Polygamy often raises eyebrows in modern discussions of biblical morality, yet the Scriptures themselves treat it with surprising nuance. While never explicitly commanded, polygamy appears multiple times in Scripture—sometimes as a cultural reality, and other times with what seems to be divine allowance or even blessing.
Old Testament Examples
Jacob, Leah, Rachel… and Two More
In Genesis 29:31–30:24, Jacob marries sisters Leah and Rachel, and later has children with their maidservants. Though the family dynamic is messy and full of strife, God is intimately involved—opening wombs, giving children, and building the twelve tribes of Israel through this very household.
David’s God-Given Wives
In 2 Samuel 12:8, the prophet Nathan conveys a striking word from God to David:
“I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms… And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more.”
The implication is startling—David’s multiple wives are not condemned here, but are part of God’s provision.
Solomon’s Excess 1 Kings 11:3–4 records Solomon’s hundreds of wives and concubines. While Scripture does condemn Solomon’s eventual idolatry influenced by his wives, God had still granted him immense wisdom and blessing beforehand. The issue isn’t quantity—it’s compromise of faith.
Law for Additional Wives
In Exodus 21:10, Mosaic law includes instructions for a man who takes another wife:
“He must not deprive the first one of her food, clothing and marital rights.”
The law doesn’t forbid polygamy—it regulates fairness within it.
New Testament Direction
The New Testament shifts the focus. It emphasizes faithfulness, character, and spiritual leadership—but doesn’t offer a direct condemnation of polygamy.
1 Timothy 3:2: “Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife…”
Titus 1:6: “An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife…”
These verses elevate monogamy as a standard for leadership, not as a universal requirement for all believers.
What Can We Conclude?
The Bible does not condemn polygamy, nor does it explicitly endorse it as a divine ideal. Instead, it presents it as a real part of human relationships in certain times and cultures—often accompanied by blessings, and just as often followed by human frailty, jealousy, or spiritual decline.
Polygamy in Scripture is not portrayed as sin, but it is often the backdrop for sin. And like many blessings, when received without faith or handled without wisdom, it can lead to brokenness.
Rather than judging ancient lives through modern lenses, it’s better to reflect on the heart of the matter: God desires faithful, loving, and covenantal relationships. Whether monogamous or polygamous, when human relationships lose sight of the One who gave the gift, the blessing often turns to burden.
“Before there was anything… there was God. Before there was time, light, or even matter— His Spirit was already moving. And He’s still moving now.”
Scripture Text: Genesis 1:1-2
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
Pause. Don’t rush past the first four words: In the beginning, God.
That’s the foundation of everything—of faith, of hope, of life itself. Before there was light, land, stars, or breath… there was God.
This is the line in the sand between belief and disbelief. Some live their lives shaped by the truth that God is—that He was before all things, and by Him all things were made. Others, as Romans 1 describes, refuse to acknowledge Him. They suppress the truth. That’s not just a philosophical disagreement—it’s the root of every kind of brokenness and rebellion.
But from the first sentence of Scripture, God reveals Himself—not just in words, but in the very fabric of creation.
As Psalm 19:1 says: “The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.”
We don’t begin with a religion. We begin with a God who is—and who made all things on purpose. That includes the stars, the sea… and you.
The Spirit in the Chaos
“The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.”
The Hebrew phrase here—tohu va-bohu—is so raw and layered that no single English translation can do it justice. It doesn’t merely mean “formless and empty.” It speaks of chaotic desolation—a wild, unstructured void where nothing lives, nothing forms, and nothing makes sense. Time and space are without rhythm. Matter exists without form. It’s not a clean slate; it’s a storm of potential with no order… yet.
No shape. No consistency. No life. No measurement. No light. Just a void.
And yet—even in that, everything needed for creation already existed. In that moment of confusion and cosmic unrest… God’s Spirit hovered.
Like a flash of lightning waiting to strike, like breath waiting to be spoken—He was there.
There’s deep comfort in this: In the darkest, blackest, most disordered corners of the universe—God shows up. He doesn’t run from the chaos. He doesn’t fear the void. He doesn’t hide from darkness.
He enters it. He hovers over it. And He speaks.
