An earlier edition of Leviticus, then, may have been silent on the matter of sex between men.īut I think a stronger claim is warranted. Many scholars believe that the section in which Leviticus 18 appears was added by a comparatively late editor, perhaps one who worked more than a century after the oldest material in the book was composed. Like many ancient texts, Leviticus was created gradually over a long period and includes the words of more than one writer. In Verse 22, we find its most famous injunction: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman it is an abomination.” (Leviticus 20:13 repeats this law, along with a punishment for those who violate it: “They shall be put to death their blood is upon them.”) Before Leviticus was composed, outright prohibitions against homosexual sex - whether between men or women - were practically unheard-of in the ancient world.Ĭhapter 18 of Leviticus contains a list of forbidden incestuous acts, followed by prohibitions against sex with a menstruating woman, bestiality and various other sexual acts. No text has had a greater influence on attitudes toward gay people than the biblical book of Leviticus, which prohibits sex between men.
