PART 2 Why the MANY WIVES & CONCUBINES IN THE BIBLE?

Questions about Sexual behavior in the Bible! Is bigamy {The crime of having two or more wives at once wrong? The term is ordinarily used as synonymous with Polygamy, and may be more justly defined, the crime of having a plurality of wives.

In the canon law, bigamy was the marrying a second wife after the death of the first, or once marrying a widow. (This disqualified a man for orders,and holding ecclesiastical offices.}

If it is sinful, why did King Solomon have so many wives?Remember that it was NEVER GOD'S WILL FOR THIS TO TAKE PLACE,so we cannot hang this at God's door as a contradiction of his nature!This was Solomon's personal choice!

1 Kings 11:1-6 (KJV)" But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave{Soul Ties} unto these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father."

First Kings 11:1-3 indicates that King Solomon had 700 hundred wives and 300 hundred concubines, many from lands of which God had previously instructed the Israelites to avoid intermarrying. God knew that such intermarrying would lead to the worship of false gods. Why, then, did Solomon do this?

History reveals that Solomon was very aggressive in his foreign policy. In sealing treaties in ancient days, it was customary for a lesser king to give his daughter in marriage to the greater king (in this case, Solomon). Every time a new treaty was sealed, Solomon ended up with yet another wife. These wives were considered tokens of friendship and "sealed" the relationship between the two kings.

In the process of doing all this, Solomon was utterly disobedient to the Lord. He was apparently so obsessed with power and wealth that it overshadowed his spiritual life and he ended up falling into apostasy. He worshiped some of the false gods of the women who became married to him.

Moreover, in marrying more than one woman, Solomon was going against God’s revealed will regarding monogamy {The marriage of one wife only, or the state of such as are restrained to a single wife.} From the very beginning God created one woman for one man (see Genesis 1:27; 2:21-25). Deuteronomy 17:17 "Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold."

Moses’ law did not ignore this issue as some skeptics proclaim but DENOUNCED IT AS SIN, "… Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold"

So Solomon sinned in various ways—(1) he engaged in polygamy, (2) he violated God’s commandment against marrying pagans, which ultimately led to his own apostasy, (3) he collected huge numbers of horses (a large chariot army), and (4) he gathered vast amounts of gold and silver.It was not getting RICH THAT WAS A SIN TO GOD,IT WAS "HOARDING" or Laying up in store, Which is to DOUBT GOD'S PROVISION FOR HIS WEALTH THAT WAS SIN FROM THE LAWS STANDPOINT!

Solomon’s tolerance of his wives pagan religions led to terrible sins against God.

1 Kings 11:4-9 states,

For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth {The chief goddess of the Phoenicians, as Baal was the male. By the plural (ASHTAROTH, Baalim: Jdg_10:6; 1Sa_7:4) different phases of the same deity, according to the different places of worship, are indicated. Always plural until under Solomon Ashtoreth or Astarte of Zidon was introduced (1Ki_11:5; 1Ki_11:3). She appears among the Philistines as the idol in whose temple they hung up Saul's armor (1Sa_31:10). She is identified as Ishtar or Nana, the planetary Venus among the Assyrian gods in inscriptions. Her name appears also in Cyprian and Carthaginian monuments; and on the sarcophagus of a king Esmunazar, who restored her temple at Zidon, along with his mother her priestess, Am-ashtoreth. She partly represents the planet Venus, partly the moon, "the queen of heaven" (Jer_7:18; Jer_44:17-18). (See ASHTEROTH-KARNAIM)

Our "star," Greek " aster," Latin stella, is akin. Her worship was most licentious and abominable; closely connected with that of. Ashtoreh is the goddess, asherah "the grove," the image or the symbol of the goddess, of wood; asher, yashar, "to be straight," a straight stem of a tree living, or fixed upright (1Ki_18:19; 2Ki_21:7; 2Ki_23:6; 2Ki_23:13-14; 2Ki_23:15; Jdg_6:25; Jdg_6:30). The "bringing out the asherah from the house of the Lord," and the "cutting down," suit such a symbol, not a grace in our sense. The active and passive powers of nature, generative and receptive, suggested the male and female deities, Baal and Ashtoreh. The ewes of a flock were called Ashteroth on this principle, propagating the flock (Deu_7:13).

The earliest worship of apostasy was that of the sun, moon, etc. This naturally was grafted on idol worship, Baal sometimes being the sun god, sometimes distinct (2Ki_23:5). So Ashtoreh and the moon. The stone pillar was the symbol of Baal, as the sacred tree was the symbol of Ashtoreh; stone marking his strength as the male, the tree her fruitfulness (Deu_16:21). The sacred tree constantly accompanies the gods in the Assyrian monuments. In the Moabite Dibon stone the male form Astar is prefixed to Chamos or Chemosh, answering to the female Astarte. Identical with Athtar or Athtor of the Himyeritic inscriptions, and Estar of the Ninevite inscriptions; the Canaanite form of the male Aphroditos answering to the female Aphrodite.} the goddess of the Zidonians { The inhabitants of Zidon. They were among the nations of Canaan; left to give the Israelites practice in the art of war, Jdg_3:3, and colonies of them appear to have spread up into the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephothmaim, Jos_13:4; Jos_13:6, whence, in later times, they hewed cedar trees for David and Solomon. 1Ch_22:4.

