Growing I always heard how fornication was something that was unacceptable, because everyone is supposed to be married before engaging in sexual relations, and I still hold to that view to this day. However, I have heard some who say that fornication is not a sin, but rather a New Testament concept. I knew that fornication was a sin; however, I admit that this question forced me to look into the situation further and I’m thankful for it. So, we are going to view Old and New Testament using the Aramaic and Complete Jewish Bible. I first would like to start off with Paul’s statement on this subject which is plain and clear and go from there.
1 Corinthians 6:9 (Complete Jewish Bible)
“Don’t you know that UNRIGHTEOUS PEOPLE will have no share in the Kingdom of ELOHIM? Don’t delude yourselves- people who ENGAGE IN SEX BEFORE MARRIAGE, who worship idols, who engage in sex after marriage with someone other than their spouse…”
This is a clear warning to all that sex before marriage is considered unrighteous, and is one of the many sins that Paul lists of those who will not inherit eternal life. Paul separates fornication from idolatry in the same passage making a distinction. Even Tobit which is in the Apocrypha included in the Original 1611 KJV and found with the Dead Sea Scrolls along with Enoch, Jubilees, Sirach, and Psalms 152-155 says:
Tobit 4:12 (Apocrypha)
“Beware of ALL FORNICATION, my son and first TAKE A WIFE from the seed of your ancestors and do not take a strange wife, who is not from your dad’s tribe: for we are children of the prophets, Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Remember, my son, that our ancestors from the beginning ALL MARRIED WIVES of their own relations and were blessed in their children and their seed shall inherit the land.”
Tobit uses the word fornication which would have to be the Hebrew word “zanah” the word used for the Old Testament, which can be used to describe sex before marriage, whoring or prostitution which we will examine zanah in more detail below. In the very next verse, Tobit tells his son to take a wife, so in context we can see that he wants his son to take a wife so he will not fornicate/whore. Tobit is making a distinction between lawful sexual relations and an unlawful one.
If fornication was acceptable and you could sleep with whomever you wanted, then why would anyone ever get married? You would be able to have fun and die and never worry about any consequences. So ask yourself this, if YESHUA says we cannot even lustfully look at a woman without committing adultery, then how much worse it for actually committing the act? Clearly, our ancestors knew better as they all took wives and brought forth children.
The word Zanah #2181 in Hebrew means: adultery, fornication, go a whoring, whore, whoremonger, whorish, whoredom, and harlot..
Zanah can mean harlot as in spiritual idolatry or someone who performs sexual acts in exchange for money. The term whoring isn’t always used as we think of it in our modern society of sexual pleasure for payment, but also means sexual relations outside of a marriage covenant. So, in Hebraic thought the word prostitution, whoring, and fornication are similar in usage.
State-journal.com says:
“What does the Bible implicitly warn on fornication? Defined as sin of PRE-MARITIAL SEX, fornication includes ALL COHABITATION OUTSIDE THE BONDS OF MARRIAGE. Another definition takes it as the sexual intercourse involved in prostitution with a broader sense includes all forms of adultery.”
Righteouswarriors.com explains this very well as describing zanah as whoring and the HalleluYAH Scriptures also translates this Hebrew word as whoring. After this brief article, I’ll give some scriptures to support this view as always.
“I personally prefer translating "zanah" as "whoring", because it is more gender specific and I think it better captures the essence of the original text. When I use the word "whoring", I mean it in the sense of a sexually promiscuous person, not in the exclusive sense of a prostitute selling sex for money. Prostitution is certainly one form of whoring (zanah), just as adultery (na'aph) is one form of whoring (zanah), but neither prostitution nor adultery DEFINES "zanah". The Hebrew word "zanah" encompasses fornication, prostitution, adultery and idolatry, as shown in the above definitions.
The American Heritage Dictionary defines "whoring" as:
1. A prostitute.
2. A person considered sexually promiscuous.
3. A person considered as having compromised principles for personal gain.
The web site dictionary.com gave the following definition for "whoring": "a woman who engages in promiscuous sexual intercourse, usually for money; prostitute; harlot; strumpet." The very phrase "usually for money" demonstrates that it is certainly possible to commit whoring without money changing hands.
But whether we prefer to translate "zanah" into English as "whoring" or "fornication", we still need to understand the contextual meaning of "fornication" if we're to have any hope of understanding why the translators chose to use this particular English word to convey the meaning of "zanah" over into English.
American Heritage Dictionary: "Sexual intercourse between partners who are not married to each other."
Online Etymology Dictionary: "Voluntary sex between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman."
WordNet Dictionary: "Voluntary sexual intercourse between persons not married to each other."
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary: "Consensual sexual intercourse between two persons not married to each other."
