Does the Bible encourage Polygamy?
Genesis 2.24
For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh
Genesis 4.19
Lamech took to himself two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other, Zillah.
“The attempt to improve on God’s marriage ordinance (Genesis 2.24) sets a disastrous precedent, on which the rest of Genesis is comment enough; and the immediate conversion of metal-working to weapon-making is equally ominous.”
// Derek Kidner, Theologian
Exodus 20.14
You shall not commit adultery.
Deuteronomy 17.17
He shall not multiply wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away; nor shall he greatly increase silver and gold for himself.
1 Timothy 3.2, 12
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, Deacons must be husbands of only one wife, and good managers of their children and their own households.
Titus 1.6
Namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion.
“It is possible that David’s marriages to Ahinoam and Abigail were politically motivated. These were both prominent women from the surrounding countryside. Their presence helps David make the transition from ally in a foreign land to candidate for the throne. It is possible even that Ahinoam was the first wife of Saul, so that David’s marriage to her was tantamount to a claim to the throne.”
// Bill Arnold, Theologian
Messy Spirituality
There is nothing wrong with the spirituality of monks but what about the rest of us? Who live in the city, have a wife or husband, three children and broken washing machine? Those of us who are working, single, have friends who make more money than we do? If there a spirituality for the rest of us who are not in a monastery? The answer is Yes! What landed Jesus on the cross was the preposterous idea that common, ordinary, broken, screwed-up people could be godly!
// Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality
Mark 2.17
And hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
“The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God.”
// C.S. Lewis, Philosopher
Doers of the Word, Not just Hearers
David inquires of the Lord and having heard him and understanding his will he obeys.
// Bill Arnold, Theologian
James 1:22-25
But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.
Matthew 28.18-20
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
