Polygamy: What the Bible Says

Polygamy: What the Bible Says

Polygamy—the practice of having more than one wife—appears throughout the Old Testament and has often sparked debate among Christians. Was it condoned by God? Why did patriarchs like Abraham, Jacob, and David practice it? And how should we understand the New Testament’s teaching on marriage and leadership? A careful reading of Scripture shows that while polygamy was tolerated in the Old Testament era, it was never presented as God’s design, and the New Testament quietly but firmly excludes it from the life of the church.

Polygamy in the Old Testament

From Genesis onward, monogamy is set forth as God’s design. In Genesis 2:24 (NASB), Scripture declares: “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” The Hebrew word אִשָּׁה (ishah), meaning “woman” or “wife,” is singular, and the “one flesh” union describes the intimate exclusivity of marriage.

Yet after the fall, polygamy entered human relationships. Lamech, a descendant of Cain, is the first recorded polygamist (Genesis 4:19). Later, patriarchs and kings took multiple wives: Abraham took Hagar alongside Sarah; Jacob married both Leah and Rachel; David and Solomon had numerous wives and concubines.

But in every case, polygamy brought trouble. Sarah and Hagar clashed. Leah and Rachel competed bitterly. David’s household was torn by strife, and Solomon’s many wives led his heart astray into idolatry (1 Kings 11:3–4, NASB). Though not always explicitly condemned, the narrative consistently portrays polygamy as a source of pain and division.

God’s Toleration and Prophetic Warnings

The Mosaic law regulated polygamy without outright banning it, which shows toleration rather than approval. For instance, Deuteronomy 21:15–17 gives instructions for inheritance rights if a man has two wives. These laws restrained injustice but did not endorse the practice.

The prophets, however, often used the marriage covenant to symbolize God’s relationship with His people—always in monogamous terms. God is depicted as the faithful husband of

Israel (Hosea 2:19–20, NASB). The singularity of that bond highlights the covenant ideal: one God, one people, one covenant relationship.

The New Testament Vision: One Flesh, One Union

By the time of Christ, monogamy was affirmed more strongly. Jesus returned to the creation account as the foundation for marriage: “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no person is to separate” (Matthew 19:4–6, NASB).

Jesus anchors marriage in Genesis 2, reasserting God’s original intent: one man, one woman, one flesh. He does not leave room for polygamy.

Paul echoes this in Ephesians 5:31–32 (NASB), where he applies Genesis 2 to Christ and the church: “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.” The covenantal union between Christ and His bride, the church, is monogamous and exclusive, leaving no theological space for polygamy.

Church Leadership and the “Husband of One Wife”

The pastoral epistles sharpen the focus. Paul instructs that a church overseer “must be above reproach, the husband of one wife” (1 Timothy 3:2, NASB), and similarly, “if any man is beyond reproach, the husband of one wife” (Titus 1:6, NASB).

The Greek phrase here is μιᾶς γυναικὸς ἄνδρα (mias gynaikos andra), literally “a one-woman man.” While some later interpreters applied this to divorced men or remarriage, early commentators—including Chrysostom and Tertullian—understood it primarily as a safeguard against polygamy. In the first-century Mediterranean world, polygamy was not rare, and the church had to make a clear distinction: Christian leaders were to model the covenantal ideal of one wife.

Early Church Commentary

The early church fathers were unambiguous. Augustine argued that polygamy was tolerated in the Old Testament for the sake of multiplying Israel but was not lawful under the gospel, which restores marriage to its original form. Chrysostom, in his homilies on 1 Timothy, insisted that “husband of one wife” meant that even if culture permitted polygamy, the church must not. For them, polygamy was a relic of an earlier age, inconsistent with the purity of Christ’s bride.

Why This Matters

The biblical arc is consistent: polygamy was tolerated in a fallen world, but never celebrated as God’s design. The Old Testament stories show its destructive effects. The New Testament reasserts God’s creation plan, anchoring marriage in Christ’s relationship to the church. And the early church, following Paul, treated polygamy as incompatible with Christian life and leadership.

This matters today because some fringe groups still attempt to justify polygamy by pointing to Old Testament examples. But the full testimony of Scripture, along with the witness of Jesus, Paul, and the early church, is clear: marriage is a covenantal union between one man and one woman.

Conclusion

The Bible does not hide the fact that many great men of faith practiced polygamy. But it also never endorses it as God’s will. Instead, it consistently shows the strife it caused and contrasts it with God’s ideal of one flesh. In Christ, that ideal is restored. For believers, and especially for leaders, the standard is clear: to be a “one-woman man,” reflecting the covenant faithfulness of Christ to His church.