Leviticus: Pagans, Purity, and Property
February 4, 2008
“You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.” Leviticus 18:22
“If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them.” Leviticus 20:13
Within the very nature of any group of individuals is the necessity to define itself in a way that describes those who belong while separating itself from those who don’t belong. Boundaries of distinction are used to separate the “us” from “them” and more often than not this boundary language describes the other in negative terms, negative terms that are most often exaggerated or completely false to the actual reality of the other. In ancient Israel, to be a Jew meant to belong to a particular people and while the same could be said of other nations at the time Israel stood out among them in the degree to which it separated itself from other nations through it’s distinctive traditions and avoidance of the traditions and behaviors of foreign nations.
The Scriptures recorded Israel’s distinctive faith and culture, and no where is this more true than in the books that dealt with the law, including Leviticus. These basic laws and prohibitions governed not only their religious life but their daily lives in the family and in community, and in all areas of life Israel had three major concerns, all of which potentially contributed to the prohibition of homo-erotic sex:
Pagans
When Israel had been slaves in Egypt, keeping their unique identity hadn’t been an issue. They were slaves. The boundaries between the people of Israel and the people of Egypt had been clearly drawn. Following the exile this all changed, and as the people moved out into foreign lands among other nations and began to deal on a daily basis with Gentiles keeping a strong identity mattered for the sake of their survival as a nation. Separation and distinctiveness in matters of religion were all the more vital and the opening and closing words of Leviticus 18 and the closing words of Leviticus 20 suggests that at least some of the prohibitions in these sections are prohibited for the very reason that they were being practiced by the Gentile nations.
While there’s no condemnation of homosexual acts in the Torah outside the Holiness Code; Deuteronomy forbids Israel from giving it’s children, male and female to serve as cult prostitutes (23:18-19). In all probability there were both male and female cult prostitutes which would explain the prohibition of homosexual acts in Leviticus 18 – 20, and therefore were a male to lie with a man as with a woman the lines of distinction between the practices of the Gentile nations and the nation of Israel would be blurred. The issue wasn’t about homo-erotic behavior in and of itself in this regard but about abstaining from anything that could appear to mirror Canaanite rituals dedicated to gods other than the God of Israel.
Purity and Holiness
The laws in Leviticus are concerned with how to maintain purity, or more specifically how to avoid impurity. Impurity equates to being dirty and according to the cultural anthropologist Mary Douglas “dirt is essentially disorder or matter out of place” (Dirt, Greed and Sex: Sexual Ethics in the New Testament and Their Implications for Today, by William Countryman). Countryman illustrates the difference between purity (cleanliness) and impurity (uncleanness) through the example that
“The coffee in a cup is clean, but the pair of pants I spill the coffee on is dirty. The coffee in the cup and the coffee spilled on the pants is the same coffee and yet when the coffee is where it’s suppose to be it’s clean and when it’s out of place it’s dirty.” (Dirt, Greed and Sex, page 13).
Even as small children we learn that food spilled on your clothes is no longer food but has been somehow transformed into dirt, something that’s unclean because it’s out of place. When your shirt was covered with peanut butter you’d hear “Change your shirt Honey. It’s dirty.” So uncleanness is disorder, things out of place, things not as they’re suppose to be or usually are.
Purity also means to be whole or complete. In antiquity there was an ideal for every species in creation. When a member of a species met the ideal it was considered pure or whole. The ideal for land animals was that they have cloven hoofs and this meant that while ox, sheep and goats were clean, pigs and camels were considered unclean. A blemish on an animal prevented it from being offered as a sacrifice because the blemish rendered the animal outside of the ideal since all members of that species didn’t have a blemish. Equally, there was an ideal of what constituted cleanliness or uncleanness in humanity and a fascinating example of this is in Leviticus 13:12-13 that deals with leprosy. If a priest suffered from leprosy so that only portions of his skin were affected then he was unclean but if the leprosy covered all his body, he was pronounced clean. What sounds illogical to us makes sense with an ancient worldview where cleanliness was determined by wholeness. With all the skin turned the same color by the leprosy, the person with the leprosy was rendered whole but if there were only blotches there was incompleteness and so he was unclean.
