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{{cquote|8 But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; 9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; 11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. (] 1:8–11 KJV)<ref name="1T1,8-11">{{Bibleverse|1|Timothy|1:8-11|KJV}}</ref>}} {{cquote|8 But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; 9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; 11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. (] 1:8–11 KJV)<ref name="1T1,8-11">{{Bibleverse|1|Timothy|1:8-11|KJV}}</ref>}}


Most scholars hold that Paul had two passages of the ], {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|18:22}} and {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|20:13}}, in mind when he used the word ἀρσενοκοῖται, which may be of his coinage.<ref name="dict"></ref> with most commentators and translators interpreting it as a reference to male same-sex intercourse.<ref></ref> However, John Boswell states that it historically was not used to refer to homosexuality,{{Failed verification|date=July 2013}} and declares that in later Christian literature the word is used, for instance, by ] (c. 138) clearly not for homosexuality and possibly for prostitution, ] (d. c. 340) who evidently used it in reference to women, and in the writings of 6th-century ]. In a passage dealing with sexual misconduct, John speaks of ''arsenokoitia'' as active or passive and says that "many men even commit the sin of ''arsenokoitia'' with their wives". Although the constituent elements of the compound word refer to sleeping with men, he obviously does not use it to mean homosexual intercourse and appears to employ it for anal intercourse, not generic homosexual activity.<ref>{{Cite book |first=John |last=Boswell |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=v-MR5_AdG68C |title=Christianity, social tolerance, and homosexuality: gay people in Western Europe from the beginning of the Christian era to the fourteenth century |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-226-06711-7}}</ref> Most scholars hold that Paul had two passages of the ], {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|18:22}} and {{bibleverse-nb||Leviticus|20:13}}, in mind when he used the word ἀρσενοκοῖται, which may be of his coinage.<ref name="dict"></ref> with most commentators and translators interpreting it as a reference to male same-sex intercourse.<ref></ref> However, John Boswell states that it historically was not used to refer to homosexuality: in later Christian literature the word is used, for instance, by ] (c. 138) clearly not for homosexuality and possibly for prostitution, ] (d. c. 340) who evidently used it in reference to women, and in the writings of 6th-century ]. In a passage dealing with sexual misconduct, John speaks of ''arsenokoitia'' as active or passive and says that "many men even commit the sin of ''arsenokoitia'' with their wives". Although the constituent elements of the compound word refer to sleeping with men, he obviously does not use it to mean homosexual intercourse and appears to employ it for anal intercourse, not generic homosexual activity.<ref>{{Cite book |first=John |last=Boswell |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=v-MR5_AdG68C |title=Christianity, social tolerance, and homosexuality: gay people in Western Europe from the beginning of the Christian era to the fourteenth century |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=1981 |isbn=978-0-226-06711-7}}</ref>


Some scholars consider that the term was not used to refer to a homosexual orientation, but see it as referred instead to activities by men who might also have intercourse with women.<ref></ref><ref></ref> Some scholars consider that the term was not used to refer to a homosexual orientation, but see it as referred instead to activities by men who might also have intercourse with women.<ref></ref><ref></ref>

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The Bible refers to sexual practices that may be called "homosexual" in today's world, but the original language texts of the Bible do not refer explicitly to homosexuality as a sexual orientation. The Bible is interpreted by officials in some denominations as condemning the practice. In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, however, the extent to which the Bible mentions the subject and whether or not it is condemned, has become the subject of debate.

Passages in the Old Testament book Leviticus that prohibit "lying with mankind as with womankind" and the story of Sodom and Gomorrah have historically been interpreted as condemning homosexual acts, as have several Pauline passages. Other interpreters, however, maintain that the Bible does not condemn homosexuality, saying that historical context suggests other interpretations or that rare or unusual words in the passages may not be referring to homosexuality.

