Posts Tagged ‘uncleanness’
Purge Me with Hyssop
by Johnny O. Trail Most scholars believe David wrote the fifty-first Psalm after his transgression with Bathsheba. If this is the case, it is one of the most penitent Psalms in the Old Testament. From the passages recorded in Psalm fifty-one, it appears the writer was heartsick over his sins. Psalm 51:11-12 says, “Do not…
Read MoreStacking the Deck Against Jesus
by Matthew W. Bassford If there is anything we should take away from reading through the gospels this year, it is a deeper understanding of the skill with which the Evangelists crafted their narratives. Nothing in any of the gospels is there just because Jesus did it. As John observes in John 21:25, all four…
Read MoreDo the prophecies in Isaiah prove that the laws of uncleanness are still in effect?
Question: Hello, I’m a Christian part of the Lord’s body (the church of Christ) and I have a question about unclean meats. I’ve read your posts before about Acts and Romans on the Lord allowing all things that were unclean to be clean, and I’ve read that myself before and believed that interpretation for many…
Read MoreUncleanness
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Students of the Bible are frequently confused by the Old Testament laws regulating uncleanness. Many do not understand the purpose of the laws and often wonder if they impact the Christian in some way or not. The concept of unclean is certainly an old one. It predates Moses, being first mentioned…
Read MoreNotes on Sex
Fornication (Greek: porneia): Porneia, typically translated as fornication, sexual immorality, or sometimes just immorality is defined as follows: “Porneia, which is relatively rare in classical Greek (Moulton-Milligan), originally stood for “prostitution” … In other, later contexts it denotes “unchasity, illicit sexual relations” of any kind (“fornication” is a somewhat archaic but common translation).” [The Complete Biblical…
Read MoreAre wet dreams sinful?
Question: On the site, I read “My wife no longer has a desire for sex. What do I do?” which says something about nocturnal emissions. I never heard of the word, so I looked it up, and it said something about wet dreams. The truth is wet dreams are very sinful. How can that be…
Read MoreWhy was an unclean animal used to symbolize Jesus’ tribe?
Question: Greetings, According to Leviticus 11:27, the lion is an unclean animal because of its paw. Therefore, how is it that the lion (Lion of the Tribe of Judah) is chosen as a type of Christ? Thank you. Answer: Unclean animals are a classification in regard to food. “Nevertheless these you shall not eat among…
Read MoreActs 11 does not prove we can now eat pork
Question: You said we could eat pork and pulled Acts 11 out to debate your cause, but you see that that vision was talking about the Gentiles if you keep reading on. The Bible tells us to get the conclusion of the whole matter. Answer: In “Uncleanness,” I said: “While many of the items selected…
Read MoreDid the Jews forbid pork because eating it was killing people?
Question: Why does the Old Testament say certain foods are prohibited? My teacher said it was because people saw that their friends were dying from pork, so they wrote that it was a sin to eat it. We know now it is from undercooking that meat. This makes me scared because it seems like something…
Read MoreIf God condemned something in the past does that mean the law remains?
Question: Hello! I came across a website today about Leviticus and homosexuality. At the bottom it said the following: “Now, if God never changes and never goes back on His word, what He says in Leviticus stands for all time. Thus, what He condemns in the Old Testament remains condemned into the New Testament and…
Read MoreWhat are all the types of sexual sins?
Question: What are all the types of sexual sins? Answer: “Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes” (Ecclesiastes 7:29). One of the problems with coming up with lists of possible sins is that men are too inventive in coming up with new ways to…
Read MoreWhy were women valued less than men in the Old Testament?
Question: I love God. I am a strong woman and have always asserted myself and believe that men and women are equal in the eyes of God. There is actually a scripture that says “all of mankind is created equal in the eyes of God.” I do know there are different roles for each sex,…
Read MoreWhat is included in porneia?
Question: Hi! I have been studying sex and the Bible. What I am really confused about is that the Bible does not mention oral sex or mutual masturbation. It only mentions anal sex and vaginal sex. Thus, how are oral sex and mutual masturbation a sin? How is it sexual intercourse? In Greek, porneia means…
Read MoreWhat makes some animals clean while others not?
Question: When God has created animals, he saw “it was good” (Genesis 1:25). Then why he told Noah that there are unclean animals (Genesis 7:2)? Aren’t all animals created by God and “it was good”? What makes some animals clean while others not? Answer: If you look at the list of clean versus unclean animals…
Read MoreDo the laws of uncleanness mean masturbation is sinful?
