Why did God allow concubines among the faithful? (page 2)

AuldSoul

'Cause Jehovah likes to keep men smiling?

slimboyfat

In Solomon's Israel, for instance, sure the ratio was something like 1:2000.

Gill

SBF! Some of these men are going to be impotent!!

Sad emo

Good answer Qcmbr. One question:

Also from a religious point of view , if God wanted His children to be born into His covenant then surely the more children a righteous man had the better it was.

How is this reconciled with the fact that some children, although born into the Covenant were subsequently rejected from it, eg Ishmael, Esau? Can it really be put down to 'human error' or 'they weren't part of God's plan but a result of disobedience to His will'? It seems a bit harsh to me.

I wonder if concubines were allowed as a way of phasing out temple prostitutes - ~~why pay when you can get it for free?!~~ thus purifying the monotheistic religious practices.

Qcmbr

Gill- I agree with most of your comments but point to these being 'evil' in changing a beautiful relationship to one of domination and power struggle. From my scriptures:

39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion.
40 Hence many are called, but few are chosen.
41 No power or influence can or ought to be maintained by virtue of the priesthood, only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned;
42 By kindness, and pure knowledge, which shall greatly enlarge the soul without hypocrisy, and without guile—

Marriage built wherein the man seeks to serve his wife and family is a step toward happiness. When the man sees his responsibility as that of domination and as one being served by right then he steps over the boundary and we find the sad state of relationships that society has fought for the last 100 years (though by de-empahsising the man's role unfortunately.)

Gill

WHAT GOD?!!!

Sorry here peoples but you've then got to suspend your disbelief that some obscure spirit creature is speaking to a bunch of men and telling them they can have lots of wives/concubines.

Let's get real here. You don't believe that a God is speaking to and directing the FDS of Brooklyn and yet you're willing to believe that this same God told Men that they could have many wives or concubines.

Would you like to explain why you would believe that of a couple of thousand years ago and yet now don't believe the FDS of the WTBTS of Brooklyn or any other religious Cooke!?

Can you explain this to me?

Did god only direct people to do stupid things in the past and not nowadays?

Qcmbr

Hi Emo - I don't think that Ishmael and Esau necessarily lost the covenant right through parentage but if my memory sees me correctly Esau sold his birthright while God promised Abrham that Ishmael would be blessed but it was Isaac that God wanted to make the covenant with - I don't think this was lineage based as much as character based (and as an aside in this scripture I see a slight hint that 'we' existed before we came to earth?!).

17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
18 And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!
19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.
21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

While being born of covenant parents does not guarantee 'righteousness' its generally accepted that the chances of accepting the parent's faith are much greater (in my church we retain more children than new converts - for example I and my wife are both third gen.)

Why did God allow concubines among the faithful?

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