Hebrew Bible

Main article: Homosexuality in the Hebrew Bible

Leviticus 18 and 20

Chapters 18 and 20 of Leviticus, which form part of the Holiness code, contain the following verses:

  • 18:22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. (Leviticus 18:22 KJV)
  • 20:13 "If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them." (Leviticus 20:13 KJV)

The two verses have historically been interpreted by Jews and Christians as clear blanket prohibitions against homosexual acts. More recent interpretations focus on its context as part of the Holiness Code, a code of purity meant to distinguish the behavior of Israelites from the Canaanites.

References to Sodom and Gomorrah in the Bible

See also: Sodom and Gomorrah

The story of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis does not explicitly identify homosexuality as the sin for which they were destroyed. Most interpreters find this story and a similar one in Judges 19 to condemn the violent rape of guests, rather than homosexuality, but the passage has historically been interpreted within Judaism and Christianity as a punishment for homosexuality due to the interpretation that the men of Sodom wished to rape the angels who retrieved Lot. While the Jewish prophets spoke only of lack of charity as the sin of Sodom, the exclusively sexual interpretation became so prevalent that the name "Sodom" became the basis of the word sodomy, still a legal synonym for homosexual and non-procreative sexual acts, particularly anal or oral sex.

While the Jewish prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos and Zephaniah refer vaguely to the sin of Sodom, Ezekiel specifies that the city was destroyed because of its commission of social injustice:

49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.

The Talmudic tradition of between c. 370 and 500 also interprets the sin of Sodom as lack of charity, with the attempted rape of the angels being a manifestation of the city's violation of the social order of hospitality; as does Jesus in the New Testament, for instance in Matthew 10:14-15 when he tells his disciples that the punishment for houses or towns that will not welcome them will be worse than that of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Later traditions on Sodom's sin, such as Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, considered it to be an illicit form of heterosexual intercourse. In Jude 1:7 the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah are stated to have been "giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh," which may refer to homosexuality or to the lust of mortals after angels. Jewish writers Philo (d. AD 50) and Josephus (37 – c. 100) were the first to assert unambiguously that homosexuality was among the sins of Sodom. By the end of the 1st century Jews commonly identified the sin of Sodom with homosexual practices.

David and Jonathan and Ruth and Naomi

Main article: David_and_Jonathan § Homoeroticism

The account of the friendship between David and Jonathan in the Books of Samuel has been interpreted by traditional and mainstream Christians as a relationship only of affectionate regard, but has been interpreted by some authors as of a sexual nature.

The most relevant Bible passage in this respect is 2 Samuel 1:26:

  • I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. (KJV)

The story of Ruth and Naomi is also occasionally interpreted in this way.

New Testament

Main article: Homosexuality in the New Testament

Romans 1

26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.(Romans 1:26-27 KJV)

This passage has been debated by some twentieth and twenty-first century interpreters both in terms of its relevance today and in terms of its actual prohibition: while Christians of several denominations have historically maintained that this verse is a complete prohibition of all forms of homosexuality, some twentieth and twenty-first century authors contend the passage is not a blanket condemnation of homosexuality at all.

Other Epistles

In the context of the broader immorality of his audience, Paul of Tarsus wrote in the First Epistle to the Corinthians,

9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 KJV)

The Greek word arsenokoitai (ἀρσενοκοῖται) in verse 9 has challenged scholars for centuries, and has been variously rendered as "abusers of themselves with mankind" (KJV), "sodomites" (YLT), or "men who practice homosexuality" (NIV). Greek ἄῤῥην / ἄρσην means "male", and κοίτην "bed," with a sexual connotation. Paul's use of the word in 1 Corinthians is the earliest example of the term; its only other use is in a similar list of wrongdoers given (possibly by the same author) in 1 Timothy 1:8–11: In the letter to the Corinthians, amid the list of those who will not inherit the kingdom of God, Paul uses two Greek words: malakoi and arsenokoitai. Malakoi is a common Greek word meaning "soft," and elsewhere in scripture it is used to describe a garment.Nowhere else in scripture is it used to describe a person. The early church seemed to have understood it as a person with a "soft" or weak morality. Later, it would come to denote (and be translated as)those who engage in masturbation, or "those who abuse themselves." All we actually, factually, know about the word is that it means soft. (Robinson 2012)

