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Far Above Rubies

Oh, my, Nick: nothing could be further from the truth than that you caused me any pain or grief.
Good
I frequently assert with all sincerity that 2021 was the best year of my life after 1972, because the adversity of something that occurred in my family which I now refer to as The Coup inspired me to take a hard turn toward patriarchal leadership from my previous go-with-the-flow more gradual approach to being a man (1972 formerly had top honors because I fell out of a hearse onto a Texas highway at 55mph).
Excellent story btw
Please continue bragging on your wife.
Thank you, though, for your concern. I'm honored.
Ok, good cause I really do want to praise her and call her blessed. It’s always something I’m a bit uncertain about doing though. Concerned I’m going to come across as gloating over having a treasure that others don’t. One of those things a guy just has to get used to navigating i guess.
 
Good

Excellent story btw


Ok, good cause I really do want to praise her and call her blessed. It’s always something I’m a bit uncertain about doing though. Concerned I’m going to come across as gloating over having a treasure that others don’t. One of those things a guy just has to get used to navigating i guess.
NEVER hesitate. If where an individual goes is toward bitter envy, that's a personal problem, and there's no reason why anyone should hide his or her joy just because someone else will "feel bad."
 
NEVER hesitate. If where an individual goes is toward bitter envy, that's a personal problem, and there's no reason why anyone should hide his or her joy just because someone else will "feel bad."
Thanks! Good word. I'll remember that.
 
But if a man is a private and has yet to earn his rank then he also has yet to earn anyone else's respect and he should not expect their submission.

So if a man wants to be treated like a general then he can't act like a private.
Do you think by submitting to him first that would possibly encourage him to step up and act better as a man? Or is it a risk you're not willing to take?
 
Do you think by submitting to him first that would possibly encourage him to step up and act better as a man? Or is it a risk you're not willing to take?
I've often made this point. I saw it made somewhere more eloquently but the idea is that to an extent, people get what they put in. Especially in a culture that treats female submission as alien, and with relations between the sexes (all two of them in case anyone needs clarification...) strained.

In my life, I've been inspired to become better because of people who have asked better of me. Parents, teachers, bosses, mentors in faith. So in a world where so few women show gentleness of spirit or the values a wise man seeks, for a woman to signal those values can very much spur a man to stepping up and taking dominion and further embracing his God given role.

Now, that's not to say a woman should blindly marry any man. But there's a difference between a man who has the right heart and is growing in that direction, and is simply in need of someone to lead, vs the man who wouldn't lead regardless. I was raised with enough of a foundation in those values that when I looked at the dating pool vs. what I had seen modeled by the women in my family, I knew something was missing. With prayer and study, I made the connection.

Another example I would use is parenting. Some men no matter how many children they donate sperm to make will never be responsible fathers. They never embrace the role, or the responsibility. While other men (my father being one of them) had every reason to doubt themselves and even be a bit intimidated by that responsibility, but with prayer, grace and hard work, rose to the occasion and did their duty admirably.

My belief is, ideally, a man and a woman (or women) grounded in the right values and committed to growth, deepen their respective roles of masculine and feminine over time. But they have to be rooted properly for that growth to happen.
 
Do you think by submitting to him first that would possibly encourage him to step up and act better as a man? Or is it a risk you're not willing to take?
I think Megan was saying if a man isn’t worthy of that level of submission he needs to worry about his own behavior and excellence.

Personal responsibility is the primary concern.

Both men and women need to not be concerned with whether or not the other spouse is doing their job. And should first make sure they are doing their job and taking care of their responsibilities.
 
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Do you think by submitting to him first that would possibly encourage him to step up and act better as a man? Or is it a risk you're not willing to take?
Possibly, but betting the rest of your life on that risk is not a wise idea.
You have a chance to pick a man who is obviously not a private, why take a chance that could turn out to be stupid?
 
Possibly, but betting the rest of your life on that risk is not a wise idea.
You have a chance to pick a man who is obviously not a private, why take a chance that could turn out to be stupid?
Absolutely agree here! To clarify I was speaking to a situation where a woman already finds herself bound to a man and realizes her choice was poor and her man is unworthy of her esteem. Her best course of action is to count him as worthy of her esteem, and focus on herself and her behavior and attitude.
 
Do you think by submitting to him first that would possibly encourage him to step up and act better as a man? Or is it a risk you're not willing to take?

This topic is titled "Far Above Rubies".

