Sexual relations between people of the same sex. The biblical emphasis upon the loving union of male and female, as an integral part of God's creation ordinance, establishes the context against which the censure of homosexual practice is to be set.
God's creation order for sexuality
Genesis 1:27–28, Genesis 2:18–24; Mark 10:6–9 parallel Matthew 19:4–5; Ephesians 5:31
OT prohibitions of homosexual practice
Leviticus 18:22 See also Leviticus 20:13
You must not lie with a man as with a woman; that is an abomination.
Homosexual practice is incompatible with the kingdom of God
1 Corinthians 6:9–10 The meanings of the Greek words for “male prostitutes” and “homosexual offenders” are disputed, but the terms are commonly associated with particular forms of homosexual behaviour. See also 1 Timothy 1:9–11
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
Sexual disorder is one consequence of rejecting God
Romans 1:21–27 1 Kings 14:24, 1 Kings 15:12; 2 Kings 23:7
For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity for the dishonoring of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is forever worthy of praise! Amen. For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. Likewise, the men abandoned natural relations with women and burned with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Examples of homosexual practice
In Sodom and Gomorrah: Genesis 19:4–8; Jude 1:7; Judges 19:16–24 in Israel in a time of moral decadence
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.