8 But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; 9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; 11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. (1 Timothy 1:8–11 KJV)

Most scholars hold that Paul had two passages of the Book of Leviticus, 18:22 and 20:13, in mind when he used the word ἀρσενοκοῖται, which may be of his coinage. with most commentators and translators interpreting it as a reference to male same-sex intercourse. However, John Boswell states that it historically was not used to refer to homosexuality: in later Christian literature the word is used, for instance, by Aristides of Athens (c. 138) clearly not for homosexuality and possibly for prostitution, Eusebius (d. c. 340) who evidently used it in reference to women, and in the writings of 6th-century Patriarch John IV of Constantinople. In a passage dealing with sexual misconduct, John speaks of arsenokoitia as active or passive and says that "many men even commit the sin of arsenokoitia with their wives". Although the constituent elements of the compound word refer to sleeping with men, he obviously does not use it to mean homosexual intercourse and appears to employ it for anal intercourse, not generic homosexual activity.

Some scholars consider that the term was not used to refer to a homosexual orientation, but see it as referred instead to activities by men who might also have intercourse with women.

Other scholars have interpreted arsenokoitai and malakoi (another word that appears in 1 Corinthians 6:9) as referring to weakness and effeminacy or to the practice of exploitative pederasty.

Matthew 8; Luke 7

Further information: Homosexuality in the New Testament § Pais, and Healing the centurion's servant

In Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10, Jesus heals a centurion's servant who is dying. According to James Neill, the Greek term "pais" used for the servant almost always had a sexual connotation. According to Daniel A. Helminiak, it only "sometimes" was given this meaning. Donald Wold states that its normal meaning is "boy", "child" or "slave" and its application to a boy lover escapes notice in the standard lexica of Liddell and Scott and Bauer. In her detailed study of the episode in Matthew and Luke, Wendy Cotter dismisses as very unlikely the idea that the use of the Greek word "pais" indicated a sexual relationship between the centurion and the young slave. Neill himself compares the meanings of Greek "pais" to those of French "garçon", which, though also used to mean "waiter", "most commonly means 'boy'". In support of his view that Greek "pais" on the contrary most often means a young male lover, he says that it is "the" root of the English word "pederasty", while at the same time indicating that the English word is derived also from Greek "erasthai" (to love). He sees in the fact that the boy is described as "valued highly" by the centurion an indication of a homosexual relationship between the two, and says that the Greek word "doulos" (a slave) used of him in Luke's account of the episode suggests he may have been a sex slave. Others interpret "pais" merely as a boy servant, not a male lover, and read nothing sexual into "valued highly".

Matthew 19:12

In Matthew 19:12, Jesus speaks of eunuchs who were born as such, eunuchs who were made so by others, and eunuchs who choose to live as such for the kingdom of heaven. This passage has been interpreted as having to do with homosexual orientation; Clement of Alexandria, for instance, wrote in his commentary on it that some men, from birth, are naturally averse to women and should not marry.

Acts 8

Main article: Ethiopian eunuch

The Ethiopian eunuch, an early gentile convert encountered in Acts 8, has been described as an early gay Christian, based on the fact that the word "eunuch" in the Bible was not always used literally, as in Matthew 19:12. Commentators generally suggest that the combination of "eunuch" together with the title "court official" indicates a literal eunuch - not a homosexual - who would have been excluded from the Temple by the restriction in Deuteronomy 23:1.