In the spirit of that title I say that a precious gift will be valued more than a cheap gift. Speaking only for myself there were things I wanted and required of a potential family and potential husband and those things had to be there before I gave my life to my husband and family. Even then it was a huge risk for me because when I committed there was no going back. Some things cannot be undone.
 
Absolutely agree here! To clarify I was speaking to a situation where a woman already finds herself bound to a man and realizes her choice was poor and her man is unworthy of her esteem. Her best course of action is to count him as worthy of her esteem, and focus on herself and her behavior and attitude.
And I want to make sure I say this as well. A similar instance applies to men. If you realize your woman is (surprise!) human and fallible, imperfect and unlovely.

You count her as perfect and lovely. Wash her daily with God’s word and your words. Make sure your words are healing cool water and not acid and venom.

Teach and encourage. Build her up. Find her rough edges and smooth them out. Wrinkles of disuse need to be identified and rectified. If she lacks confidence, gently put her in positions where she will be forced to be uncomfortable and grow in experience. This creates confidence.

Oftentimes our perspective can shape our reality. God counts those who love and obey Him as righteous through Jesus. We aren’t worthy of that reckoning. I am not worthy of the reverence Catie gives me, and she is not worthy of the honor I give her. But like God calls us righteous, I call her perfect, and she calls me Lord.
 
But if a man is a private and has yet to earn his rank then he also has yet to earn anyone else's respect and he should not expect their submission.

So if a man wants to be treated like a general then he can't act like a private.
I am not being any kinda way but it seems like you are saying it's good to be submissive unless your husband isn't doing what he is supposed to? He has to basically earn his general status before women will submit? Is that a correct interpretation?
 
I am not being any kinda way but it seems like you are saying it's good to be submissive unless your husband isn't doing what he is supposed to? He has to basically earn his general status before women will submit? Is that a correct interpretation?
I see this as behavioural expectations.

General must behave as general. If he behaves as private no one will soon take him seriously.

Leader can't behave as follower and expect to be treated as leader.
 
I am not being any kinda way but it seems like you are saying it's good to be submissive unless your husband isn't doing what he is supposed to? He has to basically earn his general status before women will submit? Is that a correct interpretation?

Yes. I know this upsets a lot of the patriarchal men on this site but the reality is that no woman including their wives has to submit to them just because it's in the Bible. This is especially true if they want to add a woman to their family.

What I mean here is as a woman choosing this life comes with great personal sacrifice especially if you're going to be a plural.

The man you do this for has to be more than just an average man or else why make this sacrifice? Why not just marry an average man and have him to yourself?
 
The man you do this for has to be more than just an average man or else why make this sacrifice? Why not just marry an average man and have him to yourself?
Megan, you are a tremendous and amazing high-value woman hampered only by autism and a bit of previously-lived trauma. You are thus in the far-above-rubies category, but the answer to your question is that (a) the majority of unmarried women aren't even average, and (b) there are significantly more unmarried women seeking marriage than there are unmarried men seeking marriage, and thus (c) the average unmarried woman doesn't come close to having the luxury to marry an average man and have him all to herself. Especially given the continued stigma about plural marriage, yes, in a partial sense, you're correct that, if she's willing to share a husband, the average unmarried woman has the leverage to expect a better class of man than she would otherwise acquire -- but even with that stigma firmly in place the average unmarried woman is light years away from being able to demand a significantly-better-than-average man if she's willing to share him, and this will only become exacerbated as the stigma abates -- which it will. No one can force women to accept the level of men they deserve, but none of that will stop the women who hold out for higher than they deserve from dying alone in poverty with their cats and dogs . . . and rats and squirrels.

Both sides of the gender line are in need of acquiring a much more realistic outlook about their true Sexual/Mating/Marriage Marketplace Values. Among men, this is most especially true among those of us seeking plural marriage in the context of the overwhelming societal opposition that still exists (my advice to me is to be honest about what one's SMV would be if one were single, and then cut that number at least in half), but, among women, delusions related to failure to face up to SMV are close to universal, plural marriage or no plural marriage.

Generally speaking, an unmarried woman simply doesn't have a leg to stand on when she begins to expect that she deserves a high-value man just because she's willing to 'settle' for polygyny. Delusion (bordering on mental illness) is rampant in our predominantly progressive feminist culture these days, though, so it's so much the norm that it appears to be righteous, but that doesn't make it so.
 
Yes. I know this upsets a lot of the patriarchal men on this site but the reality is that no woman including their wives has to submit to them just because it's in the Bible. This is especially true if they want to add a woman to their family.

