Plural marriage and the Bible

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The Bible and plural marriage

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• Question: Was there no biblical mandate for plural marriage?
• Question: Does the Bible forbid plural marriage?
• Question: What are the "works of Abraham" and how does this relate to plural marriage?
• Gregory L. Smith, M.D., "Polygamy, Prophets, and Prevarication: Frequently and Rarely Asked Questions about the Initiation, Practice, and Cessation of Plural Marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints"

With the authority of the Bible behind them, early Mormons argued for 'plural marriage,' and some Mormon fundamentalist sects continue to practice polygyny. They were and are right: if the Bible provides authoritative models, then a man should be allowed to have more than one wife, as did Abraham, Jacob, David, and other biblical heroes, with no hint of divine disapproval.

—Michael Coogan, God and Sex: What the Bible Really Says (New York, N.Y.: Twelve, 2010), 78–79.

Question: Was there no biblical mandate for plural marriage?

Jump to details:

• Question: Was there no biblical mandate for plural marriage?
• This claim is false; levirate marriage was mandated by the law of Moses
• The practice of levirate marriage did not make any conditions on whether or not the brother-in-law was married
• This practice was not just a custom, but an integral part of the religious law at the time of Jesus

Question: Does the Bible forbid plural marriage?

Jump to details:

• Question: Does the Bible forbid plural marriage?
• The Bible does not forbid plural marriage
• It is true that David and Solomon were condemned for some of their marriage practices
• Only four chapters later, the Lord gives instructions on how to treat equitably plural wives and children
• David is well-known for his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah
• Solomon's wives turned his heart away from the Lord, as Deuteronomy cautioned
• Abraham and other Biblical examples demonstrate that plural marriage may, on occasion, be sanctioned
• The Law of Moses provides rules governing Israelites who have plural wives
• The Law of Moses did not allow plural marriages to two sisters

Question: What are the "works of Abraham" and how does this relate to plural marriage?

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• Question: What are the "works of Abraham" and how does this relate to plural marriage?
• The "works of Abraham" are fundamentally about obedience to God's laws, obedience to any commandment given, and willingness to sacrifice
• It is often casually assumed that "the works of Abraham" refer mainly to plural marriage
• At its most basic level, "the works of Abraham" are to obey and serve God, and not be "the servant of sin"
• Abraham plays a central role in D&C 132's justification of plural marriage
• Abraham received blessings because of revelation and obedience to covenant and commandment
• We must not confuse "the law" to which verse 34 refers with "the law" described in verse 7
• We note also that Abraham was not condemned because he was commanded and then acted

Gregory L. Smith, M.D., "Polygamy, Prophets, and Prevarication: Frequently and Rarely Asked Questions about the Initiation, Practice, and Cessation of Plural Marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints"

Gregory L. Smith, M.D.,  FairMormon Papers, (2005)

The criticism that polygamy is irreligious appeals to western sensibilities which favor monogamy, and argues that polygamy is inconsistent with biblical Christianity or (ironically) the Book of Mormon itself.

This is a weak attack at best, and replies–devotional, apologetic, and scholarly–have been made to the claim.6 There is extensive, unequivocal evidence that polygamous relationships were condoned under various circumstances by biblical prophets, despite how uncomfortable this might make a modern Christian. Elder Orson Pratt was widely viewed as the victor in a three-day debate on this very point with Reverend John P. Newman, Chaplain of the U.S. Senate, in 1870.7

Even were there no such precedents, LDS theology has no problem accepting and implementing novel commandments, since the Saints believe in continuing revelation. I will not belabor the matter here, since ample resources are available.

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To see citations to the critical sources for these claims, click here

Notes