Kejadian 19:4-9

19:4 Before they could lie down to sleep, ¹  all the men – both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom – surrounded the house. ²  19:5 They shouted to Lot, ³  “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sex ⁴  with them!”

19:6 Lot went outside to them, shutting the door behind him. 19:7 He said, “No, my brothers! Don’t act so wickedly! ⁵  19:8 Look, I have two daughters who have never had sexual relations with ⁶  a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you please. ⁷  Only don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection ⁸  of my roof.” ⁹ 

19:9 “Out of our way!” ¹⁰  they cried, and “This man came to live here as a foreigner, ¹¹  and now he dares to judge us! ¹²  We’ll do more harm ¹³  to you than to them!” They kept ¹⁴  pressing in on Lot until they were close enough ¹⁵  to break down the door.

Imamat 20:13

20:13 If a man has sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman, ¹⁶  the two of them have committed an abomination. They must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves.

Ulangan 23:17

Purity in Cultic Personnel

23:17 There must never be a sacred prostitute ¹⁷  among the young women ¹⁸  of Israel nor a sacred male prostitute ¹⁹  among the young men ²⁰  of Israel.

1 Raja-raja 14:24

14:24 There were also male cultic prostitutes ²¹  in the land. They committed the same horrible sins as the nations ²²  that the Lord had driven out from before the Israelites.

1 Raja-raja 15:12

15:12 He removed the male cultic prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the disgusting idols ²³  his ancestors ²⁴  had made.

1 Raja-raja 22:46

22:46 He removed from the land any male cultic prostitutes who had managed to survive the reign of his father Asa. ²⁵ 

Yesaya 3:9

3:9 The look on their faces ²⁶  testifies to their guilt; ²⁷ 

like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. ²⁸ 

Too bad for them! ²⁹ 

For they bring disaster on themselves.

1 Korintus 6:9-10

6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, ³⁰  practicing homosexuals, ³¹  6:10 thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, ³²  and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Timotius 1:10

1:10 sexually immoral people, practicing homosexuals, ³³  kidnappers, liars, perjurers – in fact, for any who live contrary to sound teaching.

2 Petrus 2:6

2:6 and if he turned to ashes the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah when he condemned them to destruction, ³⁴  having appointed ³⁵  them to serve as an example ³⁶  to future generations of the ungodly, ³⁷ 

Yudas 1:7

1:7 So also ³⁸  Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns, ³⁹  since they indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire ⁴⁰  in a way similar to ⁴¹  these angels, ⁴²  are now displayed as an example by suffering the punishment of eternal fire.

[19:4]  ¹ tn The verb שָׁכַב (shakhav) means “to lie down, to recline,” that is, “to go to bed.” Here what appears to be an imperfect is a preterite after the adverb טֶרֶם (terem). The nuance of potential (perfect) fits well.

[19:4]  ² tn Heb “and the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, from the young to the old, all the people from the end [of the city].” The repetition of the phrase “men of” stresses all kinds of men.

[19:5]  ³ tn The Hebrew text adds “and said to him.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.

[19:5]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew verb יָדַע (yada’, “to know”) is used here in the sense of “to lie with” or “to have sex with” (as in Gen 4:1). That this is indeed the meaning is clear from Lot’s warning that they not do so wickedly, and his willingness to give them his daughters instead.

[19:5]  sn The sin of the men of Sodom is debated. The fact that the sin involved a sexual act (see note on the phrase “have sex” in 19:5) precludes an association of the sin with inhospitality as is sometimes asserted (see W. Roth, “What of Sodom and Gomorrah? Homosexual Acts in the Old Testament,” Explor 1 [1974]: 7-14). The text at a minimum condemns forced sexual intercourse, i.e., rape. Other considerations, though, point to a condemnation of homosexual acts more generally. The narrator emphasizes the fact that the men of Sodom wanted to have sex with men: They demand that Lot release the angelic messengers (seen as men) to them for sex, and when Lot offers his daughters as a substitute they refuse them and attempt to take the angelic messengers by force. In addition the wider context of the Pentateuch condemns homosexual acts as sin (see, e.g., Lev 18:22). Thus a reading of this text within its narrative context, both immediate and broad, condemns not only the attempted rape but also the attempted homosexual act.

[19:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “may my brothers not act wickedly.”

[19:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “who have not known.” Here this expression is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[19:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “according to what is good in your eyes.”

[19:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “shadow.”

