Prostitutes and Polygamists
A Look at Love, Old Testament Style
- Biblical Studies & Commentaries
- Publisher: Zondervan Reflective (Zondervan)
- Published: 2015
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Publisher's Description
Jacob and Solomon were polygamists. Tamar and Rahab were prostitutes. What are polygamists and prostitutes doing on the pages of Holy Scripture? And God told the prophet Hosea to marry a prostitute. What about Cain—did he really marry his sister? Abraham did, and he was also a polygamist. Lot offered his daughters up for rape, David committed adultery (or rape?) and the Bible calls both men righteous. Love, Old Testament style, was bizarre. As readers of the Old Testament encounter these weird, confusing, and horrific “love” stories they ask, “What’s up with sex in the Old Testament?” The church often ignores the R-rated bits of the Bible, so it’s hard for people to find answers to their disturbing questions about sex in Scripture, which can lead people to give up on God and God’s word. However, these stories were included in the Bible for a reason, to reveal an even more shocking “love” story. When humans behave badly, God behaves graciously. God not only forgives people with sexual baggage, but also redeems their lives and includes them in his mission. God’s word records their story to benefit us. Just as sex was not often ideal in the Old Testament, it’s often not ideal today. Instead of ignoring these stories, Prostitutes and Polygamists engages, discusses, and learns from them.
Endorsements (9)
“A pastor once said he needed only three Sunday school classes in his church: one on sex, one on the end times, and one on whether there will be sex in the end times. David Lamb here covers all the bases on the subject of sex in the Old Testament, in a sensible, down-to-earth, well-informed way. He writes as a biblical scholar who knows about real life, and he shows he can bring the Bible and our own sexual lives together. His book would be a great textbook for at least one of those classes.”
“you David Lamb for shedding light on these important issues, for probing these taboo texts, and for calling Christians to engage on behalf of the vulnerable and wounded.”
“In our sexually obsessed culture, David Lamb provides a timely and honest discussion about sex in the Bible — the good, the bad, and the R-rated. Confronting our ugliest moments, he invites us to encounter the radical beauty of God’s love for all.”
“Sex is a gift from God, but often it feels like a curse. We are all broken people because of our rebellion, and thus we struggle with sexuality. David Lamb has given us a book that acknowledges acknowledges just how bad we are. Indeed, we are worse than we think we are. But then he reminds us through this brilliant look at biblical stories of brokenness just how big God’s grace is toward us. Once you start reading this book, you won’t be able to put it down.”
“I regularly use Dave Lamb’s God Behaving Badly when teaching the Old Testament to college students. Given the centrality of sexuality to human experience and the challenges for modern readers in engaging the Old Testament about these issues, I am thrilled that Lamb has provided another valuable resource to the church.”
“Bible. Not David Lamb. He jumps us into the toughest parts of the Bible with honesty, grit, courage, and even humor. He makes me want to read the Old Testament with new eyes.”
“With unblinking and sharp eye, David Lamb delves into provocative topics like sex, marriage, and polygamy with humor. A helpful resource for serious learners of all types!”
“The only books I read these days are those which throw fresh light on Scripture or challenge traditional presuppositions. Top-rated Old Testament scholar David Lamb has done both in this thought-provoking book.”
“careful scholarly reading of the biblical texts with a light and engaging touch, while pointing the way for pastors, churches, and the rest of us to be a lot more biblical, discerning, and Christlike in what (and who) we love, and a lot more robustly honest and informed about what the Bible actually says (and doesn’t say) about sex.”
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