The practice of having more than one wife at one time. Although not explicitly forbidden in Scripture as a general practice, it is presented as problematic and monogamy is the clearly preferred option.
Monogamy is God's intention for marriage
Genesis 2:24 See also Jeremiah 2:2; Hosea 2:19–20; Ephesians 5:31
For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.
Early examples of polygamy
Genesis 4:19 See also Genesis 26:34, Genesis 28:9, Genesis 29:28
And Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah.
Reasons for the practice of polygamy
Sealing foreign treaties
1 Kings 3:1 See also 1 Kings 16:31
Later, Solomon formed an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt by marrying his daughter. Solomon brought her to the City of David until he had finished building his palace and the house of the LORD, as well as the wall around Jerusalem.
Producing offspring
Genesis 16:1–3; 2 Chronicles 13:21 A large family, and especially numerous progeny, was regarded as a sign of divine blessing. See also Genesis 30:3–5, Genesis 30:9; Judges 8:30; 2 Samuel 3:1–5; 1 Chronicles 7:4; 2 Chronicles 11:23, 2 Chronicles 24:2–3
Now Abram’s wife Sarai had borne him no children, but she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “Look now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Please go to my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So after he had lived in Canaan for ten years, his wife Sarai took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to Abram to be his wife.
But Abijah grew strong, married fourteen wives, and became the father of twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.
Problems associated with polygamy
Being led away from God
Deuteronomy 17:17 It was common for kings to cement foreign alliances by marriage. Israel's king is warned against the practice; 1 Kings 11:1–8 See also Nehemiah 13:25–26; Malachi 2:11
He must not take many wives for himself, lest his heart go astray. He must not accumulate for himself large amounts of silver and gold.
King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh — women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women. These women were from the nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, for surely they will turn your hearts after their gods.” Yet Solomon clung to these women in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines — and his wives turned his heart away. For when Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the LORD his God, as his father David had been. Solomon followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; unlike his father David, he did not follow the LORD completely. At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
Conflicts within families
Genesis 29:30, Genesis 30:1; Deuteronomy 21:15–17 See also Genesis 16:4–6 Sarah and Hagar; 1 Samuel 1:4–7 Hannah and Peninnah; 2 Chronicles 11:21–22; 1 Kings 1:11–13 the conflict over the succession to David's throne
Jacob slept with Rachel as well, and indeed, he loved Rachel more than Leah. So he worked for Laban another seven years.
When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.
If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other unloved, and both bear him sons, but the unloved wife has the firstborn son, when that man assigns his inheritance to his sons he must not appoint the son of the beloved wife as the firstborn over the son of the unloved wife. Instead, he must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of his unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of all that he has. For that son is the firstfruits of his father’s strength; the right of the firstborn belongs to him.
Further examples of polygamy
2 Samuel 5:13 parallel 1 Chronicles 14:3 See also 1 Samuel 25:40–43; 2 Samuel 12:8–9; 1 Kings 20:5 Ahab; 2 Kings 24:15 Jehoiachin; 1 Chronicles 4:5 Ashhur; Daniel 5:2 Belshazzar
After he had arrived from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.
Restrictions on polygamous relationships
Genesis 31:50; Exodus 21:10; Leviticus 18:18
Polygamy forbidden
1 Corinthians 7:2; 1 Timothy 3:2 Polygamy is expressly forbidden for church leaders.
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.