Posted on 06/14/2014 8:33:41 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
When you look at world history, and especially biblical history, you will find that polygamy has been an accepted and honorable way of life. Many beloved prophets of the Old Testament were polygamists, and Abraham was a friend of God, all while having many wives. Polygamy was once a lifestyle accepted by all.
For Christians of 2000 years ago, polygamy was stopped by the Roman empire.
Paul, in his letter to the church in Rome, said, “A bishop should be the husband of one wife.” He was simply telling them to obey the law of the land. Roman law is alive and well today in America, and we all know what happened to the Roman Empire.
It’s very unfortunate what has happened in Colorado City, Ariz., and in other states. It has given polygamy a terrible name and image....
(Excerpt) Read more at lasvegassun.com ...
The women look like THEY share an awful lots of genes!
So THAT's who took care of you!
A shout out to the staff there:
Sort of...
It's definitely not conclusive; but some of the dots do tend to form a pattern.
GAVE??
That’s what the Bible says. If you are a believer, that matters, if not, then we have nothing to debate.
2 Samuel 12:8 I also gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these!
God says to David that he gave Saul’s wives to him and had it been too little, He would have given more.
www.biblicalpolygyny.com
Of course it 'matters'. But the WHY of certain things matter as well.
Spoils of war?
I seem to recall a simple little matter of SLAVERY in the bible.
Got a website that says it is an acceptable practice TODAY?
Then again, some say we all share most of our genes with chimpanzees. I think these young women are plain looking because of the manner of their grooming and dress. Down here we have a lot of Mennonites who are descended from the groups that colonized in Mexico a long time ago, and they follow the traditional customs in how they dress. And though the young ladies all look plain and frumpy from a distance, when you get close to them they are easy on the eyes, and you can tell they take good care of themselves. Not a darn thing wrong with that.
Elsie, you have asked a good question, one that I cannot fully speak to as I have not studied it out. I have; however, spent much of the last year trying to understand what the Bible says about polygyny, and the website I posted is my attempts to document what I have learned.
Regarding slavery, as I said, I am unable to fully speak on that topic, as I have not studied it with the intensity it would take to understand it. Out of curiousity, have you?
When I pointed out in the comment that being a believer matters, I was trying to say that if you are not a believer, then nothing the Bible says matters anyhow. Are you a believer? Yes, context absolutely matters, but if you are not a believer, then debating the Bible is a waste of time.
Now, regarding slavery, from what I understand it is a much different use of the word that most Americans (and much of the rest of the world) understand. It was more like an indentured servant, which I personally do not have an issue with. The little study I have done indicates God commanded his people to treat these “slaves” well, and He even commanded their release. Again, I am uninformed, but from what I see, it looks like something of which some people today would take advantage. I, for one, at an early part of my life when I was heavily endebted, would have served someone fully for 7 years to pay off all my debt and be cared for.
Do I support slavery as it was in the United States? Absolutely not. I don’t believe you will find Biblical support for that either - at any time in the Bible.
As already noted, I am not studied up on this topic enough to speak with certainty about it, but my above comments are my opinions with what little I know. I also suspect you haven’t studied this topic with intent. What I do know is that I have studied polygyny with intent, and I have found it was widespread in the Old Testament with many of the patriarchs having multiple wives. Even God the Father describes Himself as a man with multiple wives.
Regarding David, he was known as a man after God’s own heart, and the Bible says he did right in the sight of The Lord except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite, which was obviously wrong, but not because it was polygyny, but because it was taking another man’s wife and having him murdered. His wives may have been spoils of war, but they were given to him by the Father. That doesn’t change the point.
www.biblicalpolygyny.com
Amen!
Suzi, you broke the code!
If marriage is NOT between one man and one woman, there is no combination of humans or even animals that can be denied "marriage", as any definition that excludes ANYTHING, will be by its very nature, discriminatory, and will be challenged in the courts.
This screed is the vanguard of a new tidal wave against the institution of marriage as a bulwark for society.
I take exception with the word 'except'.
The Book says...
Acts 13:22 (niv)
After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him:
‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’
Refering to...1 Samuel 13:13-14And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”But...David committed adultery with Bathsheba. He then tried to cover up her pregnancy, and when he failed with that, he had her husband Uriah the Hittite killed.
David took a census of the people, willfully violating God's command not to do that.
David was often lax, or absent as a father, not disciplining his children when they needed it.
2 Samuel 12:12-13
Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD." Nathan replied, "The LORD has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the LORD, the son born to you will die." (NIV)
Oh?
This is quite interesting.
Got verses?
Judges 17:6
In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
Again, this is true, but it was NOT the way GOD had designed it; but how man had distorted it.
Much like divorce (which the Book tells us that GOD hates) it was PERMITTED, but I've NEVER found it endorsed.
I take exception to your exception, as I trust the Bible over you.
1 Kings 15:4But for David’s sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, to raise up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem; 5because 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.
So, if we use your point, then I am supposing you can tell me where in the Bible it says, “God hates polygyny.”
You are very right, he does hate divorce, but that is never said about polygyny. In fact, you are expecting me to take your word over God’s when you say that “it was NOT the way GOD had designed it; but how man had distorted it.” In the absence of scripture reference, your point is not one I will debate.
Regarding God endorsing it, I have already given you one example. See http://biblicalpolygyny.com/wiki/index.php?title=Endorsed_by_God for more.
Reread your comment - you are going to need to back up your statements with scripture:
David took a census of the people, willfully violating God’s command not to do that.
Can you share where God commanded him to not do this? I cannot find it.
By the same token, can you back up the discipline issue with scripture. I haven’t studied this out, but I do not remember this being noted as a sin. You may be able to prove me wrong though.
I really don't want to prove anyone wrong; but want to get correct info out there.
This may explain a bit better...
Question: "Who incited David to take the census in 2 Samuel 24, God or Satan?
Why was God so angry at David for taking the census?
Why did God punish the Israelite people when it was David who ordered the census?"
“Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel” (1 Chronicles 21:1). However, the wording of 2 Samuel 24:1 says that it was God who “moved David” to take the census.
This discrepancy can be explained by the understanding that sometimes God sovereignly permits Satan to act in order to achieve His purposes.
God uses Satan in various ways, among them the refining, disciplining and purification of disobedient believers (Luke 22:31-32; 1 Corinthians 5:1-5; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10).
Such is the case with David. God allowed Satan to tempt him, and David sinned, revealing his pride and allowing God to deal with him for it.
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