Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael Phelps
That's quite a stretch there. The New Testament never sanctions polygamy, in fact, quite the opposite.
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Well bro...you asked and I offered what I had read. Now...these were virgins prepared for their wedding to their groom...obviously polygamous. Christ is represented as a polygamous groom. If it were condemned in the NT would Jesus use an illustration characterizing himself as a polygamous groom? Oh well....that's in the NT.
Can you give a specific Scripture where polygamy is condemned? Yes, the virtues of monogamy are assailed...but polygamy isn't strictly condemned from what I can find.
I believe there is a purpose for this. I believe that the early church found monogamy to be proper and best. So Paul set the standard at the top knowing it would trickle down. Why didn't Paul outright condemn polygamy? It would require men already married to more than one woman in the church to have to divorce...divorce is never God's desire. It would force these divorced women into having to be prostitutes or slaves because divorced women were regarded like dogs. Paul's standard is like righteous leaven that spread through the Church making Christian marriage monogamous without bringing social upheaval or condemning those who weren't monogamous.
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