Did Joseph Smith really teach that he could take other men’s wives for eternity? Early Mormon leaders, such as Heber C. Kimball, claimed that Joseph would have the authority to assign women in the afterlife to faithful male followers — even if those women had not chosen them in mortality. This doctrine of “eternal polygamy” mirrors practices found in Islam, where promises of heavenly wives are also made. Historically, both Joseph Smith and Muhammad were married to young girls—Smith to girls as young as 14, and Muhammad to Aisha, whom he consummated marriage with at age 9.
But Jesus presents a radically different view of life after death. In heaven, there is no marriage. He taught clearly: “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” (Matthew 22:30). The Bible emphasizes that eternal life is not dependent on marital status or human arrangements but on faith in Christ: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).
Scripture warns against following man-made traditions or teachings that distort God’s truth: “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ” (Colossians 2:8). The idea of distributing wives in heaven undermines God’s holiness and the clear teaching of Christ on the resurrection.
In this video, we examine and contrast Mormon and Islamic teachings on eternal marriage with the unchanging truth of Jesus Christ. By highlighting Scripture’s authority, we see that God’s design for heaven and eternal life is radically different from human inventions or religious speculation.
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John 17:17). Eternal life is found only in Christ, not in human-devised rules about marriage or polygamy.
