He [King Solomon] had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the LORD.
-I Kings 11:3, NLT
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach….
-I Timothy 3:2, NASB [emphasis mine]
What about all that polygamy in the Old Testament?
I think this is one of the lamest “excuse” cheaters can use to try and justify their infidelity. The Old Testament example of the Patriarchs still does not invalidate the cheater broke their own vows to “forsake all others.”
In other words, the Old Testament Patriarchs and the practice of polygamy in their day is really irrelevant.
Polygamy is not an option for Christians following Christ’s instructions (see Mark 10, etc). Jesus made it clear that a Christian marriage is a monogamous one.
Plus, cheating and polygamy are not the same thing. Polygamy is about marriage relationships where all parties are aware and agree to the presence of others. This is not true about adultery.
Polygamy to cheating is an apples to oranges comparison. It does not fit.
Besides, there are plenty of things we do not do from the Old Testament times. For example, we don’t adhere to the strict and odd rules for ritual purity. And we don’t even follow the moral punishments calling for the death penalty.
Just because it was allowed or even commanded in the Old Testament does not mean it is allowed today for true followers of Christ.
Further proof of this can be seen in the instructions Paul gives regarding choosing overseers (I Timothy 3:2). Monogamy was to be a test for selecting a morally upright leader.
So, the expectation for monogamous fidelity is not unclear in the New Testament. It takes a wicked heart bent on “justifying” adulterous evil to suggest otherwise.