Purity is wholeness which, according to Mary Douglas demands two things:
“first, that every individual should be a complete and self-contained specimen of its kind, and second, that there should be no mixing of kinds.”
This would explain many of the prohibitions of Leviticus and other passages referring to the purity laws.
- A menstruating woman was unclean, not because of hygienic considerations but because she was losing something that belonged to her wholeness. The same was true for a hemorrhaging woman or a woman in childbirth. Something from their wholeness was being lost and therefore they were less whole or impure.
- Mixing two kinds of fabric, planting two seeds in the same field, and mixing species of animals for breeding (Leviticus 19:19) was the blending of two wholes that were complete in themselves. This mixing brought about confusion and disorder and was therefore unclean and prohibited.
- Bestiality is prohibited because of the confusion that results in trying to mix two complete but unrelated kinds together.
- Crossing-dressing (Deuteronomy 22:5) whether by a woman wearing that which pertained to a man or a man wearing that which pertained to a woman was perceived as the mixing of two wholes which created disorder.
- A man will not lie with a man “as with a woman” again is prohibited expressly because in antiquity sex was always understood as being between a naturally dominant partner (male) and a naturally passive partner (female). As in similar prohibitions, one man was seen as assuming the role of the passive partner and in doing so was mixing male and female within himself creating confusion and disorder.
- A relationship between equals had no place in antiquity so for a man to have sex with a man required that one take on the role of the woman and in doing so one of the men was making himself a combination of kinds (male and female) and was therefore unclean. The other man was unclean for coming in contact with what was unclean.
The prohibition of male homo-erotic behavior wasn’t exclusively concerned with preventing a man from mixing two wholes (male and female) within himself, but he was also viewed as degrading his God-given status as a male. Israel’s hierarchy considered the male gender as being made in the image of God and therefore a superior being, while the female gender was intrinsically inferior to men and more prone to impurity. As evidence, a mother who gave birth to a girl was considered impure 3 to 4 times longer than had she given birth to a boy. It was therefore considered a slap in God’s face for a man to give up his position as man to assume the role of a woman. He was degrading both God and himself, and his partner was equally guilty in that he was participating in the degrading of another superior male. This is why both, rather than just the one assuming the female role, were to be put to death.
Property Laws
In ancient Israel, a man owned everything and everyone within his household. He owned the barn, the house, the livestock, the wife, the children, and the slaves. The wife and children were viewed as his property and this is painfully evidenced in Leviticus 18 in a long list of sexual prohibitions.
- Do not have sexual relationship with your father’s wife; that would dishonor your father (v.8). The prohibition doesn’t concern itself with the fact that the man would be having sex with his mother but emphasizing that in doing so he would be dishonoring his father because she is his property.
- Do not have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife, born to your father; she is your sister (v.11). The prohibition doesn’t focus on a brother violating his sister but on a father being dishonored by having sexual relations with his daughter.
- D0 not dishonor your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual relations; she is your aunt (v. 14) and again, having sex with the aunt would violate the uncle.
The list of prohibitions reads on, “do not have sexual relationship with your father’s sister, with your son’s wife, with your brother’s wife, with her son’s daughter, your neighbor’s wife. Though the list seems exhaustive at the end, only one combination for a sexual relation is missing (outside of that of husband and wife) and that is between a daughter and father. There is no prohibition against a father having sexual relations with his daughter because again, the concern in this portion of the law is concerned with property laws as they pertained to sexual relations.
The importance this all has to understanding the prohibition concerning male homo-erotic acts is that it highlights the degraded status of women to the extent that they were viewed not as their own persons but as the property of the man of the household which helps to clarify how detestable it would have been in the ancient worldview for a man to willing assume the role of a woman in a sexual encounter with another man.
