Homosexuality in the Hebrew Bible Homosexuality in the Hebrew Bible Some relationships in the Hebrew Bible have been described as homosexual, though not all without some dispute, and makes references to certain male homosexual acts. The harshest condemnation of male homosexuality - specifically, of anal-penetrative sexual behavior - is found in Leviticus, where it is described as an "abomination". Genesis chapters 18 and 19 are concerned with the immorality of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and the judgement that must be imposed. The New International Version (NIV) of reads: In Genesis 19:5 the Hebrew word "yada" is translated "relations" in the New American Standard
Development of the Hebrew Bible canon Development of the Hebrew Bible canon Rabbinic Judaism recognizes the 24 books of the Masoretic Text, commonly called the Tanakh or Hebrew Bible, as authoritative. Modern scholarship suggests that the most recently written are the books of Jonah, Lamentations, and Daniel, all of which may have been composed as late as the second century BCE. The Book of Deuteronomy includes a prohibition against adding or subtracting, which might apply to the book itself (i.e. a "closed book", a prohibition against future scribal editing) or to the instruction received by Moses on Mt. Sinai. The book of 2 Maccabees, itself not