King David had multiple wives - scholars say up to 19 - all of them given to him by the Lord God. In fact, when David committed adultery & murder, the Lord God even told him He would have given him more wives if he would have asked (2 Sam. 12:7-8). In addition, David had an unknown [small] number of concubines.
Wives of King David:
a) In 2 Chronicles 3. In a few sentences it lists all descendants of King David, from his 11 children by 7 wives to descendants of King Solomon, some 30 generations.
b) I Samuel also mentions another wife.
c) Eight wives were named in the Bible, but there were numerous other wives that were not named.
Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, Abigail the Carmelitess, Maachah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur, Haggith, Abital, Eglah, Michal, and Bathshua the daughter of Ammiel.
d) 1 Samuel 19 ALSO identifies Merab who was given to David by her father Saul.
King Solomon had 700 wives & over 300 concubines.
What did the Lord mean when He commanded Israel's king not to multiply wives?
1) Despite what many claim, this is not a prohibition against polygamy. There is, in fact, no such prohibition in Scripture, EXCEPT for Church LEADERS!
2) Except for Maachah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur, ALL of David's wives were from within the nation of Israel. Many of these wives were actually King Saul's wives which David inherited. It is very likely that he had at least one wife from each of the tribes of Israel (12) as a God-ordained way of solidifying the very tribalistic nation around one king. In other words, David's Israelite wives all served a godly purpose.
Geshur was a nation north of Israel, & more importantly is NOT one of the nations which God commanded Israel to totally destroy.
In all likelihood, since David was very much against the enemies of the Lord, all of his concubines were also from the various tribes within Israel as gifts to the king.
3) The overwhelming majority of Solomon's wives, however, were from foreign nations. Just as David's Israelite wives solidified internal relations, Solomon's wives were used to solidify treaties with outside nations. These wives all worshiped the lesser foreign gods Israel was commanded to war against. In the end, Solomon's foreign wives turned his heart from the Lord God, just as He said would happen.
In other words, although David did have multiple wives, with the exception of Maachah, these were all allowed in order for him to solidify his kingdom from within. Even Maachah was allowed by God according to His testimony regarding the multiple wives of David. The point being, David did not multiply wives for HIMSELF - he multiplied wives for the KINGDOM!
David NEVER allowed any of his wives to lead him astray from the Lord God!
Solomon, on the other hand, did the opposite. Even allowing for some treaty marriages, 700 wives is excessive. The only reason for a number this large is selfishness & pride. Add to this the 300+ concubines & it becomes clear Solomon's motivation is himself, not God.
Of course, the final nail in Solomon's coffin is all the temples & idols he constructed for his various wives - the very reason the Lord God commanded the king NOT to multiply his wives.