In conclusion, it should be noted that in both Leviticus passages that prohibit male homo-erotic behavior sin language is absent. Instead male-male sexual relations are referred to it as a disgusting thing (abomination) that render the action and the individuals involved in the action unclean. In the Leviticus 20 passage they’re to be put to death, not because they’re guilty of a “sin” worthy of death but because individuals judged unclean had to be utterly removed from the people or the entire nation would be rendered unclean.
Posted in The Bible and Homosexuality
May 17th, 2008 at 7:08 am
I’ve been confused about this one thing lately. Am I supposed to believe that, as a woman and a Christian, I’m inferior to men? Is that really what God told us or was that just the belief of the time created by people? I’m very upset and confused by this. Might you be able to help a hurt, confused, and upset bisexual 16-year-old? Lol.
June 2nd, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Hi Meaghan,
If I may comment here…I had struggled with this issue for 38 years until I recently read the book “Captivating” by John and Stasi Eldredge. While reading it I began to realize that per the creation story, creation ASCENDS in beauty. Woman was actually the CROWN of creation. I don’t know why I, and probably most people, assume that it ascended to Adam and then descended when Eve was created.
Blessings and peace,
Ric.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:26 pm
Hi Meaghan There is a lot that I could say about women in relation to Christianity. But I will only say what God says to us in Gal.3:28.
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor freeman, there is neither MALE OR FEMALE; FOR YOU ARE ALL ONE IN CHRIST JESUS.
God Bless girl, keep seeking God and worshipping Him and He will lead you how He desires.
June 2nd, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Meaghan –> It looks like Ric and Eliz already got you covered on this my friend, but you were right when you asked, “or was that just the belief at the time created by people?” Yep. That was just their understanding of the time for if all people are equally loved by God and if Christ came as much as for you and I as for kings and princes, then no gender is higher than other, no race, sexual orientation, ethnicity or class. Equally loved is equally valued.
June 7th, 2008 at 6:03 am
Gay guy stopping by.
Can I just say, Anita, that, having stumbled across your site completely accidentally, that your writings are ministering to me in ways far beyond the specific topics at hand. Scripture is so fascinating when you REALLY delve into it with your eyes wide open, and specifically with the numerous passages about Sodom, you notice the many teachings about the nature of God that much of Christendom is utterly forgetting because all they see is the word “Sodom” and place their own “conventional wisdom” into the passage.
It’s also ministering to me, because after ten years out of the closet and mostly ignoring my Christian upbringing, God has been calling me back in various ways, and one of them is that he seems to be demanding that I dialogue with Evangelicals, to find common ground, to teach me how to show grace and forgiveness, to put a face on what is, for so many of them, the abstract concept of homosexuality, and the surprise is that they’ve ministered to me in surprising ways, as well.
Keep up what you’re doing. Oh, and consider yourself blogrolled.
Haha.
June 7th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Evan aka Gay Guy –> So glad you found the blog even if you had to stumble in to get here and it means a lot to me if something here, whether the content or spirit has been positive for you. Sounds like you have a meaningful ministry yourself Evan in interacting with people one on one and helping them see homosexuality not as an issue but as flesh and blood people. Bridging the gap is a huge undertaking, wearisome at times, disheartening at others, but as you’re already experiencing I hope there continue to be amazing moments of connection, hope and grace for you along the way.
September 11th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
[...] may find this article on homosexuality and Leviticus, concerning issues of purity, [...]