They oppressed the Israelites on their first entrance into the country, Jdg_10:12, and appear to have lived a luxurious, reckless life. Jdg_18:7. They were skillful in hewing timber, 1Ki_5:8, and were employed for this purpose by Solomon. They were idolaters, and worshipped Ashtoreth as their tutelary goddess, 1Ki_11:5; 1Ki_11:33; 2Ki_23:13, as well as the sun-god Baal, from whom their king was named. 1Ki_16:31.}

, and after Milcom {The fire-god, Molech, was the tutelary deity of the children of Ammon, and essentially, identical with the Moabitish Chemosh. Fire-gods appear to have been common to all the Canaanite, Syrian and Arab tribes, who worshipped the destructive element under an outward symbol, with the most inhuman rites.

According to Jewish tradition, the image of Molech was of brass, hollow within, and was situated without Jerusalem. "His face was (that) of a calf, and his hands stretched forth like a man who opens his hands to receive (something) of his neighbor. And they kindled it with fire, and the priests took the babe and put it into the hands of Molech, and the babe gave up the ghost."

Many instances of human sacrifices are found in ancient writers, which may be compared with the description of the Old Testament of the manner in which Molech was worshipped. Molech was the lord and master of the Ammonites; their country was his possession, Jer_49:1, as Moab was the heritage of Chemosh; the princes of the land were the princes of Malcham. Jer_49:3; Amo_1:15. His priests were men of rank, Jer_49:3, taking precedence of the princes. The priests of Molech, like those of other idols, were called Chemarim. 2Ki_23:5; Hos_10:5; Zep_1:4.} the abomination of theAmmorites {The usual name of the descendants of Ammon, the son of Lot (Gen_19:38). From the very beginning (Deu_2:16-20) of their history till they are lost sight of (Jdg_5:2), this tribe is closely associated with the Moabites (Jdg_10:11; 2Ch_20:1; Zep_2:8). Both of these tribes hired Balaam to curse Israel (Deu_23:4). The Ammonites were probably more of a predatory tribe, moving from place to place, while the Moabites were more settled. They inhabited the country east of the Jordan and north of Moab and the Dead Sea, from which they had expelled the Zamzummims or Zuzims (Deu_2:20; Gen_14:5). They are known as the Beni-ammi (Gen_19:38), Ammi or Ammon being worshipped as their chief god. They were of Semitic origin, and closely related to the Hebrews in blood and language. They showed no kindness to the Israelites when passing through their territory, and therefore they were prohibited from "entering the congregation of the Lord to the tenth generation" (Deu_23:3). They afterwards became hostile to Israel (Jdg_3:13). Jephthah waged war against them, and "took twenty cities with a very great slaughter" (Jdg_11:33). They were again signally defeated by Saul (1Sa_11:11). David also defeated them and their allies the Syrians (2Sa_10:6-14), and took their chief city, Rabbah, with much spoil (2Sa_10:14; 2Sa_12:26-31). The subsequent events of their history are noted in 2Ch_20:25; 2Ch_26:8; Jer_49:1; Eze_25:3, Eze_25:6. One of Solomon's wives was Naamah, an Ammonite. She was the mother of Rehoboam (1Ki_14:31; 2Ch_12:13).

The prophets predicted fearful judgments against the Ammonites because of their hostility to Israel (Zep_2:8; Jer_49:1-6; Eze_25:1-5, Eze_25:10; Amo_1:13-15).

The national idol worshipped by this people was Molech or Milcom, at whose altar they offered human sacrifices (1Ki_11:5, 1Ki_11:7). The high places built for this idol by Solomon, at the instigation of his Ammonitish wives, were not destroyed till the time of Josiah (2Ki_23:13).}

Why did God let Solomon and his Father David seemingly get away with so much adultery? The better Question would be: Did God really let them get away with it or were they held up as examples to us of men who DID NOT GET AWAY WITH SIN BECAUSE OF THEIR WEALTH AND INFLUENCE? They payed a HIGH PRICE FOR THEIR PERSONAL SIN BOTH BEFORE GOD AND MAN,DAVID LOST A CHILD & SOLOMON HAD HIS KINGDOM DIVIDED! God does not ignor our sin nor does he let us get away with anything as a TRUE IN-DEPTH STUDY OF HIS DEALING WITH MEN SHOWS,SIN'S ARE PAID IN FULL,SOMETIMES QUICKLY AND SOMETIMES OVER A LIFETIME,BUT REST ASSURED "PAID FOR"! It's the same reason God let's you SEEMINGLY "get away" with disobeying Him when you exceed the speed limit or some other SIN, every day. God is full of mercy and love, and He keeps giving us another chance to get it right in this world,YOU WILL PAY A HIGH PRICE FOR THE PERSONAL DECISION TO DISOBEY GOD. Num 32:23 But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.