Topical Bible: Whoredom: Licentious Rites of, in Idolatrous Worship

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Topical Encyclopedia

Whoredom, in the context of biblical literature, often refers to the practice of engaging in illicit sexual activities, particularly those associated with idolatrous worship. This term is frequently used metaphorically in the Scriptures to describe Israel's unfaithfulness to God through the worship of foreign deities. The licentious rites associated with these practices were not merely acts of immorality but were deeply entwined with the religious customs of surrounding pagan nations.

Old Testament Context

The Old Testament provides numerous accounts of Israel's struggle with idolatry and the associated licentious rites. The Canaanite religions, which the Israelites encountered upon entering the Promised Land, were notorious for their fertility cults. These cults often involved ritual prostitution as a means of ensuring agricultural fertility and prosperity. The Israelites were explicitly warned against adopting these practices. In Leviticus 19:29, the Lord commands, "Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness."

The prophet Hosea vividly illustrates the concept of whoredom as spiritual adultery. Hosea's marriage to Gomer, a woman of harlotry, serves as a symbolic representation of Israel's unfaithfulness. Hosea 4:12-13 states, "My people consult their wooden idols, and their divining rods inform them. For a spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they have played the harlot against their God. They sacrifice on the mountaintops and burn offerings on the hills, under oaks, poplars, and terebinths, because their shade is pleasant. Therefore your daughters turn to prostitution and your daughters-in-law to adultery."

New Testament Context

In the New Testament, the early church faced challenges from the pervasive influence of Greco-Roman religious practices, which often included sexual immorality as part of their worship. The apostle Paul addresses these issues in his letters, urging believers to abstain from such practices. In 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 , Paul writes, "Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body."

The book of Revelation also references the concept of whoredom in its depiction of Babylon, symbolizing the corrupt and idolatrous systems of the world. Revelation 17:1-2 describes, "Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls came and said to me, 'Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and those who dwell on the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her immorality.'"

Theological Implications

The biblical condemnation of whoredom in the context of idolatrous worship underscores the seriousness with which God views spiritual fidelity. The licentious rites associated with pagan worship are not merely physical acts of immorality but are seen as acts of spiritual betrayal. The call to holiness and exclusive devotion to God is a recurring theme throughout Scripture, emphasizing the importance of maintaining purity in both worship and conduct.

The metaphor of whoredom serves as a powerful reminder of the covenant relationship between God and His people, highlighting the expectation of faithfulness and the consequences of spiritual adultery. The biblical narrative consistently calls believers to reject the practices of the surrounding culture that lead to spiritual compromise and to remain steadfast in their devotion to the one true God.

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Leviticus 19:29
Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to prostitution, and the land become full of wickedness.
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Deuteronomy 31:16
And the LORD said to Moses, Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, where they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.
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Judges 2:17
And yet they would not listen to their judges, but they went a whoring after other gods, and bowed themselves to them: they turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obeying the commandments of the LORD; but they did not so.
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2 Kings 9:22
And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, Is it peace, Jehu? And he answered, What peace, so long as the prostitutions of your mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?
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Library

Faustus States his Objections to the Morality of the Law and the ...
... By the truth the symbolic rites are set aside, that ... one whom you call your own, and
whom you worship. ... the number of their wives make the patriarchs licentious. ...
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