September 14th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
this post on Leviticus has only confused me more. it sounds like it’s saying homosexuality is a sin – i thought this site was to help people understand it’s not
September 14th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Anon Bi Girl–> Hi. I’m sorry you found this post on Leviticus confusing. To not add to your confusion, I’ll only give you a brief response rather than trying to explain the post point for point. Summed up, the post is saying that yes, while this passage is NOT favorable for a man sleeping with another man, the reasoning that motivated the prohibition was part of an ancient worldview that little to no one would apply to our society today. We do NOT believe that in sexual intimacy one person must be dominant and one be submissive. We do NOT believe women are inferior to men. We do NOT believe women are the property of either their father or husband. We NO longer honor Israel’s ancient purity laws or their understanding of what makes something/someone pure or impure. All that we NO longer believe or apply to our lives is precisely what was behind the prohibition that “a man not lay with another man as with a woman.” I hope that helps clarify the intention of the post for you. If not, please let me know precisely where the problem is and I’ll see what I can do to explain things a little better.
October 3rd, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Yes, that helps. Thanks!
October 6th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
Anon–> I’m glad
April 14th, 2009 at 6:45 am
Thanks for your enlightenment on this passage of Leviticus, it’s just what I needed. I’ve long held the argument that if homosexuality were so odious, why was it not listed in the Ten Commandments? I’ve pointed out, mostly to my husband – a born again Christian. That adultery is against the commandments yet not illegal, while homosexuality, while not in the commandments is still illegal in several countries!
April 21st, 2009 at 1:34 pm
I was very interested in your thoughts on Lev. 18 however I would love to hear your thoughts on v 18. This verse is of particular interest to me as my family has chosen to reject me and my partner and yet embraces the recent marriage of my ex husband to my sister only three months after the death of her husband. I don’t understand Christians who pick and choose from scripture to accept what they want to accept and condemn what they want to condemn. I’m so glad to visit this site again. It’s been a long time.
April 21st, 2009 at 3:14 pm
This passage comes at the end of a series of prohibitions around sexual morality beginning in verse 6. One of the primary concerns revolves around not engaging in behavior that creates confusion and complicating familial relations would fall under that. For instance, a man isn’t to have sex with his mother because she is his mother. To have sex with her would be to confuse the mother-son role by making her his lover too. It would also dishonor the father because the mother is the father’s property. The mother belongs to the father and if the son would have sex with her, she would essentially become his property too and such action would be considered theft of what was rightfully his fathers. The issues here are related to purity laws and property laws. In verse 18 I would imagine the same concerns are at stake; that a man shouldn’t take the sister of his living wife as a second wife because it would confuse the roles. The sister and sister would now become co-wives and the sister-in-law role would be blurred by additionally becoming a wife. Does that make any sense? The thing that’s important to realize is that even while ancient Israel might have prohibitions against incest just as we have in our contemporary society, the reasons for why incest (not in all cases) was an offense to them and why it’s an offense to us are often very different.
I know you asked this question because of your families response to your ex-husband marrying your sister however that’s not what’s really being dealt with here. At the same time I fully understand your frustration with the pick-and-choose that many Christians live by.
May 16th, 2009 at 8:39 pm
Hello Anita, I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to write these amazing articles concerning the “clobber passages”. I am 16 years old and recently came out to my parents, they were not happy and they said the bible says that it is a sin to be gay. I started to feel that I myself was dirty, I was on the verge of doing something terrible out of depression or distancing myself from religion altogether. But I read your articles and it gave me renewed hope, I just hope that my parents will someday see this. After reading this I can honestly say now that I feel completely different and I feel as if I’m at peace with myself completely. Thank you a million times over and god bless your soul!
