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However, when the question of a man being married is spoken of in the New Testament, we always have a wife not wives spoken of. Paul says: "Have we not a right to take round a sister [as] wife, as also the other apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas ? (1 Corinthians 9:5) Paul remained unmarried (1 Corinthians 7:8), but there is no proof that he had not married as a young man. Some would say that it is extremely unlikely that he had never been married. |
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Christ and the apostles do not condemn what was done in days gone by, but it is clear they considered one wife adequate (1 Corinthians 7:2) and such a single link represented the relationship of Christ and the assembly (Ephesians 5:22-33). Under the law of Moses the High priest had to take a wife (not wives) in her virginity (Leviticus 21:13/14). This was the ideal, and probably typified Christ who has had the assembly espoused to him as a chaste virgin (2 Corinthians 11:2). Multiple marriages come short of the divine ideal; we may say I think of "the glory of God". There are multiple marriages in some countries today; the number probably being determined by what the husband can afford. If a man with multiple wives accepts Christ and comes amongst God's people there is no injunction requiring him to put away any of his wives. However, one would gather from Titus 1:6 that such an one would not be eligible to be an elder. |
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The passage in 1 Corinthians 7:1/2 cannot be used to prove that no Christian can have more than one wife. It is not a command to do or not to do anything. The wording is as follows: "But concerning the things of which ye have written [to me]: [It is] good for a man not to touch a woman; but on account of fornications, let each have his own wife, and each [woman] have her own husband". What the apostle is giving is advice. It is not a command to marry nor a specific command not to have more than one wife. Only one wife is necessary so that Paul does not say let each have his own wives. The use of such a passage to condemn polygamy outright would suggest that the one quoting it is doing so because he has found it impossible to find anything more specific in Scripture to condemn the practice. |
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There are, of course, reasons that can be advanced to show that polygamy is not ideal. If one man has several wives, for instance, it may mean that there are not enough maidens left to provide wives for every other man. Further, where a man has two wives they may not get on well together and friction may result. See for instance the cases of Sarah and Hagar (Genesis 16:1-6; 21:8-21), Leah and Rachel (Genesis 30:1/2 & 14-21) and Hannah and Peninnah (1 Samuel 1:1-18). |
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For having only one wife at a time we have the example of the apostles referred to above and the legal prohibition in the Western world against having more than one wife at a time. A Christian seeking to do what the scriptural evidence would show is pleasing to the Lord would take full account of these reasons for not taking another wife while his first wife lives. However, where a person becomes a Christian while already having more than one wife there would be no real basis for excluding him from Christian fellowship. |
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The question may arise as to what should be done if a wife, say, under wartime conditions is told that her husband has died and then marries again. Subsequently her first husband turns up. Who then is her husband ? Whatever the law of the land may say, Scripture would appear to support the view that the first husband has the prior claim. The second marriage is invalid though entered into innocently. See for instance 1 Samuel 25:44 and 2 Samuel 3:12-16 where we have the case of Michal, Saul's daughter, David's wife, who had been given by Saul to another. David had the prior claim and Michal was restored to him. In Genesis 12 we have Abraham saying his wife was his sister so that Pharaoh took her as his wife. God intervened, and I believe we should count upon him not to allow us to get into a situation such as Abraham got himself into by not telling the whole truth about his relationship to Sarah. A similar situation arose with Abimelech in Genesis 20 and again God intervened to stop |
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Sarah becoming the wife of another whilst married to Abraham. See also Genesis 26:7-11 where we have a similar situation where Isaac and Rebecca are concerned. God came in for Isaac as he had for Abraham, though in a different way. God is not shut up to one way of doing things. |
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August 1999 |
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