2 Samuel 1:26
"I grieve for you, Jonathan my brother; you were very dear to me. Your love for me was wonderful, more wonderful than that of women."
In the society of ancient Israel, it was not considered proper for a man and woman to have a platonic relationship. Men and women rarely spoke to each other in public. Since David's only relationships with women would have been sexual in nature, then he must be referring to sexual love here. It would not make sense in this verse to compare platonic love for a man with sexual love for a woman; they are two completely different phenomenon. It would appear that David is referring to his sexual love for Jonathan.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_bmar.htm#dav
2007-03-12 13:17:44 · 23 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
1 Samuel 20:41
"After the boy had gone, David got up from the south side of the stone and bowed down before Jonathan three times, with is face to the ground. Then they kissed each other and wept together - but David wept the most." (NIV)
The original Hebrew text says that they kissed each other and wept together until David became great. The word which means "great" in this passage is "gadal" in the original Hebrew. The same word is used elsewhere in the Hebrew Scriptures to refer to King Solomon being greater than all other kings. Some theologians interpret "gadal" in this verse as indicating that David had an erection. However, the thoughts of David becoming sexually aroused after kissing Jonathan may have been too threatening for Bible translators. They either deleted the ending entirely or created one of their own.
2007-03-12 13:18:44 · update #1
1 Samuel 18:3-4
"And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt." (NIV)
Since people in those days did not wear underwear, Jonathan stripped himself naked in front of David. That would be considered extremely unusual behavior (then and now) unless their relationship was physical.
2007-03-12 13:29:27 · update #2
LOLOL, I love how you Christians just assume that the interpretation that has been drilled into your heads is correct! As if you or anybody else who drilled it into your unthinking automaton skulls was around then!
As if you could even read the original Hebrew texts! LOLOLOLOL!
2007-03-12 13:33:41 · update #3
Bisexuality was widely accepted in ancient times. Much more so than today.
2007-03-12 13:25:42 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 5⤋
That culture was a lot more affectionate towards other men than ours. You are reading those Bible verses thinking of how WE would look at it, not how David would. I suggest you ask a rabbi or a historian about the translations, culture, and meaning of the word "love" in the original scripture. I REALLy doubt, because of the rest of the Old Testament, and his Bathsheba affair that God nailed him on, that he was scrumping Jonathan. It would have been made a much bigger deal.
Even if he did have sex with jonathan, there is a difference between what the Bible records and what God approves of.
2007-03-12 20:25:55 · answer #2 · answered by Mrs. Eric Cartman 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
You are highly mistaken, you do not understand the Scripture either. God said David was a man after his own heart. God had special feelings for David since David relied heavily on God. Since God considers the act of men lying with men an abomination, then it's easy to understand that David would not be like you suggest. You are way off the mark and it's easy to see that all you're trying to do is make the Bible, God, and Christianity look bad, but all your doing is setting yourself up for an adverse judgment from God. And again you are mistaken and it shows you have no understanding of God's word, they did wear undergarments in Biblical times, if you read in the OT you will see that the priest were required to wear undergarments and they were to be made of fine linen so as not to cause sweat and so that none of their private parts may at anytime come in contact with any part of the temple while worshiping and performing their services.
2007-03-12 20:30:23 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Who told you that men and women rarely spoke t each other in public? I think your confusing your ancient cultures. Women were considered equals to men but under the authority of the leader in their household.
David had several wives which lead to some unpleasent consequences in his life. When Johathan died David lost a true and great friend. Stop reading sexuality into everything.
This ranks right up there with the current idea that if two people spend time together it must be a sexual relationship. Oprah had to make an announcement that she and her friend were not gay because people were making such and issue out of their spending normal friendship time together. Maybe it's time people stopped thinking with their reproductive organs and started thinking with their brains.
2007-03-12 20:36:08 · answer #4 · answered by kaehya2003 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
David didn't have sex with Jonathan. Under Jewish law, a person was stoned to death for sexual sins. And, David was a man after Gods heart.
And Jonathan was like a brother to him. It is OK for guys to love each other. It isn't OK for guys to have sex with each other. In the beginning God made them man & woman and they two shall become one flesh.
Love is many different forms, from nurturing, parenting, friendship, romantic, passionate, hot, sexual, etc... God made all these forms of love. Love is everlasting. But the devil knows that and will try to twist this gift of God.
My guess is that he loved his friend a blood brother type love, and it was his wife he was having marital problems with that he was comparing with. I am sure it wasn't Bathsheba. Thou, he had her husband murdered to cover up his adultery with Bathsheba. That is the sexual sin David did. And since he was the Anointed King at the time, the first baby they had died early.
In the King James it is exceeded (not bonr) and is also used in another verse 1 king 10:23 King Solomon exceeded all the kings. Exceeded in Hebrew is...GDL defined as twist (threading/ braiding), large (in various senses, as in body, mind, estate or honor, also in pride):-advance, boast,bring up, exceed,excellent, mature, magnify, grow...
If you can find that word as a sexual act in the bible anywhere, let me know.
Also, if you want to be convinced, ask a Messianic Jew who has a copy of the book of 2 Samuel in Hebrew.
2007-03-12 20:30:03 · answer #5 · answered by LottaLou 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Interesting, but if that is the case, then why (if we are to accept all scripture literally) then do we not consider the object of Solomon's song to have a really rough neck? King David is known for being a poet, so its only natural that he would use literary devices to convey his point. so he uses a commonly know strong form of love, and compares his companionship to Jonathan, or would you say Solomon had sex with is sister?
2007-03-12 20:55:16 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
What a falsehood shame on you, you should read aloud the book of Psalms the anguished prayers of King David at least pray for forgiveness for that comment
2007-03-12 20:40:00 · answer #7 · answered by L J 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
You gay activists are constantly trying to convince the world that all of the famous people in history were gay. Pleezzze.
If that is all that you have, then it is weak. You are assuming that for men, love & sex are the same thing. Not so. A man can still feel compassion & friendship for his wife even when he is not horney.
2007-03-12 21:15:50 · answer #8 · answered by Randy G 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
so why don't you research the love of God like you researching this garbage andyou'll see that people that are not of the Kingdom of God are so blind they can't see God if He was staring them in the face. There's a love called AGAPE, that isn't sexual. This is the same love that Jesus had between Mary Magdalene, and that Jesus had with Peter. You know nothing about scripture, you sick indivdual. Cursed is the man that try and twist the Word of God and make in of noneffect. Woe unto your soul!!!
2007-03-12 20:26:29 · answer #9 · answered by Nish 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
That is total rubbish. You are turning a deep, beautiful friendship into something that is vile. God would never have condoned such sexual behavior in David, let alone blessed him for it. It would violate God's own Laws and God's Nature. God sent a Prophet to confront David over the sin of killing Bathsheba's husband by putting him in the forefront of war - don't you think that God would have dealt severely with such blatant sin as homosexuality (or bisexuality or any other form of forbidden sexuality)? God does not bless SIN and God declared in His Word that same sex, sex is SIN.
2007-03-12 20:25:15 · answer #10 · answered by wd 5 · 6⤊ 2⤋
dude, if you are satisfied with the one source you found that 'proves' this, go for it. But if you really want to know what the Bible says, read it, and read many commentaries. Only modern pro-gay ones will interpret David's comments to mean that.
2007-03-12 20:23:37 · answer #11 · answered by a 5 · 7⤊ 0⤋