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Polygamy
In
Sura 4, An-Nisa, aya 3 , Allah gives permission to
the believers to marry up to four wives provided they treat
all of them justly. Whoever fears not to keep balance between
them is told to be content with only one. In aya 23 of the
same Sura, Allah restricts this permission in a way that
certain blood relationships make a marriage impossible. The
same kind of restrictions are mentioned in Leviticus
(3rd Book of Moses)
18.17-18:
“You shall not uncover the
nakedness of a woman and of her daughter, and you shall not
take her son's daughter or her daughter's daughter to
uncover her nakedness; they are your near kinswomen; it is
wickedness. And you shall not take a woman as a rival wife
to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is
yet alive.”
These orders deal with
restrictions in marrying more than one woman. The term
“uncovering her nakedness” relates – as other
Bible translations also proof – to matrimonial relationship,
it does not mean pre – matrimonial relations which are anyhow
strictly prohibited (Genesis (1st Book of Moses)
20.14 and Deuteronomy (5th book of
Moses) 5.18). Therefore it is clearly spoken of a rival wife.
The fact that people of a certain blood relationship are
excluded to be married as a second or rival wife, necessarily
lets conclude that besides these restrictions polygamy is
normally permitted. A limitation of the number of wives
possibly to be married, like the Qur’anic limitation to four,
we do not find in Biblical reports. The stories on former
prophets do also tell us that it had been permitted to marry
more than one wife.
1st Chronicles 14.3
relates:
“And David took
more wives in Jerusalem, and David begot more sons and
daughters.”
We have already cited
Matthew 5.17-19 to proof that the rules of the Old Testament are still to be
considered valid after Jesus had been sent.
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