The New Testament on Sexuality

by William Loader

This is the fifth and final installment of William Loader's authoritative, acclaimed series on attitudes toward sexuality in the ancient world.

Sexual themes are never far beneath the surface where there are human beings. This was certainly the case for Christians in the first-century world. Some began in a strongly Jewish context and worked out their faith in dialogue with their scriptural heritage. Others had to work out their sexual ethics in a world strongly influenced by Greco-Roman ideals and practices.
In The New Testament on Sexuality William Loader explores the relevant cultural contexts and looks at New Testament texts related to sexuality, highlighting both the warnings about sexual wrongdoing and the affirmations of sexual union. He deals with specific themes such as divorce, same-sex relations, women and men in leadership, and celibacy; individual behavior, gender roles and rules, preferences, and hopes also fall under the scope of his investigation. Broad-ranging and thorough, this book engages both the biblical texts and the diverse ways in which they have been interpreted.

Genres: Sexuality, Theology

575 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2012

Reviews

[Nicholas Quient · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helpful. Dr. Loader is left of center, but much of his exegetical work is solid and insightful, aimed at getting to the heart of the text. His treatment of Paul and same-sex practice is largely persuasive, but I disagree with certain portions - though I am challenged to do further investigation. My major gripe with Dr. Loader is his exegesis of Paul's sections on women. Otherwise, a solid work that deserves more interaction.

[Adam Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a survey of the landscape of ideas about sex surrounding the New Testament and as exegesis of the NT texts themselves, this book is a great resource. I am especially appreciative of Loader's willingness to present the meaning of the text as it is on its own terms and not try to contort it into alignment with his own preferred theological conclusions (which he does argue for, but in contexts where he makes it clear he is discussing application at odds with the text and not the text itself). He also wears his allegiance to certain textual critical schools on his sleeve, and this introduces some unnecessary difficulties in his handling of the pastoral epistles and some curious but meandering digressions in his handling of the gospels.

[Tyler Hurst · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loader is a liberal of sorts but he is also a brutal textualist. This book is a slog but one with crucial hidden nuggets.