Most OT Prohibitions Are Obsolete

STATEMENT FOR SAME-SEX MARRIAGES

The Vast Majority Of OT Prohibitions Are No Longer Relevant, Why Retain This One Against Homosexual Intercourse?

The following statement and response are direct quotes from Biblical Theology of Human Sexuality, Report to Synod 2021 (page 100).

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Statement

Revisionists additionally question why these two prohibitions against homosexual intercourse ought to be followed today when other surrounding prohibitions are freely ignored. For example, Christians do not typically feel the need to obey the commands against planting one’s field with two kinds of seed or against wearing clothing made with two kinds of material (Lev. 19:19). Even a traditionalist like Richard Hays recognizes the force of this argument: “Quoting a law from Leviticus, of course, does not settle the question for Christian ethics. The Old Testament contains many prohibitions and commandments that have, ever since the first century, generally been deemed obsolete by the church. . . . In each case, the church is faced with the task of discerning whether Israel’s traditional norms remain in force for the new community of Jesus’ followers. In order to see what decisions the early church made about this matter, we must turn to the New Testament.”

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Response

When one does turn to the New Testament, we see that many of the laws regarding sexual activity in Leviticus 18 and 20 are affirmed as still obligatory for the people of God. As Kevin DeYoung observes: “Apart from the question of sex during menstruation, the sexual ethic in Leviticus 18 and 20 is squarely reaffirmed in the New Testament. Adultery is still a sin (Matt. 5:27-30). Incest is still a sin (1 Cor. 5:1-13). Even polygamy is more clearly rejected (1 Cor. 7:2; 1 Tim. 3:2). It would be strange for the prohibition against homosexual practice to be set aside when the rest of the sexual ethic is not, especially considering how the rejection of same-sex behavior is rooted in the created order.” In fact, as we will see, in 1 Corinthians 6:9 and 1 Timothy 1:10 the apostle Paul condemns homosexual activity in a way that draws directly on the prohibitions of Leviticus 18 and 20. He does so by using the Greek word arsenokoitai, which is a compound of the words used to condemn homosexual activity in the Septuagint version of the Levitical prohibitions. This confirms that Paul viewed the teaching of these Old Testament texts as still binding on Christians . . . . It is true that a few revisionists question this link between Paul’s use of arsenokoitai and the Levitical texts, asserting that such a connection is “speculative and lacks external confirming evidence.” It is also true, however, that the vast majority of biblical scholars, including leading revisionists, find this connection to be obvious and beyond doubt.