Consider these verses …

Mat 19:9 And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except [it be] for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.

Mar 10:11 And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.

Luk 16:18 Whosoever putteth away his wife, and marrieth another, committeth adultery: and whosoever marrieth her that is put away from [her] husband committeth adultery.

It is with great regret that I feel that I must comment on this subject. It is hard for me to even believe that this distasteful subject has reared its ugly head within the ranks of supposedly godly men who know the Truth of the Word of Yahuvah.

If you have not heard it within the newsgroups, websites and personal emails..you will. Several leaders in the Messianic movement have stepped out of the darkness and are proclaiming there is validity of polygyny-polygamy contained within the scriptures and that they are going to live out what they believe is truth. They also have separated themselves from any and all believers who have stepped up and condemned this practice as umbilical.

First, let’s go over a few details.

Yes, it’s true - the Torah has many, many stories concerning men who are married to several women. No one is denying that truth. And because of these stories, some leaders in the messianic movement have decided that Yahweh not only condones plural marriages, but encourages it! How sad for believers in this day and age to twist and malign the heart of Abba. And of course, they have twisted it to their own advantage - they have termed this practice ‘polygyny’ - which simply means that it is only the MEN who can have more than one wife! Oh my….such a sad state of affairs. Ok…let’s look at scripture.

Does YHVH approve of multiple wives for one man? Let’s look at the ‘first’ marriage - that should be our guide wouldn’t you think?

And Yahweh said - ‘they shall be ONE flesh’ - In Genesis 2:21-24 YHVH Elohim caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then YHVH Elohim made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and the wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

Ok…now read that slowly….ONE man…ONE woman…ONE flesh. I don’t read anywhere (not even between the lines) where Yahweh intended for either man OR woman to have more than one partner - otherwise, He could have just as easily taken out more than one rib, don’t you think?  Also, if scripture states over and over that ONE man and ONE woman become ONE .. then answer me this - how does ONE man having TWO or more women become one flesh? That is simply an impossibility! It is a division in the perfect plan and as such is not only not scripture, but simply put - it is adultery.

This was the original plan of our Creator - the perfect plan - the right plan - the only plan. One man, one woman, one flesh. But, He also gave us free will, didn’t He. Yes, He did. And man (and woman) have continually, from the begining, abused and misused that free will to further their own agendas, fulfill their lust and lead people astray.

Let’s move from the Original Covenant to the next Covenant and see what Y’shua has to say about the subject. In Matthew 19:3-12 he is answering the Pharisees who were questioning Him about the legalities involved in a man putting away his wife for any cause. Y’shua answers them eloquently and in that answer says, “”have you not read, that He who created from the beginning, He created them male and female? Because of this, a man will leave his father and his mother and will be joined to his wife, and they will be both of them one flesh. Henceforth, they will not be >> two <<< rather >> one << flesh. Therefore, what Elohim has united, man should not separate.” (emphasis mine) Y’shua goes on to say that Moses allowed them a letter of divorce because of the hardness of their heart and that it was not thus from the beginning!! So here, Y’shua is confirming the original intent of the marital arrangement from the beginning.

So - we have established that from the beginning - YHVH and Y’shua both confirm that the perfect marriage is between one man and one woman.

Why do the Patriarchs in the scripture have more than one wife?  Why was it so rampant in the patriarchal days? Was it biblical? Was it godly? Was it right??

Let’s examine a few more scriptures and see how these polygamous marriages fared in real life. In Genesis 4:19 Lamech, son of Cain, had two wives. This was the first instance, I believe, that the bible gives us concerning one man with more than one wife.  Just knowing the story of Cain, who killed his own brother Abel (thus being the first murderer) is enough to turn one off, much less lifting up this family style as a template for which we pattern our own lives after! Surely there is a better example to use. And there is. For you see, it was from the line of Cain that this perversion of Yahweh’s perfect plan was birthed. But look at the line of Seth - a righteous man who had a heart seeking the face of his Creator! From Seth all the way to Noah this lineage remained true to each other in the marriage of one man and one woman. Of course…then after the flood, nothing was the same. Even with the patriarch Abraham.

And here is where the men of today want to base their belief that polygyny is the example that godly men and women should follow. But let’s look at this story of Abraham, Sarah and her handmaiden Hagar. Was there EVER any peace in this family? We all know the answer to that question! A resounding NO! The two women constantly fought and bickered with each other - they were bitter enemies and both vied for top position with Abraham. Sarah finally caused Hagar to run away with her son, Ishmael. And here we are today … 4,000 years later … still reaping the whirlwind of the fires between Isaac and Ishmael. All due to the infamous Abraham who did not have enough faith to trust Yahweh who promised him an heir through ONE wife! So those who want to set even this family plan up on a pedestal….well, they need to realize that both Abraham and Sarah fell into this faulty plan due to their lack of faith! And then, they need to take to heart the ‘end of the story.’ For if they do, they will realize that the adulterous road they are on will end in the same way.

There are various articles written on this subject by now - mine is just one more voice in the Internet winds that hopefully will be of some help to anyone searching for answers on this ‘hot’ button. Let me add this - when a man and woman unite in holy matrimony, scripture says that they become one - ‘echad’ in Hebrew.  This new spiritual entity is symbolic of the perfect harmony of the male/female attributes of YHVH.  We must, as godly women and men, be continuously conformed into the image of our Creator. We must display to our children, our grandchildren, our great grandchildren, and to the world around us the biblical purity of our Father’s original plan.

A marriage between one man and one woman is simply, hands down, a heavenly covenant - a covenant that represents the heart and purpose of YHVH, our Abba. Anything else, especially this ‘new-old’ revelation of polygamy or polygyny or whatever you wish to call it, is simply borne out of the lust of man to the detriment of all women. Not only is it unscriptural, it is degrading and humiliating for any woman to have to share the purity of the marriage bed with another woman. Nothing but misery and perversion can come from this type of adulterous union.

So, if you or anyone you know has been led down this rose-strewn path of ‘new’ revelation by men who call themselves scholars, rabbis, pastors or ‘men of god’ .. beware of the thorns in this new bed. They will cause you to bleed and will leave many scars. The lust and twisted perversion by these men of the truth is not and never has been the plan of our loving Father!!

Beware of the WOLF in the camp!

blessings ~ Pam