See also

References

  1. Leviticus 18:22
  2. Leviticus 20:13
  3. "Jeffrey S. Siker, ''Homosexuality and Religion'' (Greenwood Publishing Group 2007 ISBN 978-0-31333088-9), p. 67". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  4. "John Gill, Lev. 18:22". Biblestudytools.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  5. ^ Mark Allan Powell, HarperCollins Bible Dictionary (HarperCollins 2011 ISBN 978-0-06207859-9), entry "homosexuality"
  6. ^ Crompton, Louis (2006). Homosexuality & Civilization. Harvard University Press. pp. 37–39.
  7. "Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  8. Ezekiel 16:49–50
  9. "J.A. Loader, ''A Tale of Two Cities: Sodom and Gomorrah in the Old Testament, Early Jewish and Early Christian Traditions''". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  10. Matthew 10:14–15
  11. ^ "David F. Greenberg, ''The Construction of Homosexuality'' (University of Chicago Press 1990 ISBN 978-0-22630628-5), p. 201". Books.google.com. 15 August 1990. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  12. Jude 1:7
  13. "J. Harold Ellins, ''Sex in the Bible'' (Greenwood Publishing 2006 ISBN 0-275-98767-1), p. 117". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  14. Boswell, John. Same-sex Unions in Premodern Europe. New York: Vintage, 1994. (pp. 135–137)
  15. Halperin, David M. One Hundred Years of Homosexuality. New York: Routledge, 1990. (p. 83)
  16. 2 Samuel 1:26, King James version.
  17. "''Soliciting Interpretation''". Books.google.com. 27 October 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  18. Romans 1:26–27
  19. Mark Hertzog (1996). The lavender vote: Lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals in American electoral politics. NYU Press. p. 58. ISBN 0-8147-3530-4.
  20. 1 Corinthians 6:9–11
  21. Russell Pregeant (2008). Stefan Koenemann & Ronald A. Jenner (ed.). Knowing truth, doing good: engaging New Testament ethics. Fortress Press. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-8006-3846-7.
  22. 1 Timothy 1:8–11
  23. Geoffrey W. Bromiley, The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Eerdmans 1995 ISBN 978-0-80283784-4) Q-Z, p. 437
  24. Boswell, John (1981). Christianity, social tolerance, and homosexuality: gay people in Western Europe from the beginning of the Christian era to the fourteenth century. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-06711-7.
  25. Jeffrey S. Siker, Homosexuality and Religion (Greenwood 2007 ISBN 978-0-31333088-9), p. 70
  26. James D.G. Dunn, The Theology of Paul the Apostle (Eerdmans 2006 ISBN 978-0-80284423-1), p. 122
  27. Scroggs, Robin (1983). The New Testament and homosexuality: contextual background for contemporary debate. Fortress Press. pp. 62–65, 106–109. ISBN 978-0-8006-1854-4.
  28. Berlinerblau, Jacques (2005). The secular Bible: why nonbelievers must take religion seriously. Cambridge University Press. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-521-85314-9.
  29. The Greek-English Lexicon of Liddell and Scott registers three meanings of the word παῖς (pais): a child in relation to descent (son or daughter); a child in relation to age (boy or girl); a slave or servant (male or female). In this case the word is accompanied by the masculine article.
  30. ^ Neill, James (2009). The Origins and Role of Same-Sex Relations In Human Societies. McFarland. p. 216.
  31. "Daniel A. Helminiak, ''Sex and the Sacred'' (Routledge 2012 ISBN 978-1-13657075-9), p. 192". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  32. "Stephen D. Moore, ''God's Beauty Parlor'' Stanford University Press 2001 ISBN 978-0-80474332-7, p. 257". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  33. "Wendy Cotter, ''The Christ of the Miracle Stories'' (Baker Academic 2010 ISBN 978-0-80103950-8), p. 125". Books.google.com. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  34. Luke 7:1
  35. Matthew 19:12
  36. "Those who are naturally so constituted do well not to marry."
  37. McNeill, John J. (2010). Freedom, Glorious Freedom: The Spiritual Journey to the Fullness of Life for Gays, Lesbians, and Everybody Else. Lethe. p. 211.
  38. McNeill, John J. (1993). The Church and the homosexual (4 ed.). Beacon Press. pp. 63–65.
  39. MacArthur, John (1994). New Testament Commentary, Volume 6: Acts 1-12. Moody. p. 254. ISBN 0-8024-0759-5.
  40. Johnson, Luke T.; Harrington, Daniel J. (1992). The Acts of the Apostles. Liturgical Press. p. 155. ISBN 0-8146-5807-5.

