Which god Commanded Polygamy?
Joshua 24:14-15; “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. 15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
This verse only became real for me after I left Mormonism. It never occurred to me as a Mormon that I actually had a choice! It seemed surreal for quite some time after I became a Christian that I could choose who I would serve and worship.
Now while that scenario may seem odd to those who grew up in a Christian home, this is a new reality for every single Mormon who leaves his or her heritage for the Jesus of the Bible! It seemed even stranger to me when studying the Old Testament post Mormonism and began relating to those who were worshipping the false idols God warned the Israelites about in their journeys. While many people in this world haven’t experienced the insides of temples like Mormons have, nor have they dumped cult gods.
When I read this section of the Contributor, the first thing that jumped out at me was how Smith phrased his experience. He said;
“The same God that has thus far dictated me and directed me …on celestial and plural marriage, and the same God commanded me to obey it.”
Why doesn’t Joseph Smith ever give details of this god? In Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, pg 348, he gave his Hebrew interpretation for the word create but it was wrong, and aside from that we see no other place in his collection of teachings where he provides the correct Hebrew translations of any words, including God.