Question: I have to start by saying this: I do not fall under the law, but I try my best to obey it as the Holy Spirit guides me, or, as I allow God to use me. I am also not trying to make you feel guilt or shame, for it is not my duty…
Read MoreWhy was a woman unclean less time after the birth of a boy than after the birth of a girl?
Question: In Leviticus 12 it says that the woman who gave birth to a boy is only unclean for seven days, but one who gave birth to a girl is unclean for two weeks. Why is that? Answer: “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child,…
Read MoreWhy does Leviticus talk about four-legged insects when insects have six legs?
Question: In Leviticus 11:20-23, it says that insects have four legs instead of the six that we have always learned in school. Does the Bible have a different way of counting the legs of insects? Answer: “All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you. Yet these you may eat…
Read MoreWhy did God tell Peter that the unclean animals were clean?
Question: Hi, I was wondering about something from the Bible: In Acts 10 when Peter is on a flat roof praying and then in a trance, he sees a sheet let down by its four corners from the sky, and then God tells Peter to get up, kill them, and eat them. Peter replies that…
Read MoreWhy were the laws regarding food changed?
Question: I’m not sure why Jesus changed the law about what is OK to eat. Why did he allow us to eat pork? Answer: To understand why the law changed, you first need to understand why those laws were there in the first place. I would like you to read an article that I wrote…
Read MoreShould married couples abstain from sex before partaking of the Lord’s Supper?
Question: Can married couples have sexual intercourse before Lord’s Supper? Answer: Upon what passage do you base this conclusion? What I suspect has happened is that someone is trying to blend Old Testament laws with the Law of Christ. The Law of Moses had requirements about not being unclean when approaching God in worship. Those…
Read MoreNeither Jesus nor Peter ate unclean animals, so if you teach otherwise you are departing from Christianity
Question: I agree with you that there is no record of Jesus being a vegetarian, but you must also concede that there is no record either, in the “words in red”, of Jesus departing from tradition in such a sharp way as described in Acts10:9-16 and I Corinthians 10:25-26. The often-quoted Mark 7:19 is universally considered a…
Read MoreWhere does it say that a man can’t be with his wife during her monthly periods?
Question: Where in the Bible does it talk about a woman’s monthly cycle and that a man should not be with her while she is on her monthly? My man and I were having a Bible discussion yesterday and he said he read something about that in the Bible but he could not remember were. …
Read MoreCan I marry the brother of a man with whom I had committed adultery 15 years ago?
Question: I entered into a long-distance relationship with a man who happens to be the brother of someone with whom I had sexual relationships with more than 15 years ago. I was never married to the man, although we lived together for a couple of months. We lived in adultery and fornication because the man…
Read MoreWhat was the significance of Samson killing the lion and eating honey from its carcass?
Question: What is the symbolism of Samson killing the lion and what was bad about Samson giving his parents the honey that the bees had made in the lion’s dead carcass? Answer: I don’t recall God stating that Samson killing the lion symbolized anything in particular. It did illustrate the strength of Samson since few men would…
Read MoreSince a sin offering was required, is masturbation a sin?
Question: I was wondering if masturbation was a sin even if one didn’t have any sinful thoughts when he does it. In Leviticus 15:14-15 it says that the person who had a discharged should offer two young pigeons, one for a sin offering and other for a burnt offering. Does this make masturbation a sin? Answer:…
Read MoreShould Christians avoid unclean foods?
Question: I read your article and liked it very much! I would like to make a comment though about eating unclean meats. I am not saying that by eating them a person will not be saved, because we are saved by grace. But if we want to be free from disease and sickness, then we…
Read MoreIs anal or oral sex between a married couple a sin?
Question: Is anal and oral sex between a married couple a sin? And is my desire for it also a sin? Should I be angry at my wife’s unwillingness to participate in anal or oral sex? Answer: In describing the decay of the Gentile society, Paul pointed out that it began with a rejection of…
Read MoreIs masturbation unacceptable?
Question: Is masturbation unacceptable? Answer: This question has been widely debated because the Scriptures do not directly refer to the practice. However, there are a series of passages that might include it. “If any man has an emission of semen, then he shall wash all his body in water, and be unclean until evening. And any garment…
Read MoreUncleanness
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 5:1-8 I. Under the Old Testament, there is a series of rules dealing with unclean things A. I am finding that people are condemning as unclean things that God never mentioned. B. The rules confuse people, mostly because they do not understand what uncleanness was about. C. Uncleanness predates the Law of…
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