Ellen Chat Conversation

The practice of taking concubines and multiple wives is identified as a direct departure from the divine order established at the beginning of human history. When God created Adam, He provided him with only one wife, setting a permanent standard for the marriage relation (PP 91.3). Any deviation from this arrangement, such as the introduction of polygamy by Lamech, is characterized as a sinful choice that followed the Fall, leading to increased crime, wretchedness, and a disregard for sacred rights (1SP 93.2). Even when practiced by men considered righteous, the possession of a plurality of wives remained a sin and a corruption of God's original design (SR 75.3).

For leaders like King David, the decision to follow the customs of surrounding idolatrous nations by taking multiple wives was a significant error that embittered his life (1SP 377.3). This departure from right principles often served as a precursor to even greater spiritual failures, as seen in the experience of Solomon, whose political alliances and polygamous marriages eventually led to the introduction of paganism and licentious rites into Israel (7MR 74). In the context of secular and idolatrous history, the presence of concubines is frequently associated with scenes of moral decay and the dethronement of reason. During the final feast of Belshazzar, the king’s wives and concubines were participants in a riotous orgy characterized by shameless intoxication and the desecration of sacred vessels (PK 523.3).

This environment of unrestrained indulgence and contempt for the sacred was the setting in which the divine judgment was pronounced against the Babylonian kingdom (CTBH 20.2). The inclusion of concubines in these historical accounts serves as a marker of a society that has prioritized lower impulses and passions over spiritual discernment (SS 273.1). The prophet Daniel specifically highlighted the king's act of drinking wine with his wives and concubines from the temple vessels as evidence of his failure to humble his heart before the Lord (PK 529.3).

Ultimately, the practice of polygamy and the taking of concubines are consistently portrayed as sources of domestic discord, jealousy, and spiritual decline.

You might also want to explore:What did Ellen White teach about the original design for marriage in Eden?How does the influence of worldly customs affect the spiritual life of leaders?What practical counsel did she give regarding the consequences of domestic discord and jealousy?

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