This is who He is—not a distant deity, but a present Spirit. The kind of God who doesn’t avoid our mess, but moves into it—bringing light, order, and meaning.
Video Reflection:
Pondering Questions (from the videos):
What would change if you truly lived as if God was already present in the middle of your unknowns?
What does it mean that the Spirit of God hovered over formless chaos?
Can you sense that same presence hovering over you today?
Pause and Reflect…
Before there was time… Before light… Before shape or sound… there was God.
In the quiet. In the chaos. In the darkness… He was already there.
You may not see Him clearly right now. But He’s there. Hovering over your deep places… Present… even when everything feels undone.
He was there. And He still is.
What does it mean to you that God was “in the beginning”?
Where do you see Him in your own beginning—or in the chaos you may be feeling today?
Scripture Connections:
Psalm 19:1 “The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.”
John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
This isn’t just poetic language—it’s a deliberate echo. John was reaching all the way back to Genesis. God spoke the universe into existence. Creation didn’t begin with clay in His hands, but with a Word on His lips.
And that Word… was Jesus.
Let that settle in for a moment: The voice that pierced the silence at the dawn of creation… is the same Word who became flesh and dwelled among us.
Hebrews 11:3 “By faith, we understand that the universe has been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen has not been made out of things which are visible.”
Guided Journaling
What does it mean to you that God’s Spirit hovers over chaos—over formlessness, darkness, and confusion?
Think of a time in your life when everything felt like a void—when nothing made sense, and you couldn’t see a way forward. What would it mean to believe that God was already there, hovering, waiting to speak light into it?
What does it mean to you personally that God was there “in the beginning”?
How does that truth affect the way you view your own beginning—your life, your story, your chaos?
Write it down—on paper, in your phone, or in the space provided in your book. You can also share your story or insight with others below.
A Man Who Wouldn’t Back Down: Jim Elliot and the Call of the Wild
A real man isn’t measured by the size of his paycheck, the weight on his shoulders, or the power in his hands. He’s measured by what he’s willing to sacrifice. By his courage to step beyond comfort. By his refusal to let fear dictate his path. The world is full of men who hoard their time, their safety, their lives—thinking that keeping it all means they’ve won. But the truth? A man who never risks anything, never truly lives.
That’s where Jim Elliot comes in.
He had everything a man could ask for—a sharp mind, a solid education, a path to success laid out in front of him. But he didn’t buy into the world’s definition of success. He saw something deeper. He believed that life wasn’t meant to be gripped with white knuckles—it was meant to be spent, given away for something greater. And that belief took him far from the comforts of home, into the heart of Ecuador, to a tribe known for their violence—the Waodani.
These men weren’t just set in their ways—they were warriors, a people who met outsiders with spears instead of words. Everyone else saw them as unreachable, too dangerous, too wild. Jim saw them as men worth dying for.
So, he and his friends spent months trying to build trust, dropping gifts from a small plane, showing patience, showing peace. And when the time came, they landed, stepping onto unfamiliar soil with nothing but faith and conviction. Days later, their bodies were found on the riverbank—speared by the very people they came to reach.
Most would call it a waste. But Jim had already settled the question long before he ever set foot in the jungle. He once wrote:
“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”
That wasn’t just a thought—it was a way of life. Jim understood something most men never grasp: playing it safe is an illusion. You can cling to your life, your security, your control—but in the end, you lose it all anyway. The only thing that lasts is what you’re willing to give up for something greater.
And here’s the thing—his story didn’t end in the river. Years later, his wife and the other widows returned to that same tribe. And this time? The Waodani listened. The same men who had raised their spears in violence laid them down in surrender to Christ. The mission Jim Elliot died for wasn’t in vain—it was just getting started.
Jesus put it plainly in Matthew 16:25:
“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.”
So now it’s your turn. What are you holding onto? What’s keeping you from stepping beyond comfort, beyond fear, beyond the limits of what the world tells you is safe? Because in the end, the only men who truly live are the ones who aren’t afraid to lay it all down.
RVL – Ray Vander Laan talks about discipleship as Jesus and his disciples would have understood it. Take this time to learn what it really means to be a disciple or to go and make disciples.