[19:8]  ⁹ sn This chapter portrays Lot as a hypocrite. He is well aware of the way the men live in his city and is apparently comfortable in the midst of it. But when confronted by the angels, he finally draws the line. But he is nevertheless willing to sacrifice his daughters’ virginity to protect his guests. His opposition to the crowds leads to his rejection as a foreigner by those with whom he had chosen to live. The one who attempted to rescue his visitors ends up having to be rescued by them.

[19:9]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “approach out there” which could be rendered “Get out of the way, stand back!”

[19:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to live as a resident alien.”

[19:9]  ¹² tn Heb “and he has judged, judging.” The infinitive absolute follows the finite verbal form for emphasis. This emphasis is reflected in the translation by the phrase “dares to judge.”

[19:9]  ¹³ tn The verb “to do wickedly” is repeated here (see v. 7). It appears that whatever “wickedness” the men of Sodom had intended to do to Lot’s visitors – probably nothing short of homosexual rape – they were now ready to inflict on Lot.

[19:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and they pressed against the man, against Lot, exceedingly.”

[19:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and they drew near.”

[20:13]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “[as the] lyings of a woman.” The specific reference here is to homosexual intercourse between males.

[23:17]  ¹⁷ tn The Hebrew term translated “sacred prostitute” here (קְדֵשָׁה [qÿdeshah], from קַדֵשׁ [qadesh, “holy”]; cf. NIV “shrine prostitute”; NASB “cult prostitute”; NRSV, TEV, NLT “temple prostitute”) refers to the pagan fertility cults that employed female and male prostitutes in various rituals designed to evoke agricultural and even human fecundity (cf. Gen 38:21-22; 1 Kgs 14:24; 15:12; 22:47; 2 Kgs 23:7; Hos 4:14). The Hebrew term for a regular, noncultic (i.e., “secular”) female prostitute is זוֹנָה (zonah).

[23:17]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “daughters.”

[23:17]  ¹⁹ tn The male cultic prostitute was called קָדֵשׁ (qadesh; see note on the phrase “sacred prostitute” earlier in this verse). The colloquial Hebrew term for a “secular” male prostitute (i.e., a sodomite) is the disparaging epithet כֶּלֶב (kelev, “dog”) which occurs in the following verse (cf. KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB).

[23:17]  ²⁰ tn Heb “sons.”

[14:24]  ²¹ tc The Old Greek translation has “a conspiracy” rather than “male cultic prostitutes.”

[14:24]  ²² tn Heb “they did according to all the abominable acts of the nations.”

[15:12]  ²³ tn The word used here, גִלּוּלִים [gillulim], is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as “worthless things” (אֱלִילִים, ’elilim), “vanities” or “empty winds” (הֲבָלִים, havalim).

[15:12]  ²⁴ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 24).

[22:46]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and the rest of the male cultic prostitutes who were left in the days of Asa his father, he burned from the land.” Some understand the verb בִּעֵר (bi’er) to mean “sweep away” here rather than “burn.” See the note at 1 Kgs 14:10.

[22:46]  sn Despite Asa’s opposition to these male cultic prostitutes (see 1 Kgs 15:12) some of them had managed to remain in the land. Jehoshaphat finished what his father had started.

[3:9]  ²⁶ sn This refers to their proud, arrogant demeanor.

[3:9]  ²⁷ tn Heb “answers against them”; NRSV “bears witness against them.”

[3:9]  ²⁸ tn Heb “their sin, like Sodom, they declare, they do not conceal [it].”

[3:9]  ²⁹ tn Heb “woe to their soul.”

[6:9]  ³⁰ tn This term is sometimes rendered “effeminate,” although in contemporary English usage such a translation could be taken to refer to demeanor rather than behavior. BDAG 613 s.v. μαλακός 2 has “pert. to being passive in a same-sex relationship, effeminate esp. of catamites, of men and boys who are sodomized by other males in such a relationship.” L&N 88.281 states, “the passive male partner in homosexual intercourse – ‘homosexual.’ …As in Greek, a number of other languages also have entirely distinct terms for the active and passive roles in homosexual intercourse.” See also the discussion in G. D. Fee, First Corinthians (NICNT), 243-44. A number of modern translations have adopted the phrase “male prostitutes” for μαλακοί in 1 Cor 6:9 (NIV, NRSV, NLT) but this could be misunderstood by the modern reader to mean “males who sell their services to women,” while the term in question appears, at least in context, to relate to homosexual activity between males. Furthermore, it is far from certain that prostitution as commonly understood (the selling of sexual favors) is specified here, as opposed to a consensual relationship. Thus the translation “passive homosexual partners” has been used here.

