The Price of Promiscuity

Chapter 1

Noah, Sodom, Pompeii and the Last Days.

U NBRIDLED promiscuity has often been rampant at the decline of an empire. Historians who have studied the rise and fall of empires often cite this among the reasons for their downfall. The Bible gives us a clear insight into the downfall of individuals, cities, tribes, nations and empires.

NOAH & SODOM

The people before the flood give us many clues.

Gen 6:2.   That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all that they chose.

Gen. 6:5   God saw that the wickedness was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Gen 6:12   And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupted; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.

Sodom and Gomorrah have become synonymous with abominable sexual debauchery.

Gen 18:20   The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous;

The story in Genesis 19:1-9, reveals that these men had reached the state which Paul describes in Romans 1:27.

Rom 1.27   And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one for another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.

Jude describes them in verse 7.

Jude 7   Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange (other) flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Although the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah were described as sexually depraved, both Jesus and Ezekiel give a deeper insight into their nature and lifestyle which gives us a background of these people.

Jesus in Luke 17:26-29 had this to say,

Luke 17:26-29   And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of Man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.

SODOM AND GOMORRAH

Likewise also was it in the days of Lot, they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

Ezekiel expands on the way people lived in Sodom further in chapter. 16:49-50.

Ez 16:49-50   Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.

As we read in Jude 7 that Sodom and Gomorrah are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. It is Ezekiel that gives the deepest insight. He describes them as being proud, full of bread (that is food surplus) and having abundance of idleness. Becoming obsessed with these things often leads to haughtiness which is a symptom that can come as a result of idle wealth, and ultimately, committing abomination before God. Jude describes this as, giving themselves over to fornication and going after strange flesh.

NOTE: The term ‘giving themselves over to’, this indicates that there is a line that has to be crossed over from morality to immorality. The price for those of Sodom and Gomorrah was total destruction.

POMPEII AND HERCULANEUM

Pompeii and Herculaneum are also held up as a more recent example of a society totally given over to corruptness. When mount Vesuvius erupted, these cities were destroyed. This event was similar to that which had destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. This eruption at Pompeii and Herculaneum covered them in either ash or mud. The daily life of these people was frozen in time, thus the lifestyles of the people of these cities and those of the Roman Empire at AD 79, can be studied. Pompeii, at this time was a booming resort town where tourists came to bathe in the hot mineral springs and where the wealthy came to live in plush villas, to be pampered by their slaves and live in voluptuous idleness. Just like any large city, the walls were covered in graffiti, and amongst it was found the words ‘Sodom and Gomorrah.’ Whether written by a Jew or a Christian (both were present then in Roman society) no one knows, but this statement truly reflects the Pompeiian’s licentious life style.

Obsession with sexual depravity is only one symptom of a civilization in decay. In Pompeii there was an Amphitheatre that could seat 20,000, which was approximately the size of their whole population. Here numerous pairs of Gladiators fought and immense massacres of wild beasts took place. During one such gladiatorial bout, the Pompeiian spectators started a bitter brawl with a smaller number of visitors from a near by town of Nucerial. So bloody was this conflict, that Nero (the Emperor who had the apostle Paul beheaded) ordered this Amphitheatre closed from AD 59-69. {Some cited this incident when drunken British soccer fans, in May 1985, (at the European Soccer Cup Final), caused a riot that resulted in 39 deaths of Italian and other soccer fans in Belgium}.

Pompeiians’ built for themselves enormous bathing houses, which incorporated gymnasiums, hot and cold baths, steam rooms and massage rooms. In some of these gymnasiums enormous banquets were held, such that any ‘earthly pleasure’ could be partaken.

Pompeiians’ were also given over to the worship of pagan gods. There were numerous altars in the streets and a large number of temples scattered throughout the city. Which reminds us of the words spoken by Jeremiah in chapter 11:13b.

Jer. 11:13b   and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have ye set up altars to that shameful thing, even alters to burn incense unto Baal.

The most stark testimony of Pomeiian lifestyle is their artwork that is in the Hellenistic style. Frescos painted on the walls of their houses depict their gods and the Epicurean pursuit of beauty and food. After the discovery of Pompeii, Archaeologists began to uncover artwork so debauched that it has been set aside by the authorities into ‘Adults Only’ viewing areas. This work depicts what Paul describes in Romans 1:23, which no doubt was typical of the Roman Empire of that era.

Rom. 1:23   And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Clearly Paul saw, and was exposed to such artwork, and he was grieved when he saw the city (of Athens) wholly given to idolatry. Paul describes this impression in Acts 17:16.

Acts 17:16   Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.

This Pompeiian experience can help us to understand the reasons for the collapse of the Roman Empire. Historian Gibbons described life during the reign of the following emperors. During the reign of Elagabalus (AD 218-222) the corrupt and opulent nobles of Rome grafted every vice that could be collected from the mighty conflux of nations and manners. In the reign of Caracalla (AD 211-217), the rich and luxurious nobles shunned military service, and turned to their baths, theatres and villas leaving the dangerous cares of the empire to the peasants and soldiers. ¹

New evidence, particularly during the reigns of Claudius, Caligula and Nero, revealed that Romans suffered from chronic lead poisoning ingested from lead food utensils, lead water pipes and from lead oxide. This oxide was added to wine as a preservative and was consumed in great quantities. Thus drunkenness and lead poisoning appear to have contributed to mental and moral decadence of the Romans. ² Roman women even used white lead as make-up!

