A socially proper man could and would have sex with his wives, concubines, and slave women. This was not only acceptable but admired and in some cases commanded. For those who doubt the accuracy of this comment, I will refer you to Henry Alford, the Dean of Canterbury, who spent twenty years of his life writing the definitive four-volume work on the New Testament. His clear statement was that up through the second century, polygamy was the prevalent family structure. He made it clear that Justin Martyr (AD 100 – 165) confirmed that Rabbis allowed men to have four or five wives, plus concubines, and slaves. Again, for those of us who want to argue the subject, this was the practice for thousands of years in a culture that was extremely legalistic. There is no way that those clergy would allow a practice that was believed to be sinful. Remember, Jesus specifically stated that he did not come to do away with the Law or the Prophets. The idea that things became unlawful after Jesus arrived on the scene is simply a fabrication. In fact, it wasn’t until the pathologically errant ascetic influence over Christianity and, as a result, Judaism, that the idea of monogamy was invented to force women to marry gentile men who would struggle to provide for them and their children. The complaint was that some men had multiple wives and other men none. This was an attempt to appease the envy and gain the approval of less capable men.
Remember, during that time, there were no single, professional women other than temple prostitutes, and those were primarily Roman and Grecian pagans. If a woman wasn’t married, or a concubine or slave, there was no means for her survival. Unlike the fanciful television series that portrays groups of single women in their twenties hanging around Jesus and the Apostles, that simply could not have happened. Girls who were experiencing menstruation were betrothed, usually before they began their periods.
Betrothal of that time wasn’t like the concept of engagement we have today. In that society, a girl of twelve or thirteen, usually before she began her monthly cycles, was placed in another family’s home. That situation would either have been with the contractual prospect of marrying a son of that family, or more often, to marry the man of the house, who would have other wives. I won’t go into all of the discussion of how these arrangements were made. Still, girls were used to secure business relationships and strategic alliances for purposes other than the love they might feel for their intended husband. Romantic love really wasn’t a thing to be considered. Even as late as the fourteenth century, Christian girls as young as six were married. For example, an English King’s marriage to a six-year-old girl of French royalty. It is said that the marriage wasn’t consummated because he died before her twelfth birthday. It seems twelve was an acceptable age in the Christian church of the time. I am not certain. Given the traditions surrounding marriage and the proofs of them being consummated, it seems far-fetched that it wasn’t, but the story remains. I can tell you with absolute certainty that marriages of thirteen- and fourteen-year-old girls were not uncommon in the United States in the 1900s. I have met many people who have told me of grandmothers who were married at 13 and 14, and mine was. I recently met a 72-year-old woman who told me that in her grandmother’s American community (the 1930s and 40s), a girl of 15 who wasn’t engaged or married was rare.
So, the practice was that a girl’s marriage was negotiated, and she went to live with the family of her intended. This assured that her virginity could not be compromised, or, if it was, her parents could not be blamed. Then, when she was around 14, she would be married and the union consummated. It was expected that she would display blood on their sheets the morning after her husband’s first penetration of her.
Their marriage was mostly as we would imagine, although there was no expectation of being in a monogamous relationship. In fact, if you were, it was most likely a shameful situation where your husband could not afford more wives, slaves, or concubines. That probably meant a life of poverty and social stigma for you and your children. Families usually sold their daughters rather than subject them to that fate.
A concubine was a woman who didn’t qualify for marriage, but her family negotiated a situation for her. Compensation was expected, regardless of her relationship status. Girls were economically valuable, but less so to her birth family, as women provided labor and children, which meant more labor as well. Girls didn’t go to school (see the movie Yentl, set in 1904 Poland). Women rarely owned businesses, although they did conduct commerce. They grew and sold crops and raised animals as part of the family enterprise.
A female slave was usually sold by her father because there was some status issue, or perhaps because of her appearance. He would not have allowed her to be left unattended because if she had sex and became pregnant, it would reflect badly on him, and he would probably lose her to minimal compensation or a sentence of being stoned to death. The option was to sell her as an indentured servant when she was old enough to perform some simple work. Unlike male slaves, who were liberated during jubilee years, female slaves were not set free because they would have had children by their owners.
