Old Testament Principles Relevant to Mutually Consensual Homoerotic Activity - Part 1 (original) (raw)

Sexuality in the old testament: a review article

Kerygma, 2007

Flame of Yahweh is a broad and detailed research written from a conservative perspective by Richard Davidson. As the author himself states, this work "undertakes the Brobdingnagian task of examining every passage of the Hebrew Bible (HB) dealing with human sexuality, in an attempt to lay bare the basic contours of a theology of human sexuality in the final (canonical) form of the OT" (p. 2). In order to accomplish this goal, Davidson builds on previous research and provides his own original exegesis in several of the passages and topics discussed. One of the central premises of Davidson's work is the notion that the Edenic pattern for sexuality constitutes the foundation for the rest of the OT perspective on the topic (p. 3). Consistent with this premise, he provides a comprehensive and, at the same time, detailed exposition of the Old Testament concept of sexuality. An introduction, providing a helpful survey the OT sexual vocabulary, is followed by fourteen chapters divided into three sections. An afterword, drawing some implications for a New Testament theology of sexuality, closes the book. The first section (chap. 1 and 2) deals with sexuality in Eden, which, according to Davidson's major premise, reveals the divine design for human sexuality. Chapter 1 expounds a theology of sexuality in the beginning in ten topics emphasizing sexuality as a creation order, heterosexual human duality and marital form, monogamous marital form, equality of the sexes without hierarchy, exclusivity, permanence, intimacy, procreation, and the wholesome and holy beauty of sexuality. In chapter 3, Davidson demonstrates how the fall has affected the relationship between man and woman, and asserts that the fallen condition of humans prompted God to ascribe a servant-leadership role to man. In a careful and detailed exegesis of Gen 3:16, Davidson interacts with six major views regarding man-woman relationship in Gen 1-3. He rejects any kind of ontological subordination or inferiority of woman to man and affirms the

Genesis and the Definition of Marriage: Monogamy and Polygamy in Biblical History and Ethics

Genesis has been cited in support of both traditional monogamy and nontraditional views of marriage. The creation of the first humans as a male-female pair is commonly regarded by conservative Christians as paradigmatic for marriage. On the other hand, those who question the notion of a normative definition of marriage argue that the Genesis patriarchs legitimately took multiple wives. This paper examines this objection and defends the traditional view that the norm for marriage is monogamy.

Biblical Marriage: Scriptural and Historical Perspectives in Christian Thought

This paper examines common theological objections to biblical plural marriage by analyzing relevant scriptural evidence and the historical context of marriage practices within Christianity. It addresses key objections, including interpretations of the ‘one flesh’ concept from Genesis 2:24, the challenges posed by 1 Corinthians 7:2, and the classification of polygamy as adultery. Through a careful evaluation of church leadership requirements, Jesus’ teachings on marriage, and the implications of polygamy for gender equality, this study demonstrates that polygamy was neither condemned nor uniformly rejected in the biblical narrative. Additionally, it explores the influence of early church fathers and cultural factors that contributed to the shift toward monogamy. Ultimately, this analysis advocates for a broader understanding of marriage within the Christian tradition, recognizing polygyny as a legitimate marital structure that aligns with biblical principles and is relevant to contemporary discussions on family dynamics.

The Biblical "One Flesh" Theology of Marriage as Constituted in Genesis 2:24: An Exegetical Study of This Human-divine Covenant Pattern, Its New Testament Echoes, and Its Reception History Throughout Scripture

2011

This thesis reports the results of a linguistic and theological investigation of the "one flesh" marriage union concept introduced in Genesis 2:24, and the history of its reception throughout the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament Scriptures, with special focus on its New Testament echoes in Mat. 19, Mar. 10, 1Co. 6 and Eph. 5. The aim was to discover whether this concept provides a fundamental, harmonious foundation for a biblical theology of marriage, and whether the "one flesh" union is, at least subliminally, present in the major marriage (and divorce) passages of the Scriptures. Methods employed include, initially, detailed exegesis of Gen. 2:24, giving attention to linguistic and literary features of the passage in context. Reception history was then used to identify the primary passages in both the Hebrew Bible and New Testament impacted by the Gen. 2:24 "one flesh" marriage concept. These in turn were also subjected to detailed exegesis. The combined data emerging from the study of these passages was then examined from the perspective of biblical theology to determine whether a somewhat unified and harmonious biblical theology of the "one flesh" union can be reasonably constructed. The thesis found that the "one flesh" union concept serves as the foundation for the biblical pattern of an ideal marriage. In addition, the "one flesh" union concept serves as a major foundation for several Hebrew Bible and New Testament passages outlining the ideal relationship between Yahweh and his people. Finally, the thesis concludes by presenting a new biblical framework for marriage, divorce and remarriage which deals in a fresh way with theological implications of concubinage, and issues of possible "biblical" grounds for permissible divorce and remarriage.

Sexuality, Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics

The topic of "sexuality" does not itself appear explicitly in the Bible. While the Bible teems with stories, laws, poetry, and prophecy concerning aspects of sexuality, the discourses that make sexuality an important topic today developed long after the close of the canon. This does not, however, differentiate sexuality from other more recent concepts such as "inclusiveness" or "democracy," in that it remains possible to consider biblical sexuality as a source and guide for contemporary sexual ethics. With as ample a supply of directly relevant commandments, narratives, and images as the Bible provides, and with reasonable inference from related exempla, the Bible's

Old Testament Principles Relating to Divorce and Remarriage

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, 2001

Deviation From God's Creation Ideal In the beginning, God created man and woman for each other. When God presented Eve to Adam, Adam said: ÒThis at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.Ó Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh. (Gen 2:23-24; RSV) Thus, in a perfect world, a perfect and immortal couple were joined by God in an indissoluble social and spiritual union represented by the metaphor Òone flesh.Ó GodÕs plan was eternal heterosexual monogamy between human beings. Note the aspects of this plan: (1) permanent, (2) heterosexual, (3) monogamous, and (4) between human beings. No law is stated to outline GodÕs plan. He simply created it so, knowing it was good. That the expression Òone fleshÓ is a metaphor for a social ideal rather than a literal description of a physical reality became painfully obvious once sin and death entered into the world. Once this happened, the ÒpermanentÓ aspect of GodÕs plan was affected by mortality and sin. Due to mortality, one individual, comprising 50% of the Òone fleshÓ unit, can die before the other, leaving the bereaved partner with the desire or need to marry again. Thus, ÒpermanentÓ could no longer mean Òeternal,Ó but had to be redefined as Òuntil death.Ó Furthermore, due to sin and its negative effect on human relationships, one or both marriage partners may desire to escape from their permanent bond through divorce and may seek remarriage to other partners. Sinful desires also threaten the other aspects of GodÕs plan, i.e., Òheterosexual,Ó Òmonogamous,Ó and Òbetween 1 Adultery violates an existing marriage and carries the death penalty (Lev 20:10; Deut 22:22). If premarital sex involves a betrothed woman, it is regarded as adultery, punishable by death (Deut 22:23-24), but if the woman is unbetrothed and seduced, the penalty is forced marriage (including payment of the bride price) at the discretion of the womanÕs father (Exod 22:15-16). Penalties for rape depend upon the status of the victim: death if she is betrothed (Deut 22:25-27); fifty shekels and forced marriage with no right of divorce if she is unbetrothed (Deut 22:28-29). Concealed immorality by a woman living in her fatherÕs house, evidence of which is her lack of virginity discovered at the time of her marriage, is punishable by death (Deut 22:20-21).