What I mean here is as a woman choosing this life comes with great personal sacrifice especially if you're going to be a plural.

The man you do this for has to be more than just an average man or else why make this sacrifice? Why not just marry an average man and have him to yourself?
Would also like to add that as a single female seeking to join a family, there are many more options for us vs a man/family looking to add an additional wife. Women have the upper-hand in choosing not only a family but the right family.

Men seeking additional wives seem far more open to settling just for the sake of having something new and/or expanding their family.

A single woman would be a bit foolish not to take her time and weigh all of her options first.
 
A single woman would be a bit foolish not to take her time and weigh all of her options first.
As is anyone who jumps into marriage without not only weighing options but being realistic about them.

My experience with men seeking plural families is that most don't just end up
settling just for the sake of having something new and/or expanding their family.
Some do, but no matter what realm of human behavior one focuses on, some do just about any stupid thing. What I'm observing on the main is large numbers of men desiring polygyny but being unwilling to just take any random woman who holds up her hand. Most -- and I mean the vast majority -- remain married to one one wife.

I would be careful as a woman to avoid concluding that you
have the upper-hand in choosing not only a family but the right family
For sure, you should be discriminating, because, what is that thing they say? -- only fools rush in where angels fear to tread -- but my concern with the men seeking polygyny isn't that they're under-cautious but that many also have far too many deal-breaker conditions just like women do, so I'm regularly encouraging men to broaden their level of generosity to include a greater range of women. So both sides of the equation are risking making the perfect the enemy of the good. Why this is more disadvantageous for single women, though, is that, when single women are too picky or overinflate their SMV, they end up out in the cold -- whereas the married wanna-be-polygynists and their wives still end up in each other's arms.
 
So both sides of the equation are risking making the perfect the enemy of the good. Why this is more disadvantageous for single women, though, is that, when single women are too picky or overinflate their SMV, they end up out in the cold -- whereas the married wanna-be-polygynists and their wives still end up in each other's arms
True. And there is nothing wrong with being happily monogamous either!

That was nice.....but I wouldn't go back if I could. :)
 
As is anyone who jumps into marriage without not only weighing options but being realistic about them.

My experience with men seeking plural families is that most don't just end up

Some do, but no matter what realm of human behavior one focuses on, some do just about any stupid thing. What I'm observing on the main is large numbers of men desiring polygyny but being unwilling to just take any random woman who holds up her hand. Most -- and I mean the vast majority -- remain married to one one wife.

I would be careful as a woman to avoid concluding that you

For sure, you should be discriminating, because, what is that thing they say? -- only fools rush in where angels fear to tread -- but my concern with the men seeking polygyny isn't that they're under-cautious but that many also have far too many deal-breaker conditions just like women do, so I'm regularly encouraging men to broaden their level of generosity to include a greater range of women. So both sides of the equation are risking making the perfect the enemy of the good. Why this is more disadvantageous for single women, though, is that, when single women are too picky or overinflate their SMV, they end up out in the cold -- whereas the married wanna-be-polygynists and their wives still end up in each other's arms.
My experience with men seeking plural families is that most don't just end up
That's interesting because from the men/families I've spoken to, a lot have tried and failed at Polygamy. Some quite often. I'm not blaming the men for settling primarily. I think men moving too fast and settling combined with the fact that women have many options even if they chose to leave the relationship both play roles in the relationship's demise at times. I'm sure other factors come into play though. Just as it does in monogamous relationships as well.

but my concern with the men seeking polygyny isn't that they're under-cautious but that many also have far too many deal-breaker conditions just like women do,
I've personally not had this experience too often. I've found the majority of the people i've spoken with to be open to compromise. Even the ones who want a strictly biblical marriage. Then again saying and doing are two different things.

Why this is more disadvantageous for single women, though, is that, when single women are too picky or overinflate their SMV, they end up out in the cold -- whereas the married wanna-be-polygynists and their wives still end up in each other's arms
If I understand what you're saying correctly, it's essentially "don't be too picky and miss your opportunity while doing so?"

I have mixed feelings about this. I think the "you're going to die alone with your cats, dog, rats, donkeys" etc. lol is used as more of a threat to single women than a reality. First- the risk of ending up alone is still a risk one takes even while being married. Unfortunately a lot of women and men end up spending many years alone because they out survived their spouses.

In reality even being single. Many of us have families, close friends, pets etc. and many Polygamist families have been welcoming to older widowed women from my experience speaking with them.
 
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