It was the Lord who instituted marriage in Genesis 2:21-24 where we read, “And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”  In making Eve, the Lord was aware of Adam’s loneliness and need of help, so He said in Genesis 2:18, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.”  Having taken Eve from Adam’s side, the Lord decreed that “a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh.”

Notice the singularity in this institution…ONE man cleaving unto ONE woman, and they becoming ONE flesh.  In repeating this truth, the Lord Jesus said in Matthew 19:4-6, “Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.”  Notice that it is ‘two becoming one’.  Throughout the Word of God, marriage has always consisted of one man and one woman.  We have that same singularity shown to us in Ephesians, chapter 5.  Verse 23 says, “For the husband is the head of the wife…”  Verse 28 says, “He that loveth his wife loveth himself.”  Verse 31 repeats the standard of marriage by saying, “…and they two shall be one flesh.”  In reading the Old Testament, we can find several examples of men having multiple wives.  The Lord obviously tolerated this, but we never see that the Lord condoned this behavior.  Every clear teaching about marriage was always taught that it should be one man and one woman.

You asked if a believer could have two wives and still obtain the favor of God and still see God.  Let me answer your question with a question.  If you see clearly that the Lord does not want a man to have more than one wife, why would you want to disobey God’s Word and have another wife?  If you are truly saved, isn’t it your desire to please your savior and Lord?  The Lord spoke concerning His Father in John 8:29, “…I do always those things that please him.”  Should not that be the attitude of all of us who now know God as our Father through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ?  Instead of asking, “Can I still do this…”; the question for the believer should be, “How can I please the Lord with my life?”  Colossians 1:10-11 instructs us to, “…walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.”  (175.1)cv