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WIFE

The ordinance of marriage was sanctioned in Paradise (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:4). Monogamy was the original law under which man lived, but polygamy early commenced (Gen. 4:19), and continued to prevail all down through Jewish history. The law of Moses regulated but did not prohibit polygamy. A man might have a plurality of wives, but a wife could have only one husband. A wife's legal rights (Exo 21:10) and her duties (Prov. 31:10; 1-Tim 5:14) are specified. She could be divorced in special cases (Deut. 22:13), but could not divorce her husband. Divorce was restricted by our Lord to the single case of adultery (Matt. 19:3). The duties of husbands and wives in their relations to each other are distinctly set forth in the New Testament (1-Cor 7:2; Eph. 5:22; Col. 3:18, Col. 3: 19; 1-Pet 3:1).