The command to practice plural marriage


TheTanakas
 Share

Recommended Posts

I had a question on this part:

91 - Note that Jacob also addressed the practice of having more than one wife. 
What do you find in Jacob 2:23–30 that helps you understand why the Lord has, in 
limited situations, commanded His people to practice plural marriage? How does He 
feel about those who do so without His authorization?

I find another example (Doctrine and Covenants 132:34-35) where God is said to 
have commanded someone to practice plural marriage (Abraham with Hagar).

How was Ishmael born after the flesh while Isaac was born after the spirit
(Galatians 4:23,29)?

Pete

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, TheTanakas said:

I had a question on this part:

91 - Note that Jacob also addressed the practice of having more than one wife. 
What do you find in Jacob 2:23–30 that helps you understand why the Lord has, in 
limited situations, commanded His people to practice plural marriage? How does He 
feel about those who do so without His authorization?

I find another example (Doctrine and Covenants 132:34-35) where God is said to 
have commanded someone to practice plural marriage (Abraham with Hagar).

How was Ishmael born after the flesh while Isaac was born after the spirit
(Galatians 4:23,29)?

Pete

The idea of plural marriage is that a man can enter into a divinely sanctioned marital covenant with multiple women, rearing up children with all of them in righteousness.  

Where your question comes in, is where the comparison between Abraham and the concepts taught by Jacob start to break down.  Naturally, in any given era the marital covenant will become saddled with whatever cultural baggage that the contemporary society assigns to marriage.  That can be a good thing, or a bad thing.

Pertaining to Abraham specifically:  his culture recognized the difference between wives and concubines.  Hagar was the latter, and she came into her marriage as a slave (or “handmaiden”, as the King James Bible translators delicately put it).  By the custom of the day, any children borne of Hagar would also be slaves unless their father chose to elevate those children to the status of son and rightful heir (and that child, once elevated in status, could be disowned again; as Ishmael in fact was).

Isaac’s mother, by contrast, was not a slave; Isaac was free-born and under the custom of the day his inheritance was assured.

Paul uses Ishmael and Isaac as literary foils—symbols for the “servant” Jews who looked to the law of Moses as the instrument of their salvation and their intermediary with God , versus the “freeborn” Christians who understood that salvation came through the person of Jesus Christ.

Edited by Just_A_Guy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share