew whether there is historical belief/reason as to why this practice came along in the first place, or whether its just a case of human greed?

I mean, the bible always says that a man should love his wife. The word there being wife and not wives.

What other cultures practice this and why?

 

[Publisher]

Well, I watched a documentary about a man in America who had 4 wives. They all lived in the same home, raised each others children,loved the husband to pieces…and I was interested whether anyone knew whether there is historical belief/reason as to why this practice came along in the first place, or whether its just a case of human greed?

I mean, the bible always says that a man should love his wife. The word there being wife and not wives.

What other cultures practice this and why?

I would think it began with Adam…if one considers Adam an historical figure…followed by Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Solomon and a host of other biblical figures…all godly men from all accounts.

In the Law the Israelites were allowed to “keep the virgins for themselves” but kill the rest of the women under the command of God…

Bigamy/polygamy is rooted in a long history in many cultures…Semetic, East Indian, Celtic, Germanic, Arab…

Even though the Bible does say “wife”…it doesn’t forbid wives until we get to the NT.

“Why?” To increase the population…in many of these cultures, a woman without a husband ended up being a prostitute…especially if their first husband died without sons…the leverite Law commanded by God says if a man died without sons…the brother had to marry the wife of the dead brother and father children with her…whether he had wives or not was beside the point.

It appears that in the Hebrew Bible…God commanded multiple wives unders some circumstances…and if not wives…then “concubines” were allowed.

 

[jenkiedad]

Also, don’t forget that in earlier times, there was very high infant mortality as well as many women dying during childbirth. Modern medicine has changed that, but in those earlier times, if one wanted to build a family quickly (to help the family structure to survive), polygamy was often the best option.

In the OT, look at Jacob and his 12 sons (+ daughters) and how many mothers were involved.

 

[ConstantineTG]

Also, don’t forget that in earlier times, there was very high infant mortality as well as many women dying during childbirth. Modern medicine has changed that, but in those earlier times, if one wanted to build a family quickly (to help the family structure to survive), polygamy was often the best option.

In the OT, look at Jacob and his 12 sons (+ daughters) and how many mothers were involved.

Not to mention that Isaac isn’t really the only son of Abraham. But he is his only son by Sarah.

 

[Poetpeace]

Ah ok I understand now

So, if its in the bible, why do more people not take more than one wife nowadays?

 

[rinnie]

Ah ok I understand now

So, if its in the bible, why do more people not take more than one wife nowadays?

Because when Abrahan gave us the ten commandments from God he forbid us to do so.

You shall not commit adultery. That means ONE wife.

 

[Publisher]

Because when Abrahan gave us the ten commandments from God he forbid us to do so.

You shall not commit adultery. That means ONE wife.

Well…it wasn’t Abraham…it was Moses who gave us the 10 Commandments…they are recorded in different versions in the Pentatuch…yet even after the 10 ccommandments were given…multiple wives…even Moses…were still part of the religious leaderships lifestyle…so they must not have understood “You shall not commit adultery” to mean one wife…especially since the same writings command a man to take his brother’s widow as his wife whether he has a wife already or not and father a child with her. Since there is no record of a man with multiple wives coming under condemnation because of the “don’t commit adultery” commandment…it seems fairly clear…that the commandment wasn’t a “one wife” only commandment since God had commanded in Numbers the Israelites could “take the virgins for yourselves” after putting to death everyone else.

 

[valient_Lucy]

Because when Abrahan gave us the ten commandments from God he forbid us to do so.

You shall not commit adultery. That means ONE wife.

1 God did not give Abraham the 10 commandments. He gave them to Moses.

2 Centuries after Moses received the 10 commandments, the Israelites continued to practice polygamy. David had several wives, and the prophet Nathan tells David that those wives are gifts from God.

 

[valient_Lucy]

Well, I watched a documentary about a man in America who had 4 wives. They all lived in the same home, raised each others children,loved the husband to pieces…and I was interested whether anyone knew whether there is historical belief/reason as to why this practice came along in the first place, or whether its just a case of human greed?

I mean, the bible always says that a man should love his wife. The word there being wife and not wives.

What other cultures practice this and why?

Polygamy was/is practiced by virtually every society in human history, especially by the political elite. For kings and chiefs, they practiced it to ensure the stability of their reign. The more sons he had, the more likely that the kingship or chiefdom would pass to his children, rather than someone elses children. It was/is also practiced to cement alliances between societies. King Solomon in the Bible is said to have 700 wives, and most of them were foreign. When he forged peace with other nations, they would exchange wives as opposed to signing treaties.

Monogamy is largely a practice unique to Christian societies. There are a few other societies and cultures that eventually moved to monogamy, but not very many.

 

[Calgar]

Because when Abrahan gave us the ten commandments from God he forbid us to do so.

You shall not commit adultery. That means ONE wife.