The word “Adultery” does not mean for a married person to have sex outside of marriage. Adultery means for a man to use his penis to have vaginal sex with another man’s wife. A married man cannot commit adultery with an unmarried woman, and two women can’t commit adultery by engaging in sexual activity. For that matter, technically, a married woman doesn’t commit adultery by engaging in oral sex or masturbation with a man other than her husband. However, that would not be assumed if she were found with another man. This was a matter of lineage and inheritance. It is the theft of the husband’s property, her fertility, that is the issue, not simply the act itself. If a man’s wife had sex with another man, it would have been unclear who her next child would be from. Even today, there are specific laws in some cultures surrounding how many months a widowed woman has to wait to remarry, more than four months. Many cultures are not very knowledgeable about biology.
The word Fornication does not mean sex between two unmarried people. First off, there are at least five different words that I have found in the original languages that were all translated into the word “Fornication”. All of those seem to imply consuming something in an unlawful manner, especially in idolatry. I believe some other elements of this conversation are lost in time, and I struggle to get clarity on them. The specific element of this is “unlawful sexual behavior,” but in many cases of the original texts, that meaning is not clear. In other words, the term “Unlawful sexual acts” is used, but the specifics of what those acts were are rarely clarified. I know what various commentators have said, but their arguments are inconsistent. How does it make sense that in one situation the word is used in the context of eating, then in another scripture it is implied to be sexual and associated with lawlessness? I can only assume that the translators made mistakes, or perhaps it is the consuming or theft of property in an unlawful manner. Therefore, the term applies to conditions other than those a legal, fertile woman would find herself in, betrothal/marriage, concubinage, and slavery.
The term “Fornication” has a broad application in modern culture, but seems to be far more restrictive in the original texts. I have some concerns that the interpretations and translations aren’t getting a clear picture here. For instance, no one can argue that “fornication” was considered to be biblically discouraged, although there are no specific punishments prescribed. In the case of sexual acts, this is not the case. Punishments are clear. This is NOT a matter of immorality when it comes to sex. The word “Immoral” does not even occur in the King James Bible. The word most often referred to is “Unlawful.” Many people today would say that sex is only allowed inside marriage, but that is clearly not scriptural. Even Paul specifically describes how Christians should treat their slaves, and sex with slaves was clearly allowed, and he didn’t forbid it.
The common element in all of those legitimized practices is that there was a provision for the children. Eating pagan temple food is fornication, and having sex with a temple harlot is fornication (almost always anal intercourse). Those two practices seem to be clearly described. Two kids messing around in the fields isn’t described as fornication. It might be other things, and in older times, it meant they would be quickly married, but it isn’t fornication because the concept of fornication seems to be the unlawfulness. If you have any questions on that, refer to Exodus 22. There are many interesting passages that relate to these subjects, such as the practice of a dowry or bride price. Leviticus 19: 20-22, for instance. The focus seems to be on the economic value of sex, NOT the lawful nature of it. I therefore think that there is something missing from this conversation about the term Fornication, since the word clearly describes something that is against the law.
As I researched this subject over the past fifty years, I have always found one passage of scripture particularly amusing. In 1 Samuel 18:25 – 27, King Saul wanted 100 Philistine foreskins as a dowry for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The story is that he wanted David to be killed while gathering his bride price. David gave him 200. I’m imagining what that pile of flesh looked like and the look on Michal’s face as her dowry was presented. No one can say the Bible isn’t funny.
By comparison, I got off easily; all my wife’s family wanted was money.
The term “asceticism” is another word that is important in this conversation. Before the second-century church, which started when John died, prosperity was considered a blessing. It was associated all through scripture as being something Godly men achieved by adhering to the wisdom of scripture. There are hundreds of verses in the Bible that link righteousness, wisdom, and prosperity. A commonly cited example is 3 John 2 that states: “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” Further, we are told in Proverbs 13:22 that: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”
Part 4) coming
Author website. vscampbell.com
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