Is polygamy is sin?

Question

I was having a discussion with a friend and the question came up whether David and Solomon, who had many wives, were committing adultery by being in multiple marriages. The bible tells us that David was a man after God’s own heart – so that tells me that God was pleased with him. I know man’s law about multiple marriages have changed, but what does God feel about this?

If God was specific in commanding man not to commit adultery, why then would he not give the similar guidelines regarding marriages – do not have more than one spouse.

Answer 1

Who cares? It's a pain in the butt to even contemplate. If you have one good marriage, you'll be doing good.

Answer 2

My understanding is that God commanded David to take on more wives to spread his family and have many children.

I also understand that when the LDS church took polygamy as an official act of the church, they claimed that God had commanded them to do it to also create large families of the church leaders: Joesph Smith and Brigham Young being the two most famous leaders.

Is it a sin? The bible is pretty clear about what it considers to be a God ordained marriage... one man, one woman.... and since its against the law of the land to have more than one spouse, that would make it a sin as well, correct?

Answer 3

As you are talking about David and King Solomon as you are asking about Multiple Wife's is not Adviseable as per Bible but you everyone who is Born on earth is a sinner But if Differ's from Person to Person the Sin's they do every Human Being does Many Mistakes it is the Same with them Learn good from others but bad thing's are not Adviseable ok

Answer 4

First you have to define "sin". The Old Testament clearly allows a man to have more than one wife from Abraham on down, provided they are properly married, but also clearly says adultery (sleeping with some else’s wife) as a sin. The New Testament, although not clear seems to say only one wife, but most of that comes from Paul. The first four books don’t address this, but do seem to acknowledge that the Jews at this time only had one wife. The Koran allows up to four wives. Mormons believe that more than one wife is not a sin, provided you are properly married by one with “authority” and since the main Mormon church (LDS) no longer gives that authority, it is now a sin. They will excommunicate you if you marry more than one. The “Mormons” who are practicing polygamy are not part of the main church, but are splinter groups, including families that perform their own rights.

To me, religion and Government should be completely separate and only a given religion can define sin and only for their members. Most religions include something about not judging “others”. Live and let live is my thought.

Answer 5

In the OLD testament (bible books before Christ was born), things were very different--God wanted people to multiply and fill the earth, which was easier when men had more than one wife.

In the bible books AFTER Christ's birth, it clearly states there is a "new covenant" or set of rules from God, which make all those old rules obsolete--they fulfilled their purpose & expired.

So to truly follow God's rules, look to that "New Covenant"--the New Testament or "Gospel" part of the bible.

Answer 6

Many people in the old testament had multiple wives. The world needed populated. The law changed in the new testament. Then it became a sin.

Answer 7

"In time, Israel wanted to copy the nations around her by having her own king. Saul became Israel’s first king. Though a physically large and no doubt very powerful man, Saul was weak of will and mental strength, and quickly became the first king to ignore God’s instruction about multiplying wives. Many of Israel’s sins and the sins of her kings are recorded for us to see. God can—and does—teach from both good and bad examples, although Israel more often demonstrated the latter. These become examples of practices to avoid. Saul’s sin (and multiplying wives was sin!) is such an example—and we can learn from it what to avoid. Space could be taken to show that Saul fell into a deep pattern of sins of all kinds, including that of murder, wrong forms of sacrifice, idolatry, consulting with a witch, and coming under the direct influence of demons.

Saul’s successor, David, also had several wives. But he deeply repented of this sin. Few seem to truly understand the biblical record on David’s action. The account is found in II Samuel 12.

Yes, David had practiced polygamy, but he turned from it in real, deep, sincere repentance—it could be said, as deep as was the punishment for disobedience. David continued in marriage to Bathsheba, with his only legitimate wife, Michal, almost certainly now dead (II Sam. 6:23). Upon returning to Jerusalem shortly after this time, David ended the relationship with his harem of ten concubines. Let’s read: “And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood” (II Sam. 20:3). David did feel an obligation to provide for these women, but he no longer cohabited with them.

Answer 8

Yes, Polygamy is a Sin as it is adultery. David was a sinner as are we all.

Adultery
Matthew 5:27"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'[a] 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Answer 9

It depends which bible thump er you ask. They all seem to have a different view on which ever sin they choose to exploit at that particular moment. It's illegal unfortunately, so is same sex or else I would have at least two wives. Preferably infertile. I have three beautiful children of my own. I need more hands, not mouths.

Answer 10

In the NT, a single husband/wife is the norm. Just because someone does something in the Bible, doesn't mean that it is condoned. David also had Bathsheba's husband killed (murder) so he could marry her because he was carrying his child (adultery).

Answer 11

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I don't think anyone can speak for God. I think God is unknowable, at least to us in human form. But sin or not, polygamy generally exploits women for the benefit of men. Women and girls generally only enter polygamous relationships under religious- and economic duress, not b/c they truly love or want to share their husbands.