I'm not quite sure what Abram was thinking when he slept with Sarai's maidservant, but it's pretty obvious here that he made a bad judgment. I once had someone ask me why it is that God allowed things like polygamy back in the early days that are not allowed now. My response is that God allows things that are outside of His will, and because those things are not His desire, they will ultimately come with consequences. Such is the case of Abram and Sarai. Another example is later on when we will read about Israel's desire for a king. All along God's intention was to be Israel's king, but they wanted someone they could see and cling to. God allowed this to take place, but it was outside of his desires for the Israelites, and they ultimately paid consequences for what they did. When deciding whether or not God's plan is worth following, my advice is to stick with it. And honestly, no offense to any of my female readers, what man would want more than one wife? I'm not yet married, but I've been told by others that one wife is more than enough.
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About Seth
Seth is a pastor, author, and speaker who lives in Batesville, Indiana. He is married to Kari, and they have two daughters, Madelyn and Noelle.
Genesis 16-18
Once again a woman arrives on the scene not knowing how her actions will affect all of humanity from that point on. The ramifications of Sarai sending her husband “into” Haggar sent shock waves into history, as did Eve’s actions in the Garden of Eden. I don’t believe these women had any inclination of the chain of events that would spew forth from their actions. I’m scared to think of how the choices I have made in life will affect my children, my grandchildren, and so on. Another parallel between Eve and Sarai is the weakness we see in their husbands where they are concerned. In both instances we see the Lord talking directly to these men only for them to take their wives’ advice or manipulation over what God had commanded or promised. Who is more in the wrong? -The wife for tempting her husband or the husband for not saying, “You know sweetheart, ‘As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.’-even when it doesn’t make sense”? How often do we take the advice of man over the commandments or promises of God? Reaping and sowing and the process of the sins of the father being passed to the son are simple enough concepts, but we continue to feed our selfish desires. Thankfully the Lord offers consolation prizes to those who will return to him in repentance. They’re called grace and mercy. However, nothing compares to the blessings and protection of absolute trust and obedience.
Pastor Seth,
I don’t think you should say things like that, if you ever really do want to have a wife.
I would think most women would be happy not to share a husband with someone else! Plus, I’m pretty sure I could be happy with just one wife! 🙂