“Biblical Sex, What the Bible Says and Doesn't Say About Sex and Marriage”
Walter Lamp explains the literal biblical sex and marriage mandates, discusses homosexuality and gay marriage, and helps readers evaluate current issues
Legal scholar Walter Lamp lays out a plain and simple explanation of what the Bible says about sex, homosexuality and marriage in “Biblical Sex, What the Bible Says and Doesn’t Say About Sex and Marriage” (ISBN 0983495432). Without a political or religious agenda, he uses direct biblical quotations and shows what the text’s pronouncements on sexual mores meant in an ancient culture very different from our own.
“Biblical Sex” takes nothing for granted about readers’ biblical knowledge or lack thereof. It is a lighthearted and easy read in spite of its serious subject matter. Every term and quote is explained with a clear citation to its place in the Old Testament and Hebrew Bible, which, as Lamp’s book explains, are essentially the same thing.
Lamp shows that the Old Testament does condemn homosexuality, which is only the beginning of the story. He points out, using the Bible as his reference, that the ancient society was generally promiscuous in all forms of sensuality. He notes that the Bible doesn’t distinguish between homosexuality and bisexuality and, surprisingly, accepts lesbianism, and he discusses how King David was involved in a relationship with another man. While noting the book’s condemnation of heterosexual adultery, he points out that men could have as many wives as they wanted. He shows how women were deprived of basic rights, such as owning property or divorcing and were discriminated against in other ways.
Ultimately, “Biblical Sex” is as much a tour of the ancient culture that produced the Bible as it is an explanation of the book’s sexual rules itself.
“Reading this book is like going on a romp through the Bible, and you’ll wind up being much more knowledgeable about your religion, not just about sex and marriage,” says Lamp.
“Biblical Sex, What the Bible Says and Doesn’t Say About Sex and Marriage” is available for sale in paperback and e-book formats online at Amazon.com and other channels.
About the Author: Walter Lamp earned a doctorate in jurisprudence from the Yale Law School. He applies the same scrutiny to religious texts that he does to legal documents. A student of both the Bible and the Muslim Koran, he has written six books on scripture.
