Customer Reviews

Out of Order: Homosexuality in the Bible and the Ancient Near East

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This is the second 2009 edition, the first came out in 1998. He is good on the Semitic languages (inc Akkadian) and the Greek (which are transliterated). He discusses homosexuality in the ancient near east before discussing the possible rape of Noah by his son Ham. He then discusses Sodom and refutes the inhospitality argument of Boswell. Then he discusses the Levitical prohibitions, in detail especially the Hebrew words used (zakar, miskebe and to'eba). He also discusses the Septuagint version which both Boswell and Helminiak also discuss. He also goes on to discuss reconciliation for the homosexual in the Old Testament. In the New Testament he discusses Christ and the homosexual and the sayings of Paul. He discusses the Greek words in detail (e.g. malakos and arsenokoites), and refutes some of Boswell's interpretations. In particular he relates the NT prohibitions to the OT, for example Paul expelling the wicked incestuous man from the church of Corinth. He also talks about Paul's language of reconciliation. This is an important source book on the original languages. I would have liked him to discuss more about the porneia word group. For those who need to study the meaning of the original languages this is a must have for your library.

Berkeley-trained scholar Dr. Don Wold presents an exhaustive and exciting exegesis of the hottest topic in Christendom today: whether or not homosexuality has a place in the contemporary Church and what the Bible has to say about it. Gently refuting the conclusions of gay apologist Mel White (Stranger at the Gate: To be Gay and Christian in America) and the scholarship of John Boswell (Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality), Wold offers an in-depth and contextual approach to passages dealing with homosexuality in both the Old and New Testaments.

Part anthropological tome, part a learned treatise on Hebrew linguistics, Out of Order further explores
fascinating topics including the Levitical rationale for what appears to the modern mind a dizzying and rather arbitrary legal approach found in the books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus, the Sumerian roots of Hebrew thought and practice, and a truly disturbing take on the incident between Noah and his son Ham that resulted in the notorious curse of Canaan.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in the ancient mind, linguistics and/or a balanced and conciliatory approach to this problematic subject of homosexuality in modern Christianity.