Who is this Abrahan? lol

I think you’re talking about Moses.

And it’s not: “You will not commit adultery against your one wife.”

Jesus makes several references to being the husband of one wife though. So it seems pretty clear.

 

[valient_Lucy]

Ah ok I understand now

So, if its in the bible, why do more people not take more than one wife nowadays?

1 God allowed the Jews to practice polygamy because the Messiah had not yet been born. By increasing the Jewish population, the Jews were preparing for the birth of the Messiah. Now that Christ has come, polygamy is no longer tolerated.
2 Jesus restored marriage to its original form, where polygamy and divorce were nonexistant. So now polygamy and divorce are prohibited.
3 Marriage is now a sign of the union between Christ and the Church. Christ has one bride, so a man cannot have more than one bride.

Once societies began to convert to Christianity, the practice of polygamy died out by those societies. However, there are many societies all over the world where men have more than one wife. The president of South Africa has several wives, and the King of Swaziland (a small country in Africa) has at least 6. These tend to be societies where there are large populations of non-Christians.

It should be pointed out that most people today advocate monogamy because they feel that polygamy violates the dignity of women and it undermines society. However, that is not why ancient European societies adopted monogamy. They adopted monogamy because they converted to Christianity. Plain and simple.

 

[valient_Lucy]

Technically polygamy does exist in the United States. We call it serial monogamy.

 

[rinnie]

Well…it wasn’t Abraham…it was Moses who gave us the 10 Commandments…they are recorded in different versions in the Pentatuch…yet even after the 10 ccommandments were given…multiple wives…even Moses…were still part of the religious leaderships lifestyle…so they must not have understood “You shall not commit adultery” to mean one wife…especially since the same writings command a man to take his brother’s widow as his wife whether he has a wife already or not and father a child with her.

My bad, it was Moses. and I was thinking about Abraham at the time. but you have a good point. Yes Abraham did commit adultery. And looked what happened.

Abraham listened to his wife insteading of trusting God. Look how it backfired on him. Look how his wife began to hate the child. That is a good example how it does not work.

Did Abraham not quite understand the commandment? Maybe yes, maybe no? I can’t answer that. But God did not tell him to sleep with the other women his wife did.

It does not seem to me that he wanted to do this at all. He told his wife Your maid is in YOUR power. Then she abused the maid. This was nothing to do with God. Where in the bible did GOD tell Abraham to do this? Where did GOD tell Sarah to abuse the maid?

 

[valient_Lucy]

My bad, it was Moses. and I was thinking about Abraham at the time. but you have a good point. Yes Abraham did commit adultery. And looked what happened.

Abraham listened to his wife insteading of trusting God. Look how it backfired on him. Look how his wife began to hate the child. That is a good example how it does not work.

**Did Abraham not quite understand the commandment? Maybe yes, maybe no? I can’t answer that. But God did not tell him to sleep with the other women his wife did. **

It does not seem to me that he wanted to do this at all. He told his wife Your maid is in YOUR power. Then she abused the maid. This was nothing to do with God. Where in the bible did GOD tell Abraham to do this? Where did GOD tell Sarah to abuse the maid?

There was no commandment for Abraham to understand! The 10 commandments hadn’t yet been given by God to Moses. That would be 500 years in the future! Abraham didn’t know that he wasn’t supposed to commit adultery. He didn’t keep kosher either, because God hadn’t revealed kosher laws yet.

But you’re right, God did not tell Abraham to sleep with Hagar and father a child with her. That is true. But the Old Testament is fairly ambivalent about polygamy, and sometimes views multiple wives as a sign of God’s blessing.

It’s not until the New Testament that we begin to clearly see the idea that polygamy is a sin.

 

[Publisher]

My bad, it was Moses. and I was thinking about Abraham at the time. but you have a good point. Yes Abraham did commit adultery. And looked what happened.

Abraham listened to his wife insteading of trusting God. Look how it backfired on him. Look how his wife began to hate the child. That is a good example how it does not work.

Did Abraham not quite understand the commandment? Maybe yes, maybe no? I can’t answer that. But God did not tell him to sleep with the other women his wife did.

It does not seem to me that he wanted to do this at all. He told his wife Your maid is in YOUR power. Then she abused the maid. This was nothing to do with God. Where in the bible did GOD tell Abraham to do this? Where did GOD tell Sarah to abuse the maid?

I don’t think anyone said God told Abraham to take Hagar as his wife did they? Nor did they mention “God telling Sarah to abuse the maid”…not sure what your point is…from what I’ve read in this thread…the questions you posed about Abraham and Sarah weren’t an issue.

 

[valient_Lucy]

I don’t think anyone said God told Abraham to take Hagar as his wife did they? Nor did they mention “God telling Sarah to abuse the maid”…not sure what your point is…from what I’ve read in this thread…the questions you posed about Abraham and Sarah weren’t an issue.