National immorality saps a nations’ spirit, causing the Nation to become weak and defenceless. In such a state it is ripe for conquest by neighbouring stronger nations. The conquerors then introduce the discipline that the declined nation lost. At Rome’s decline the population was diminishing through rampant homosexuality, war, disease and famine. A sorry end for a once mighty empire.

When the spirit of Sodom and Pompeii predominates in a people, their days become numbered. As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be in the days of the son of man. These ‘days’ elsewhere in the Bible are called the ‘last days’.

LAST DAYS

II Tim. 3:1   This know also, that in the LAST DAYS perilous times shall come.

II Tim. 3:2   For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy.

II Tim. 3:3   Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent (no self-restraint, especially sexual), fierce, despisers of those that are good,

II Tim. 3:4   Traitors, heady (impetuous, especially when drunk), highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God,

II Tim. 3:5   Having a form of Godliness but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

II Pet. 3:3   Knowing this first, that there shall come in the LAST DAYS scoffers, walking after there own lusts.

The main thrust of these texts is SELF. Self-love, self-importance, self-indulgence and selfish religion. Proverbs 14:12 puts it this way.

Prov. 14:12   There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the ways thereof are the ways of death.

SOCIETY AND DRUGS

The events of the last few decades certainly lead us to see that all the hallmarks of the ‘Last Days’ are all around us. The baby boom following the second world war produced a generation that is sometimes called the ‘Me Generation’. By the late 1960s this generation was in their early to late teens and many were swept along with a massive turning over of the monuments of public morality. That generation often prided itself on how it ‘killed off’ the ‘Victorian’ mores.

The fast cars, alcohol, rock and roll and unchaperoned dating of the 1950s, developed into the ‘make love not war’/hippie era of the 1960s. When people began experimenting with ‘free love’, drugs and eastern religions.

Out of ‘free love’ developed the decriminalizing of homosexuality and the breakdown of the traditional family. Hard drinking and heavy smoking of the 1950s, continued in the 1960s but many also tried smoking marijuana, ‘dropping acid’ (LSD), and some finally tried heroin and cocaine.

The price for drug abuse is extremely high. The cost in taxes and health insurance to pay for the diseases resulting from this self-indulgent lifestyle is simply billions and billions. The public cost of alcohol abuse alone, is staggering. Add to this tobacco abuse and the toll escalates enormously. If this is not bad enough, the ‘blow out’ in social welfare and health costs caused by abuse of prescribed drugs is causing a massive social, economic and political headache. The uncontrolled ingestion of mind and body altering chemical substances, (except under strict medical supervision), does not solve any problems. Many of these problems are presented on the following tables at the end of this chapter.

It may seem strange to be discussing alcohol, tobacco and drugs in conjunction with promiscuity, but there is a strong link. The more self-indulgent people become the more morally weak they seem to grow. Alcohol and tobacco consumption are often linked to sexual promiscuity and/or lead on to illicit drugs of addiction.

Ephesians. 5:18a states, And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess.

It would be quite in harmony with Biblical teaching to rephrase this verse.

And be not psychologically and or physically altered with the ingestion of chemical substances, wherein is excess.

The Bible does not specifically forbid the smoking of tobacco or marijuana. Narcotic drug taking is alluded to as a part of witchcraft but this is obscure, clearly witchcraft is condemned, so taking these substances would be condemned along with it. There are no texts like, thou shalt not smoke, drop pills or inject narcotics, therefore people use this as an excuse to indulge in these mind and body to altering substances and claim there is nothing in the Bible that says it is wrong.

There was no need for the Lord to condemn these substances, for they were not in common use among the Hebrews. Many of these drugs have come about as a result of man trying to find cures for illnesses. The Hebrews had God to heal them and as such were commanded to look to Him and not to herbs and chemical substances. Prov. 31:6 tells of the use of alcohol as an anaesthetic, give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, or as a tranquilliser, wine to those that be of heavy hearts. The use of marijuana was known to the ancient Greeks ³ and Romans. Some historians felt that its use contributed to the downfall of the Greek Empire. The smoking of tobacco was unknown in Europe until after Christopher Columbus. The Old World traders, in dealing with the American Indians, learnt from them their habit of tobacco smoking. They then introduced it to the Old World.

Thus these two habits were unknown to the bulk of the Bible’s writers. The use of herbs and hallucinogens in medicine and witchcraft are as ancient as the crafts themselves. Rev. 22:15 gives us a hint that these practices of using mind altering drugs was known.

Rev. 22:15   For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whatsoever loveth and maketh a lie.

