During election season, politicians often invoke things like “biblical marriage” and “biblical family values.” But anyone who’s actually read the Bible knows that its families rarely resemble the ideal being advertised.
Abraham has children with two women. Jacob marries two sisters and has children with their servants. David has multiple wives and a dysfunctional household. Solomon has 700 wives and 300 concubines. That’s a lot of anniversary cards.
The New Testament doesn’t settle things. Jesus never marries and redefines family beyond blood relationships. Paul recommends remaining single!
The Bible offers no consistent model of family life. Instead of asking whether our families resemble those in the Bible, perhaps we should ask whether they embody the values Jesus taught: love, compassion, justice, and care for one another. That’s a biblical family worth aspiring to.