[6:9]  ³¹ tn On this term BDAG 135 s.v. ἀρσενοκοίτης states, “a male who engages in sexual activity w. a pers. of his own sex, pederast 1 Cor 6:9…of one who assumes the dominant role in same-sex activity, opp. μαλακός…1 Ti 1:10; Pol 5:3. Cp. Ro 1:27.” L&N 88.280 states, “a male partner in homosexual intercourse – ‘homosexual.’…It is possible that ἀρσενοκοίτης in certain contexts refers to the active male partner in homosexual intercourse in contrast with μαλακός, the passive male partner.” Since there is a distinction in contemporary usage between sexual orientation and actual behavior, the qualification “practicing” was supplied in the translation, following the emphasis in BDAG.

[6:10]  ³² tn Or “revilers”; BDAG 602 s.v. λοίδορος defines the term as “reviler, abusive person.” Because the term “abusive” without further qualification has become associated in contemporary English with both physical and sexual abuse, the qualifier “verbally” has been supplied in the translation.

[1:10]  ³³ tn On this term BDAG 135 s.v. ἀρσενοκοίτης states, “a male who engages in sexual activity w. a pers. of his own sex, pederast 1 Cor 6:9…of one who assumes the dominant role in same-sex activity, opp. μαλακός…1 Ti 1:10; Pol 5:3. Cp. Ro 1:27.” L&N 88.280 states, “a male partner in homosexual intercourse – ‘homosexual.’…It is possible that ἀρσενοκοίτης in certain contexts refers to the active male partner in homosexual intercourse in contrast with μαλακός, the passive male partner” (cf. 1 Cor 6:9). Since there is a distinction in contemporary usage between sexual orientation and actual behavior, the qualification “practicing” was supplied in the translation, following the emphasis in BDAG.

[2:6]  ³⁴ tc Several important witnesses omit καταστροφῇ (katastrofh, “destruction”; such as Ì^72* B C* 1241 1739 1881 pc), but this is probably best explained as an accidental omission due to homoioarcton (the word following is κατέκρινεν [katekrinen, “he condemned”]).

[2:6]  tn Or “ruin,” or “extinction.” The first part of this verse more literally reads “And [if] he condemned to annihilation the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, by turning them to ashes.”

[2:6]  sn The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is detailed in Gen 18:16—19:29.

[2:6]  ³⁵ tn The perfect participle τεθεικώς (teqeikw") suggests an antecedent act. More idiomatically, the idea seems to be, “because he had already appointed them to serve as an example.”

[2:6]  ³⁶ tn “To serve as” is not in Greek but is implied in the object-complement construction.

[2:6]  ³⁷ tn Grk “an example of the things coming to the ungodly,” or perhaps “an example to the ungodly of coming [ages].”

[1:7]  ³⁸ tn Grk “as.”

[1:7]  ³⁹ tn Grk “the towns [or cities] surrounding them.”

[1:7]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “strange flesh.” This phrase has been variously interpreted. It could refer to flesh of another species (such as angels lusting after human flesh). This would aptly describe the sin of the angels, but not easily explain the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah. It could refer to the homosexual practices of the Sodomites, but a difficulty arises from the use of ἕτερος ({etero"; “strange,” “other”). When this is to be distinguished from ἄλλος (allos, “another”) it suggests “another of a different kind.” If so, would that properly describe homosexual behavior? In response, the language could easily be compact: “pursued flesh other than what was normally pursued.” However, would this find an analogy in the lust of angels (such would imply that angels normally had sexual relations of some sort, but cf. Matt 22:30)? Another alternative is that the focus of the parallel is on the activity of the surrounding cities and the activity of the angels. This is especially plausible since the participles ἐκπορνεύσασαι (ekporneusasai, “having indulged in sexual immorality”) and ἀπελθοῦσαι (apelqousai, “having pursued”) have concord with “cities” (πόλεις, poleis), a feminine plural noun, rather than with Sodom and Gomorrah (both masculine nouns). If so, then their sin would not necessarily have to be homosexuality. However, most likely the feminine participles are used because of constructio ad sensum (construction according to sense). That is, since both Sodom and Gomorrah are cities, the feminine is used to imply that all the cities are involved. The connection with angels thus seems to be somewhat loose: Both angels and Sodom and Gomorrah indulged in heinous sexual immorality. Thus, whether the false teachers indulge in homosexual activity is not the point; mere sexual immorality is enough to condemn them.

[1:7]  ⁴¹ tn Or “in the same way as.”

[1:7]  ⁴² tn “Angels” is not in the Greek text; but the masculine demonstrative pronoun most likely refers back to the angels of v. 6.