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Needing Scriptures

TakeALeapOfFaith

TakeALeapOfFaith

New Member
Hello.
I am searching for Scriptures that are 'pro-polygamy' or can be used to show that it is indeed Biblical. I know I should know this, and I did have a list, but due to life situations- long story- no longer have access to my list and I'm struggling to recall with my memory. I thought there was a post on here with the Scriptures but can't seem to find that post either. So maybe I'm mistaken in that thought.
Reason I'm asking, I have been speaking to a young couple who are interested in polygamy, but the wife is not sure about it all, and I, having previously lived it, wanted to give them the Biblical research for them to grow, discuss and discover together. They are a Christian couple and so any words from wives, first, second or on, and husbands currently living Polygamy, I will pass in to them. Yes, I have given them the website and encouraged them to at least browse the posts, but unsure if they have.
Thank you and God Bless.
 
I think @The Revolting Man is referring to Genesis 20 where Abimelech took Sarah into his harem.

This is a strong passage.

God tells Abimelech that He will kill him for taking another man's wife (adultery).

Abimelech who is already married (and has concubines) protests that he is innocent and has acted in integrity of heart taking Sarah because Abraham deceived him regarding her marital status.

God agrees that Abimelech acted in integrity. This is Divine approval of Abimelech practicing polygamy.
 
1st Kings 15:5

"because David did what was right in the sight of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the case of Uriah the Hittite." NASB


This passage indicates that while God disapproved of David's adultery with Bathsheba wife of Uriah, He did approve of David's other marriages. They were all lawful, and did not violate Deuteronomy 17:17.
 
Romans 7:4 KJV
"Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God."

Each of us individual Christians (brethren/brothers) are personally and individually united to Christ.
 
1st Corinthians 11:3

"But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ." NASB

Christ is the Personal Head of multiple separate individual men. Marriage reflects the union between God and His people.

This union is reflected in both monogamy and polygynous marriage.
 
Leviticus 18:19 NASB

"And you shall not marry a woman in addition to her sister as a rival while she is alive, to uncover her nakedness."

The prohibition of one particular type of polygamy (marrying your wife's sister to vex her) infers that polygamy is generally lawful.
 
It’s equally as strong to point out that scripture never calls it sin or condemns it.

Absence of disapproval is just as powerful as presence of approval.
 
Bartato said:
I think @The Revolting Man is referring to Genesis 20 where Abimelech took Sarah into his harem.

This is a strong passage.

God tells Abimelech that He will kill him for taking another man's wife (adultery).

Abimelech who is already married (and has concubines) protests that he is innocent and has acted in integrity of heart taking Sarah because Abraham deceived him regarding her marital status.

God agrees that Abimelech acted in integrity. This is Divine approval of Abimelech practicing polygamy.
Click to expand...
That’s it! Thank you! Just for icing in that cake we get told the king’s wife’s name too! It’s a completely unambiguous incident and straight from God’s mouth.
 
Polygyny can be neither adultery nor fornication - so what sin is it if not one of those two?
1 Cor. 6:9-10 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
Matt. 8:11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
Abraham and Jacob, both polygynists, will be in the kingdom but fornicators and adulterers won't be.
 
TakeALeapOfFaith said:
Hello.
I am searching for Scriptures that are 'pro-polygamy' or can be used to show that it is indeed Biblical. I know I should know this, and I did have a list, but due to life situations- long story- no longer have access to my list and I'm struggling to recall with my memory. I thought there was a post on here with the Scriptures but can't seem to find that post either. So maybe I'm mistaken in that thought.
Reason I'm asking, I have been speaking to a young couple who are interested in polygamy, but the wife is not sure about it all, and I, having previously lived it, wanted to give them the Biblical research for them to grow, discuss and discover together. They are a Christian couple and so any words from wives, first, second or on, and husbands currently living Polygamy, I will pass in to them. Yes, I have given them the website and encouraged them to at least browse the posts, but unsure if they have.
Thank you and God Bless.
Click to expand...
Thank you for your heart to guide this young couple in truth with love and discernment. It’s encouraging to see believers genuinely searching the Scriptures rather than leaning only on tradition or emotion. Polygyny, while controversial in modern circles, is undeniably present and regulated throughout the Bible. The key is to approach it as a Biblical issue, not a cultural one.

Here are some Scriptural references you can share that support and legitimize polygyny as both practiced and blessed by God:

1.​

  • Abraham (Genesis 16, 25:1–6): Had Sarah and Hagar, and later Keturah. He is called the "father of faith" (Romans 4:16).
  • Jacob (Genesis 29–30): Had Leah, Rachel, and their two handmaids. The twelve tribes of Israel came from this polygynous household.
  • Moses (Exodus 2:21; Numbers 12:1): Had Zipporah and a Cushite wife.
  • David (2 Samuel 5:13): Had multiple wives, and God called him a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22).
  • Joash (2 Chronicles 24:3): Had two wives given to him by the priest Jehoiada, indicating priestly endorsement.
  • God’s metaphor of Himself: In Ezekiel 23, God speaks of having two wives—Oholah and Oholibah—representing Samaria and Jerusalem. This metaphor is only valid because it reflects a legitimate concept.

2.​

  • Exodus 21:10 – “If he take him another wife; her food, her raiment, and her duty of marriage, shall he not diminish.”
    • This is clear legal instruction for how to treat a first wife when taking a second. If God hated polygyny, He would have forbidden it—not regulated it.
  • Deuteronomy 21:15–17 – Discusses inheritance rights in a polygynous home and emphasizes fairness, not prohibition.
  • Deuteronomy 25:5–10 – The law of levirate marriage could, and often did, lead to a man taking his deceased brother’s wife in addition to his current wife.

3.​

  • 1 Timothy 3:2 – "The husband of one wife" applies to elders/bishops, meaning not all men. If polygyny were sin, it wouldn’t just disqualify men from eldership—it would disqualify them from the kingdom (1 Corinthians 6:9–10).
  • No apostolic or Messianic teaching ever condemns or forbids polygyny. Christ affirms the creation standard of marriage in Matthew 19, but never rebukes the patriarchs nor the Law which allowed plural wives.

4.​

  • Isaiah 4:1 – A prophetic future where seven women take hold of one man. The context implies restoration and cleansing in Zion.
  • 2 Samuel 12:8 – God says to David: “I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom... and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.” A strong indication of God’s own hand in polygynous arrangements.
Please also remind the couple that polygyny is not just a matter of theory, it requires righteousness, order, wisdom, and a heart for dominion and family building. It’s not for the carnal man, but for those who take the roles of husband and wife seriously in God's covenantal structure. Encourage them to pray, study deeply, and build with unity.

Feel free to pass this list and summary on to them. And may God bless you for your faithful stewardship in guiding others toward truth and family restoration.

Also my website is a great resource and has many good articles on this topic.
lordredbeard.com

In strength and peace,
—A fellow builder of the Great Order
 
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