Homosexual in the bible verses
Has 'Homosexual' Always Been in the Bible?
Reprinted with permission from The Forge Online
The pos “arsenokoitai” shows up in two unlike verses in the bible, but it was not translated to mean “homosexual” until
We got to sit down with Ed Oxford at his home in Long Beach, California and talk about this question.
You contain been part of a research team that is looking for to understand how the decision was made to set the word queer in the bible. Is that true?
Ed: Yes. It first showed up in the RSV translation. So before figuring out why they decided to use that word in the RSV translation (which is outlined in my upcoming publication with Kathy Baldock, Forging a Solemn Weapon: How the Bible Became Anti-Gay) I wanted to see how other cultures and translations treated the identical verses when they were translated during the Reformation years ago. So I started collecting aged Bibles in French, German, Irish, Gaelic, Czechoslovakian, Polish… you name it. Now I’ve got most European major languages that I’ve composed over time. An
What does the New Testament say about homosexuality?
Answer
The Bible is consistent through both Old and New Testaments in confirming that homosexuality is sin (Genesis –13; Leviticus ; ; Romans –27; 1 Corinthians ; 1 Timothy ; Jude ). In this matter, the New Testament reinforces what the Old Testament had declared since the Law was given to Moses (Leviticus ). The difference between the Senior and New Testaments is that the New Testament offers hope and restoration to those caught up in the sin of homosexualitythrough the redeeming influence of Jesus. It is the same hope that is offered to anyone who chooses to acknowledge it (John ; –18).
God’s standards of holiness did not change with the coming of Jesus, because God does not modify (Malachi ; Hebrews ). The New Testament is a continuing revelation of God’s interaction with humanity. God hated idolatry in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy ), and He still hates it in the New (1 John ). What was immoral in the Old Testament is still immoral in the New.
The New Testament says that homosexuality is a “shameful lust” (Rom
The Bible on Homosexual Behavior
One way to argue against these passages is to make what I name the “shellfish objection.” Keith Sharpe puts it this way: “Until Christian fundamentalists boycott shellfish restaurants, cease wearing poly-cotton T-shirts, and stone to death their wayward offspring, there is no obligation to hear to their diatribes about homosexuality being a sin” (The Gay Gospels, 21).
In other words, if we can disregard rules appreciate the ban on eating shellfish in Leviticus , then we should be allowed to disobey other prohibitions from the Elderly Testament. But this argument confuses the Old Testament’s temporary ceremonial laws with its permanent moral laws.
Here’s an analogy to facilitate understand this distinction.
I recall two rules my mom gave me when I was young: hold her hand when I cross the street and don’t drink what’s under the sink. Today, I acquire to follow only the latter rule, since the former is no longer needed to protect me. In fact, it would now do me more harm than good.
Old Testament ritual/ceremonial laws were fancy mom’s handholding rule. The rea
Leviticus
“You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”[1] It is not a surprise that this verse seems to say that gay male sex is forbidden in the eyes of God. The dominant view of western Christianity forbids queer relations. This verse is one of the clobber passages that people cite from the Bible to condemn homosexuality. This essay first looks at the various ways the verse is translated into the English Bible and then explores some of the strategies used to create an affirming interpretation of what this passage means for the LGBTQ community. More specifically, it presents the interpretation of K. Renato Lings in which Lev. refers to male-on-male incest.
While Lev. is used to condemn homosexuality, we must realize that the designation “homosexuality” was only recently coined in the English language. So did this term exist in ancient Israel? Charles D. Myers, Jr. confirms that none of the prophets in the Hebrew Bible mention homosexuality.[2] He also contends that in ancient Israel same-sex relations were viewed as an ancient Near East challenge. The anc