I read recently a post on Facebook of a well intending Christian that wanted to interpret Ex. 21:10  that says, “if a man takes a second wife, he must continue to give his first the same amount of food and clothing and the same rights that she had before.” I read it and thought to myself, “i am certain i know where this is going.” Sure enough, it went exactly as i had anticipated. She went on to say,
“we associate polygamy with ATR or Islam, looks like we’v got it too and the same conditions apply. keep in mind, this isnt adultery if ‘nothing’ happens before marriage to e 2nd wife.” And then does the  almighty suplex question to just run me over with fury. She asked
“why does the church then not accept polygamy?”

I read through the numerous  comments, the brilliant analysis, the critical questions and the downright  inane and frivolous arguments for and against this scripture.
It was and still is my humble opinion to just make no bones about. There has to be a way to get facts and have them stand in perfect harmony with the TRUTH!. These back and forth ordeals between skeptics and believers must have a silver lining somewhere. And to me, these ordeals have made the Christian smarter.. or at least they are trying to smartly apply their faith a lot more.

However in discussions such as this one, it is hard to fathom how our own intelligence and interpretation of scripture can make us look more crass than erudite. They went on about the absolutes of the assumed, the falsities of emotional and subjective interpretations, they argued on the thin-iced basis of literal interpretation. It was a mess reading it all.

There were some however, that showed a tremendous level of astuteness that held them on a stable theological acumen. I salute them that do TRY! It is a long and dangerously threatening ordeal to the faith! But they held their end! To my comrades in arms… To the Army that fight the most holy of wars, the wars of the heart, I salute!

To elucidate from all I have observed and read about the scripture and the law at large,  this was my response.

 Paul, Peter, James and all the men of God didn’t need scriptural backing to all agree on monogamy, especially among the elders of the church. I know all too well, as do the rest of us, the mayhem, the chaos,the jealousy, the outright evil that wreaks in polygamous families. Poverty, depression and loneliness have curved out into normalcy. I have seen first hand(as have most-if not all) what wreckage polygamy inflicts on the hearts of little boys-that grow to become like their forefathers,.. Irresponsible, indignant and driven by hate and anger. i have seen the hopelessness of girls that grow to become bitter and vicious mothers that feed on the misery of their co-wives’ children! Polygamy is the most fertile ground for the breaking down of basic moral conduct all over the world. This break down in morals is fueled by envy and (with just the right amount) drives the home into utter ruin.Ruined homes that make ruined communities, ruin nations! A curse that has been passed down form generation to generation since the fall of man. In polygamous families generally,(especially here in Africa) one need not go to hell to know it exists.
In the scripture quoted, my quarrel with the  interpretation(or at least what was interpreted in the discos is that the emphasis is solely on polygamy and hardly on the conditions for polygamy. For a man to pull off the idea of equal, unequivocal and absolute love for more that two women, he would have to have two of everything. Two brains, two hearts… two unmentionables!

So my point is that because the scripture above was and still is clearly impossible to fulfill,( as the rest of the law is) the message of Grace ushered in a better relational way to “always be at peace with all men” . Monogamy, is not only the Godly thing to do, It is the logical and rational way to live and love considering our weaknesses and those of others we have no control over.