What Does the Bible Say About Mormon Temple Marriages?

Mormonism teaches that when a couple gets married in the LDS Temple, they are being married for time and all eternity or as they say "being sealed to each other for eternity." According to Mormonism a worldly marriage is good only until death (until death do u part). In order for a marriage to last in the afterlife a couple must be "sealed" to each other in an LDS temple.

Mormons generally use Matthew 16:19 to prove that marriage is for eternity or "----whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth, shall be bound in Heaven,----." They fail to look at what the full meaning for this scripture is. When we look down the road a couple of chapters we see Jesus using this same phrase when speaking to His disciples (Matthew 18:18). In context Jesus is talking about a brother (believer) who has sinned against another believer. If the believer refuses to listen to fellow believers and the Church, he is to be treated as pagan or a tax collector (Matthew 18:15-17). If this be the case then it is bound on earth and in heaven. This brings greater clarity to John 20:23, which reads, "Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whosoever sins ye retain, they are retained." In other words, if I sin against someone and they don't forgive me and I don't repent, then going back to Matthew we see that Jesus is saying that we will both have to answer to God on judgment day because it is bound on earth and it will be bound in heaven. However, if I repent and that person forgives me, then going back to Matthew we see that it goes on to say "----and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." In other words, God has forgiven both parties because of the repenting and forgiveness. What we find is that this passage in Matthew is not talking about marriage for eternity, but instead is talking about the forgiveness of sins.

But let's go on and look at this further. In Matthew 22:23 you will find the full story about the Sadducees who came to Jesus with the question about what would be the marital status in the next life of a woman who married an oldest brother who then dies and by Jewish laws she was required to marry the next brother, who also died, as did each of the seven brothers she had to marry upon the death of each one. The question that was asked by the Sadducees was who would be her husband in the next life since she had married all of them in succession. Matthew 22:29-30 says, "Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven." Mark 12:24-25 says, "And Jesus answering said unto them, Do you not therefore err, because ye know not, the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry , nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven." And in Luke 20:34-36 we read, "And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry and are given in marriage: But they which shall be counted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: Neither can they die anymore: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection." So now we have three of the apostles, who heard Jesus speaking on this very subject, and all record it the way in which He said it and meant it. The people who believed those married here on earth would also be married in heaven were, according to Jesus, in error.

So when we look at the Mormon doctrine of eternal marriage in the temple, we find that it was believed by the pagan Sadducees and not a doctrine of Christ.

When we look at the Bible, we see in Romans 7:2 that Paul says, "For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband." So the statement of, "until death do us part" or "as long as we both shall live" is according to the scriptures in the Bible.

A final thought about this is that although the Mormon temple marriage for eternity holds a very high priority in the life of a Mormon, it's interesting to see that it cannot be found in the Book of Mormon. Yet Joseph Smith said in Doctrine & Covenants 27:5 that the Book of Mormon was the "fulness of the everlasting gospel." If it's the complete gospel we should be able to find something on eternal marriage, as well as most all the doctrines of Mormonism in the Book of Mormon. They can't be found!