May 17th, 2009 at 6:37 pm
Kyle–> I’m so happy that you took the time to write but more than anything else, I’m so grateful you didn’t act upon the pain and sadness you’ve been walking through by doing anything that would bring further harm to you. I’m sorry your parents weren’t able to embrace you in your coming out to them. What a courageous thing for you to do and what an incredible gift of integrity and honesty for a son to give his parents. I only wish they could have responded in support, encouragement and comfort but without knowing your parents, I would imagine they were doing the best they knew how given how deeply buried their ideas about homosexuality are and what they have been taught and come to believe themselves about what the Bible teaches. Listen my new friend, you are a son of God and as your heavenly parent, God is so pleased and proud of who you are. God loves you fully knowing and accepting you’re gay because God. Made. You. Nothing about you comes as a surprise to God. Nothing about you disappoints God. And if anything in the Bible is true, if anything about Jesus is real, then you can rest in this….God loves you and nothing will ever separate you from that love. God will never step away from you but instead be right there with you in your corner, defending you and cheering you on every moment of your life. Your life is of such great worth Kyle and I for one thank you for guarding and protecting it for yourself and for the rest of the world. What a gift that you’re a young man who already is on the path to knowing who you are. I pray that in the coming months and years, you not only fall more deeply into the assurance and peace of God’s love and purpose for you but that you find a path for your life that will lead you to being an encouragement to other young men like yourself. You’re always welcomed here Kyle. Many blessings and then a hundred more to you, Anita
July 25th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
I am coming out to my family soon. And most of them are devout christians. I just wanted to say that this site has helped me so much. I am 20 and I want my family to see this as a good thing and not something that is going hinder my future and send me to hell. I was just wondering if maybe someone could send a prayer my direction.
July 27th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Jenny –> You are very courageous and strong! Stay focused on the wonderful, unique person God made you, and believe that you and your family will get through whatever difficulties may lay ahead. It might take awhile for them to understand that your sexuality is indeed a good thing, even if it is different from theirs. God made you gay and you are celebrating yourself in God! You are circled in silver light and I am sending many prayers your way.
July 27th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
I am praying for you!
August 14th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
I just wanted to say thank you. I’ve been trying to figure things out for a while now, and this site is an answer to prayer.
Thank you.
November 21st, 2009 at 4:26 am
I am a 35 year old lesbian. I used to be a christian but I found there were too many conflicting verses and when I confronted the preacher about some things I was querying, such as why don’t we keep the festivals outlined in leviticus 23 (when it says that they should be kept ‘…forever’) and yet we keep easter which is pagan and we have to keep the tithe in malachi etc – well I eventually was asked to leave because I kept asking too many questions and lacked faith apparently! I agree that there is a ‘pick and choose’ attitude people have to Scripture. I still love G-d and Jesus (Yeshua) is my saviour and I want to do what is right in His (G-d’s) eyes so I went back in the closet again when I hit 30 and I’ve been alone for 5 years – told my mum that I was trying to change and that G-d is changing me – well, until last week when I had to just be honest with her and tell her that I’m sorry but nothing’s changed and I still don’t fancy men that way – I seriously gave it a go (didn’t do anything physical with a man but I kept my mind off women and tried to spend more time with my male friends etc). She seems okay – I told her that I prefer being on my own so as not to worry her. It’s really difficult for her and I feel ashamed really so I try not to upset her and I think if I did have a relationship with a women again I would keep it secret from her anyway. I’ve always thought that being homosexual is wrong but there are a lot of things that we are conditioned to believe in church or by society and it’s refreshing (and important) to step outside of the box and look at things with a fresh pair of eyes, ie study for ourselves to see what scripture is really saying by looking at the context, original language and culture at that time. Sorry, didn’t mean to write an essay! Thanks for your website and for your study of Lev 18 – it’s been really helpful, inspiring and I’ll go on and do more studying myself. Thank you so much. It’s good to be able to speak openly. G-d bless xxx
November 23rd, 2009 at 2:12 pm
CM–> Oh, I’m so glad you found this place and so thankful that you stepped forward to add your story here. There is such fear among certain segments of the church to live with and explore questions of faith. Ironic since Jesus continually told parables that never had endings with explicit answers but instead challenged those listening to confront hard questions in their own lives. There is such fear in the church too day and how tragic when we know the Spirit is not a spirit of fear. It sounds like such a long and hard journey for you CM, so many years of trying to do the “right” thing or at least avoiding the “wrong” thing but how wonderful that you’re coming to a place of feeling more secure to step outside the box and consider things with new eyes and an open heart. Wherever your search leads you CM I pray that you find incredible peace and the assurance that you are loved and cherished by God and that you are now, and have always been, a delight to the One who created you.
