Does God Permit Polygamy?

Polygamy was practised in the Old Testament because the Old Testament believers were imperfect sinners just like you and me. Many people wonder why God never rebuked anyone in the Bible for their polygamy. They often treat God’s silence in the Bible to indicate that God did allow polygamy. However, that is nothing but an unwarranted assumption from silence. Just because the Bible does not record God rebuking anyone for polygamy does not mean that he never actually did. Since when must every rebuke from God be recorded in the Bible for all to read?

Having said that, I would likewise not make an argument from silence by claiming that God actually rebuked or punished anyone for polygamy. Where the Bible is silent, we should likewise remain silent. However, even if God never rebuked or punished anyone for their polygamy, it does not mean that he approves of polygamy.

For example, it is not recorded anywhere in the Bible that God ever rebuked Abram for his lying (Genesis 12:10–20; 20:1–18). Could we therefore conclude that God approves of lying? Of course not. The Bible elsewhere speaks against lying (Leviticus 19:11; Proverbs 6:16–19; 12:22; Ephesians 4:25; Colossians 3:9). Silence in one case does not mean advocacy. We have to take the whole witness of Scripture into account. This is a very important Bible interpretation principle to keep in mind.

In order to determine whether or not God approves of polygamy, we should look instead at passages in the Bible which actually address the issue of marriage. Regarding marriage, Genesis 2:24 says that “a man shall forsake his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” Notice that the word “man” and “wife” are both in the singular form. This tells us that God originally intended for marriage to be between one man and one woman; no more, and no less.

When addressing a marriage issue, Jesus appealed to this very passage of Scripture to support his stand: “The two of them,” he says, “shall become one flesh.” (Matthew 19:5) Of course, in context, Jesus was responding to a question concerning divorce, not polygamy, but his answer involved affirming the biblical definition of marriage found in Genesis 2:24. Notice also how Jesus appealed to Creation in order to establish how God originally intended marriage: “Moses, because of your hardheartedness, let you divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.” (v. 8)