13 If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable . . . 15 If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he must be put to death, and you must kill the animal.

Leviticus 20:13,15 (NIV)

Not many people would argue for bestiality as an “alternative lifestyle.” Like it or not, most people are still willing—even after the sexual revolution—to call some sexual acts wrong. Conscience has survived. For most, though, such judgments are based on a moral standard not much higher than that which makes them cringe. Society has been trained not to flinch at homosexuality, so bestiality gets the axe, while homosexuality elicits only a shrug. Yet judged by the true standard of God’s Word, these two sins are treated with no difference whatsoever.

The laws and penalties listed in Leviticus 20 may seem unrelated, but an important theme runs through them all: God intended His people to be manifestly different from the surrounding nations. Since sexual immorality was rampant in those neighboring lands, the Lord strictly regulated the sexual behavior of His people. For instance, He declared both bestiality and homosexuality to be detestable.

Some say the word “detestable” is used only to denounce ritual temple practices and insist these passages (cf. Lev. 18:22) do not supply blanket condemnation of homosexual behavior. While it is true that surrounding cultures used deviant sexual practices in worship, and the Old Testament uses toebah (“detestable,” “abomination”) to condemn false worship (as unto an idol in Isaiah 44:19), the context of Leviticus 20:13 teaches that homosexuality is inherently and not just circumstantially wrong. First, no reference is made in verse 13 to worship. Second, toebah extends to non-worship evils, such as a lying tongue (Prov. 6:16-19) and false balances (Prov. 11:1). Third, chapter 20 condemns practices which are clearly not associated with false worship, e.g., cursing one’s parents (v. 9). Fourth, the only false worship condemned in chapter 20, namely child sacrifice to Molech (v. 2), concerns a practice which is wrong in itself, quite apart from ritual; the Israelites were not free to murder their children in the normal course of life. Similarly, homosexuality was abominable both for its association with the pagan temple and its violation of God’s moral law.1

Of course there is another point to make here. The penalties prescribed in Leviticus were part of an exclusive covenant between God and the political, earthly nation of Israel. With the coming of Christ, that covenant was no longer with an earthly nation but with the Church, and the civil penalties named in the Mosaic Covenant ceased to be in force. Therefore, this passage does not require New Testament Christians to put homosexuals to death.

Christians are seldom criticized for embracing a Bible which condemns incest and bestiality, but it is only a matter of time. As the culture normalizes those sins, as it has homosexuality, then Scripture will face fresh criticism, and believers will find themselves once again on the defense.

No matter how loudly some people rail against them, Christian pastors must never stop declaring that the wages of homosexuality is death, just as it is for all sin (cf. Rom. 6:23). At the same time, they can never cease to proclaim that Christ died for homosexuals, and that forgiveness for this sin and all others is to be found in Him. To homosexuals, as to us all, the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Footnotes:
1
For a more detailed discussion, see: John S. Feinberg and Paul D. Feinberg, Ethics for a Brave New World (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1994).

article adapted from Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located one and a half miles east of Rt. 222.