I’m glad I’m not the only one confused by that post.

 

[rinnie]

There was no commandment for Abraham to understand! The 10 commandments hadn’t yet been given by God to Moses. That would be 500 years in the future! Abraham didn’t know that he wasn’t supposed to commit adultery. He didn’t keep kosher either, because God hadn’t revealed kosher laws yet.

But you’re right, God did not tell Abraham to sleep with Hagar and father a child with her. That is true. But the Old Testament is fairly ambivalent about polygamy, and sometimes views multiple wives as a sign of God’s blessing.

It’s not until the New Testament that we begin to clearly see the idea that polygamy is a sin.

Boy its my day to not think huh You are correct there was no commandment.

But here is the thing. Do you ever notice when we are pushed to do something we do not want to do there is anger when its wrong.

You can tell the anger in Abraham’s voice when he tell Sarah more or less this is YOUR mess you deal with it.

Abraham never said, nor even looked at the maid that way. At least no according to the word of God.

But God showed us it was wrong, simply by the way the whole thing played out. If God commanded this of Abraham and Sarah and A. obeyed God it would have not turned out so ugly.

But this is a good lesson early in the bible to show us it does not work. And it is not a command of God. or he would have commanded it.

But we know when it did come out, NOT to do it. So if you did not get the HINT fron Abraham the Commandment spelled it out point blank.

People will try to say Jesus didn;t say that, but they have alot so scripture to ignore.

This one for sure Matt 5:28 Jesus says if you even LOOK at a women with lust you have committed adultery. Now I don’t think that anyone would deny that Abram. did both. He not only looked at another women with lust he did indeed commit adultery both physically and emotionally.

In Deut. 5:18 its pretty clear. and Ex. 20:14

Now you said the Abraham did not know that he should not commit adultery. I cannot say I agree with you. Because we do not know Abrahams heart. But myself I believe he did know it was wrong. If not why was it not his Idea. And why did he not want to do it. From the teachings of Sacred Tradition it appears that Abraham did not want to do this.

 

[rinnie]

I don’t think anyone said God told Abraham to take Hagar as his wife did they? Nor did they mention “God telling Sarah to abuse the maid”…not sure what your point is…from what I’ve read in this thread…the questions you posed about Abraham and Sarah weren’t an issue.

Sure it is. Because he still had Sex with another women. Bigamy is about that also. Or are you saying that when a person has more then one wife he only has sex with the same one? Not from what I have been told.

Bigamy is still a form of Adultery. Unless again you can claim that when the person takes another wife he does not have sex with her.

 

[Publisher]

Sure it is. Because he still had Sex with another women. Bigamy is about that also. Or are you saying that when a person has more then one wife he only has sex with the same one? Not from what I have been told.

Bigamy is still a form of Adultery. Unless again you can claim that when the person takes another wife he does not have sex with her.

So when God commands a man to take his brother’s wife to father a child with her should his brother die without issue…is he commiting adultry? Polygamy was not forbidden…David and Solomon had wives…PLURAL…the scriptures say they were “gifts” from God…I don’t think we can read back NT teachings and say that men in the OT with multiple wives were committing adultry…since kings, prophets and priests had plural wives…and some of those were given and allowed by God…at least according to scripture…well…I couldn’t…but if you choose to…I’m ok with it.

 

[valient_Lucy]

Sure it is. Because he still had Sex with another women. Bigamy is about that also. Or are you saying that when a person has more then one wife he only has sex with the same one? Not from what I have been told.

Bigamy is still a form of Adultery. Unless again you can claim that when the person takes another wife he does not have sex with her.

Adultery is when a married man has sex with someone who is not his wife. If a man marries two wives, he is not commiting adultery, since both women are his wife. He is having sex with a woman who is his wife.

The point is it’s very difficult to look into the OT and expect to see Christian morality. After all, the Catholic Church teaches that divorce and remarriage are grave sins, but Moses gives instructions on how a man should proceed if he wants to divorce his wife and marry another wife. Moses doesn’t prohibit a man from divorcing his wife, he tells the man, “Give her a certificate of divorce and send her on her way.” Hence the shock of the Pharisees and the desciples when Jesus said that divorce is no longer permitted.

I’m not saying that either divorce or bigamy are allowed, but it’s very difficult to come to those conclusions by reading the OT.

“Thus says the Lord God of Israel: 'I annointed you king of Israel. I rescued you from the hand of Saul. I gave you your lords house and your lord’s wives for your own.” 2 Samuel vs 7-8. See? Wives. Plural. God is telling David that He gave David his multiple wives.

Once again, I’m not saying polygamy is right. **But polygamy, like divorce, were both tolerated by God during the OT, likely for the same reason( hardness of heart). **However, when Jesus spoke during his ministry, he eliminated these permissions.