Literature

  • Amsel, Nachum. Homosexuality in Orthodox Judaism.
  • Bahnsen, Greg L. 1978 Homosexuality: A Biblical View. ISBN 0-8010-0744-5
  • Boswell, John. 1980 Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-06711-4
  • Brooten, Bernadette. 1998 Love Between Women: Early Christian Responses to Female Homoeroticism University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-07592-3
  • Brown, Driver, Briggs and Gesenius. Hebrew Lexicon entry for Dabaq. The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon.
  • Brunson, Hal. 2007 Lesbos, Narcissus, and Paulos: Homosexual Myth and Christian Truth. ISBN 0-595-40596-7
  • Dover, Kenneth. 1978 Greek Homosexuality. Harvard University Press. ISBN 0-674-36270-5
  • Durns, John Barclay 2002 Lot’s Wife Looked Back. Journal of Religion and Society 4, p. 1–16.
  • Crompton, Louis, et al. 2003 Homosexuality and Civilization. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press ISBN 0-674-01197-X
  • Elliott, John H. 2004 "No kingdom of God for softies? or, what was Paul really saying? 1 Corinthians 6:9–10 in context'" Biblical Theology Bulletin, Spring 2004.
  • Gagnon, Robert A. J. 2001 The Bible and Homosexual Practice. Abingdon Press. ISBN 0-687-08413-X
  • Greenberg, David 1988 The construction of homosexuality. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-30628-3
  • Halsall, Paul. Homosexuality and Catholicism: A Partially Annotated Bibliography
  • Helminiak, Daniel 2000 What the Bible really says about homosexuality. Alamo Square Press. ISBN 1-886360-09-X
  • Horner, Tom. 1978 Jonathan Loved David. Westminster Press. ISBN 0-664-24185-9
  • House of Bishops 1991 Issues in Human Sexuality. Church of England. ISBN 0-7151-3745-X
  • Jennings, Theodore 2003 The Man Jesus Loved: Homoerotic Narratives From the New Testament. Pilgrim Press. ISBN 0-8298-1535-X
  • Johns, Loren 2004 "Homosexuality and the Bible: A Case Study in the Use of the Bible for Ethics" Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary.
  • Koch, Timothy R 2001 "Cruising as methodology: homoeroticism and the scriptures", in Queer Commentary and the Hebrew Bible, Ken Stone, ed. Pilgrim Press. ISBN 0-8298-1447-7
  • Martin, Dale. 1996 "Arsenokoites and malakos: Meanings and Consequences", pp. 117–136. in Biblical Ethics and Homosexuality. Robert Brawley, ed. Westminster Press ISBN 0-664-25638-4.
  • McNeill, J. J. 1993 The Church and the Homosexual. Beacon Press. (4th edn.). ISBN 0-8070-7931-6
  • Nissinen, Martti. 1998 Homoeroticism in the Biblical World: A Historical Perspective. Augsburg Fortress Publishers. ISBN 0-8006-2985-X
  • Ostling, R. N. 2003 Book claims Jesus had homosexual relationship Chicago Sun-Times 29 May 2003.
  • Robinson, B. A. 1996–2005 What the Bible says about homosexuality. Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance.
  • Robinson, Gene. 2012 God Believes in Love. Straight talk about gay marriage. Vintage Press. ISBN 978-0-307-94809-0
  • Satlow, Michael 1995 Tasting the Dish: Rabbinic Rhetorics of Sexuality. Scholars Press. ISBN 0-7885-0159-3
  • Townsley, Jeramy 2003 All known references to arsenokoit*
  • Williams, Rowan 2002 ’The Body’s Grace’, in Eugene F. Rogers (ed.), Theology and Sexuality: Classic and Contemporary Readings, Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-21277-9


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