November 25th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Thanks for your kind words… they made me have a good cry actually, which I wasn’t expecting. I don’t tend to cry much, in fact far too busy working all hours! I should do more crying, as it’s made me feel a lot better! You obviously have a very special and sound relationship with G-d. It’s been a very healing experience visiting your site so thank you. :0)
November 25th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
CM–>I’m glad the words I wrote to you were able to reach someplace inside you CM and if you found even a shade of healing here then I’ll take that as a gratitude to my Thanksgiving table tomorrow. Please come back again. You, your questions, your doubts, your hopes, ….all of you is welcome here.
January 1st, 2010 at 12:52 pm
Hi, me again! Well it’s been a little over a month since I last wrote on here. My life has changed so much, I am completely convinced now that being homosexual is NOT a sin. But, it is definitely one of those things that you have to work out for yourself and study the scriptures and the context in order to be sure – since there have been so many lies and for so many years that even non-religious people will think that the story of sodom is referring to homosexuals (when in fact it is about the lack of hospitality – ironic to think that homophobic people are the ones that are really the sodomites!).
Another scripture they always quote ‘homosexuality is an abomination’ is not actually what it says (as you know, since you’ve talked about it on this site) but it’s interesting to read that there are other ‘abominations’ and ‘detestable’ things in G-d’s eyes, such as eating unclean meat, like pork or bacon or prawns etc – why doesn’t the church also hit everyone hard on those subjects too? I think it’s people’s fears and prejudices that has caused so much oppression towards gays. There is a fantastic autobiography called ’stranger at the gate’ written by and about Mel White – if anyone out there is struggling with accepting themselves as a gay christian or a gay person then it’s well worth reading this book. It has helped answer so many of my fears. You don’t realise how chained you are until you are set free.
I thank G-d that I can be gay and accepted by Him. I have since spoken to my mother and showed her the various scriptures and talked to her about the bullying against gays etc and she has totally changed about it. She isn’t shouting and telling the neighbours (thankfully) but she is happy that I am happy and can see the prejudices.
Thank you again for this site it’s been a tremendous help – I hope more people find it. G-d bless and thank you again xx
January 17th, 2010 at 8:05 am
Hi,
I would like to ask a question about lesbians who dresses like men? I think it is in the bible.. I think the bible says.. a woman should not wear a man’s apparel? i think this is in the new testament. But what I want to know does the bible mean? is it speaking about cross dressing? what about wearing jeans? women wear jeans even if this is a man’s apparel. do we just wear skirts? why are there butch lesbians who dresses like a man? are they sinning? does it may homosexuals sinful?
January 21st, 2010 at 10:50 am
Chingy–> The passage I believe you’re referring to is from Deut. 22:5; “A woman must not wear men’s clothing, nor a man wear women’s clothing, for the LORD your God detests anyone who does this. ” This passage like many highlight the importance that in Biblical interpretation we never remove a verse from it’s historic and cultural context. While there are a number of contextual factors related to this passage the most significant is that in the ancient Hebrew culture purity laws were in place so that everything maintained it’s own boundaries and didn’t mix or appear as something else (i.e. the prohibition against mixing fabrics). To violate this standard was viewed as a sin in that it was seen as essentially a slap in the face of the Creator who made each thing as it was and so in mixing those things that were in and of themselves pure and holy became unclean and defiled. When it came to the sexes, maintaining distinctions between male and female was of vital importance and this distinction included not only gender roles and behavior but dress as well. It’s obvious that in our modern culture we are no longer concerned with maintaining ancient purity laws nor do we view pants as being exclusive to males anymore than we view perfumes/cologne exclusive to females and nothing within the passage that could lead anyone without a pre-existing agenda of their own to use it to apply to contemporary crossing-dressing or to matters of sexual orientation.