The Greek word for sorcerer is ‘pharmakoi’ (from which the English word pharmacy is derived). This Bible word is not referring to chemists or drugstore business people, but to evil people who use mind altering drugs such as narcotics to bewitch, dominate, incant, cast spells upon others; hence the term sorcerer. The witch-doctors and or medicine-men of pagan tribes often used such substances to prove their magic and healing powers. This Greek word pharmakoi is generally translated sorcerer and is used five times in the New Testament. These are as follows, Galatians. 5.20 translated witchcraft, and Rev. 9:21, 18:23, 21:8, and 22:15; all translated either sorcerer or sorceries.

Revelations 18:23b is particularly interesting where Babylon the Great’s traders were described as merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. It would be clearer if it were translated "for by thy drugs and potions were all nations deceived."

The spirit of the Babylonian empire has permeated all successive empires that have been built on her ashes. Even today, in Godless peoples and nations, her spirit persists. She spiritually represents anti-christian ways and governments.

There is a world-wide trade in narcotics (that is, substances that create a state of narcosis or sleep), hallucinogens (substances producing false impressions in the mind), tobacco and alcohol, which touches us all. Those that are making their fortunes from this trade, and those that are buying these goods, are being deceived.

This merchandise and production of addictive substances, costs. The world and especially the third world, is suffering from a food crisis. Productive land is being used to grow opium poppies, tobacco, cocaine and marijuana. For the alcohol industry, hops, wine grapes, barley et cetera, are grown which take up huge tracts of agricultural land. The labour and resources needed to convert these raw products into substances of addiction, is simply enormous. Wholesome food has to be tortured to produce the alcohol for people, for whom it will do no good. The obscenity of tobacco smoking is catered for by the ‘barons’ who pay farmers to set aside their lands to grow what has been described as ‘The Devil’s Weed’.

For the illicit drug trade, peasant farmers in the ‘Golden Triangle’ and in the jungles of South America, are paid a pittance to grow opium poppies, cocaine and marijuana. While the crime bosses convert them into the drugs of death.

The trouble with illicit drugs, is that there is a whole seedy world surrounding those that deal with them. In order to sell illicit drugs, a crime net-work has to be set up to overcome the law enforcement agencies. Thus to import and distribute them becomes very expensive.

The risks to the pushers are very high so to make it worthwhile, the crime bosses pay very high wages. All these costs must therefore be passed on to the consumer. Thus, with heroin in particular, to support this habit, the user almost certainly turns to crime. Males mostly turn to theft and quite often male prostitution. With females, prostitution is their most common method of gaining their high income. Thus the drugs lead to a multitude of sin and sinners to support the system. The users, to maintain their habit, lower their morality to an incredible degree.

God detests girls turning to prostitution as can be seen in Leviticus 19:29.

Lev. 19:29   Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.

God also detests sodomites (male homosexuals) in a land as can be seen in Deuteronomy 23:29.

Deut. 23:29   There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel.

Thus when drugs of addiction cause people to sell their bodies to pay for their addiction, it is indeed a black day for that nation. Those who procure and those that are selling themselves, are just as bad, they are lowering their own morality to procure them and feed the crime system with their money.

The crime network is also immoral. If any of their corrupt team tries to tell the police about their system they are murdered. The whole cycle of crime is outside all that God desires in a community and for people. Revelations 22:15 seems to fit the whole scene.

Rev. 22:15   For without are dogs, and sorcerers [i.e. Greek—pharmokoi (druggers)], and whoremongers (male fornicators), and murderers and idolaters (covetous), and whatsoever loveth and maketh a lie.

SOCIETY AND SEX

Sexual promiscuity is not just confined to crime. The heady ‘make love not war’ days of the 1960s produced some very disturbing side effects. Much of this time brought out a revolution of ideas and ideals. Revolutions’ have the unhappy trend of breaking down and never rebuilding. However, many of the objections of these idealist revolutionaries were legitimate. They especially objected to Victorian morality, which was based on outmoded ‘old wives tales’ and antiquated science. The Victorian era had become so tight lipped concerning sex that not even what the Bible taught concerning human sexuality was properly discussed. In an endeavour to cause society to start discussing sex, they behaved promiscuously. Although this succeeded to some degree unfortunately, it created more problems than it solved.

Victorianism was to morality as Darwinism was to creation. Being prude does not necessarily mean being moral, and not talking about sex does not mean it is not occurring. The Bible advocates morality and holiness, not prudery. In the Bible the subject of human sexuality is discussed openly and frankly, and God sets the boundary clearly of how he wants us to behave concerning sex.

Many idealist revolutionaries of the 1960s vehemently criticized prudery and Puritanism and thought that it was the same as Victorianism because both advocated modesty, chastity and procreation within marriage but they are quite different. Some moralists, in the post Victorian era, look back to it as the ideal to which we must return. People need to return to the Biblical values of human sexuality, but not via Victorianism. By looking at Victorianism, it becomes clearer why the sexual revolution could brush it aside.

VICTORIANISM—A BACKGROUND AND HISTORY

The Victorian era is generally regarded as that which occurred during the reign of HRH Queen Alexandrina Victoria R (1837-1901) of England. Victorian morality continued after her reign and progressively crumbled during World War 1. It continued to decline through the 1920s and World War 2. By the 1960s the Victorian era had all but died. It is often confused and or