“It
was not until I read Martin Luther that my prejudice
against polygamy was disarmed.
Not
only did Luther defend polygamy as a remedy for
fornication, but it was preferable to
divorce. Luther did not stand alone
in these opinions, but was supported by Melancthon and
the Lutheran clergy in general.” – pages 12, 13
o-o-o
“In
the Hebrew Scriptures, we find both monogamy and
polygamy as accepted and even expected forms of
marriage. Commentators, embarrassed by the polygamy in
the Bible, try to mute the subject by insisting its
practice was rare and abnormal. The record does not
stand up to that assumption. Polygamy was a custom
practiced extensively among God’s people” – page 15
o-o-o
“Israelite society was a polygamous society… If polygamy
is immoral at all, it is immoral always. If it happened
only once in Scripture, with God’s approval, then we are
dealing with an ethical system utterly foreign to modern
moralism. Moral absolutes cannot have exceptions, or
else they are not absolute.” – page 16
o-o-o
“Fundamentalists boast that they do not need the sex
manuals of the Playboy generation. ‘We have our
own book on sex in the Song of Solomon.’ Yet ironically,
it is a book written by a man who had 700 wives and 300
concubines. Additionally, the text itself depicts
polygamy as a normal expression of sexual love (6:8-9).
I think King Solomon has Hugh Hefner beaten.” – page 16
o-o-o
“…There are always more women available for marriage
than men. In spite of the proximity of numerical
equality at birth, the social reality has always been –
for several reasons – there are more marriageable women
than men. War, disease, irresponsibility, homosexuality,
vocation, selfishness – these are some of the reasons
which produce the gap.” – page 38
o-o-o
“The
regulation of polygamy is prominent in Biblical law;
thus, we may interpret that fact as indicative of its
pervasiveness as a social custom.” – page 39
o-o-o
“…The
Apostle speaks to the widows, the most worthy of
charitable assistance. He did not advocate nunneries or
houses for unwed mothers. He demanded marriage: like
other Biblical laws, no consideration or exception is
made for situations involving married men. What would
happen should a church find itself with widows but no
single men? Obedience to this command would require
polygamy. We have here a New Testament application of
the levirate law. Christian men are to treat Christian
women as sisters. If they are widowed, then they and
their orphans should be adopted and incorporated into a
family. If they are lawfully divorced, they are
covenantally widowed and should be treated the same, as
say the Early Fathers. This is the work of “pure
religion” (James 1:27). Polygamy encourages this
practice; monogamy discourages it.” – page 46