American Heritage Dictionary: "Sexual intercourse between a man and woman not married to each other."
Notice that nowhere in any English definition of fornication is the concept of "paying or charging for sex". It is simply sexual intercourse between a man and a woman who are not married to each other. That is how I have meant the word "whoring" to be understood in our articles. However, if you think exclusively of prostitution when you see the word "whoring", feel free to translate the word in your mind as "fornication" or "promiscuous sex" if you prefer.
Compellingtruth.org adds this:
“The more modern word for whoremonger is a “John” someone who uses a prostitute. However, in the original language of the Bible, whoremonger (a word found in the King James Version of the Bible) is anyone who has sex OUTSIDE OF MARRIAGE.” The word is found in Ephesians 5:5 and translated in the English Standard Version as “Sexually immoral”” “For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolator), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”
So we see a whoremonger which is one of the definitions of Zanah from the Hebrew means sex outside of the marriage covenant. Even in the Aramaic these who do such will not inherit the Kingdom of ELOHIM. And we see this whoremonger has nothing to do with selling their body for payment as we think of a whore in the western world. Now let’s examine scriptures in their context for whoring, whoremonger, and prostitution now that we have defined the usage of the word.
Revelation 22:14-15 (Aramaic English New Testament)
“Blessed are they who do His (Master YAHWEH’s) Mitzvot (commandments), that they may have a right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city. Without will be dogs and sorcerers, and WHOREMONGERS (fornicators) and manslayers and idolaters, and everyone that loves and does falsehood.”
Genesis 38:24
“And it came to pass, about three months later, that it was told to Judah, saying, Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has been acting like a WHORE (ZANAH); moreover; she is pregnant as a result of her PROSTITUTION.” Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned alive!”
Jubilees 41:17
“And Judah went to the house of her dad, and said to her dad and her brothers, “bring her (Tamar) forth, and let them burn her, for she has worked UNCLEANNESS in Yisra’el.”
Here is an example of how sex outside of a marriage covenant is wrong. Judah did not know that Tamar ACTED like a prostitute wasn’t a professional prostitute, but rather a widow, she ACTED like a prostitute to get back a Judah for him not giving his youngest son Shelah to her as a husband as he promised. The people of the town who saw that Tamar was pregnant did know she acted as a prostitute and they never saw her acting in this capacity before, so they would not assume she was collecting payment for sex, all they knew and were concerned with is that she was a widow living at her dad’s house, under her dad’s authority waiting for Judah’s youngest son Shelah to grow up so she could be married to him. Therefore, it would be impossible for her to get pregnant unless she was having sex outside of marriage. Everyone knew she was a widow because she wore widow garments:
Genesis 38:11
“Then said Judah to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, REMAIN A WIDOW in your dad’s house, until my son Shelah grows up; for he said, lest he die also, as his brothers did. And Tamar went and dwelt in her dads house. And in the course of time Shuah’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died; and Judah was comforted, and went up to his sheepshearers to Timnah, he and his friend Hirah the Aremite. And it was told Tamar, saying, behold your dad-in-law is going up to Timnath to shear his sheep. And she PUT OFF HER WIDOW’S DRESS, an adorned herself, and covered her face with a veil, an sat down at the parting of the road to Tiimnath; for she saw that Shelah was grown up, and she was not given to him to wife.”
So based off the evidence they believed Tamar was WHORING playing a PROSTITUTE by having sex without being married! In context, this had nothing to do with payment and everything to do with sex outside of a marriage covenant which was defined as whoring and prostitution. And we see this in Judah’s own words of him whoring (zanah) and he repented of his acts in the writings of the 12 Patriarchs, which were found in the Dead Sea Scrolls along with the Old Testament, Enoch, Jubilees etc.
Testament of Judah 15:1-6
“He that commits WHORING (ZANAH) is not aware when he suffers loss, and is not ashamed when put to dishonor. For even though a man be a king and commit WHORING, he is stripped of his kingship by becoming the slave of WHORING, as I myself also suffered. For I gave my staff, that is, the backbone of my tribe; and my belt, that is, my power; and my diadem, that is, the esteem of my kingdom. And indeed I REPENTED OF THESE THINGS: I did not eat wine and meat until my old age, nor did I see any joy. And the messenger of ELOHIM, showed me that women bear rule over king and beggar a like, forever. And they take away esteem from the king, and might from the valiant man, and even that little which is the backbone of his poverty from the beggar.”
Deuteronomy 22:20
“But if the charge is substantiated that evidence for the girl’s VIRGINITY could not be found; then they are to lead the girl to the door of her dad’s house, and the men of her town will stone her to death, because she has committed in Yisra’el the disgraceful act of being a PROSTITUTE (ZANAH) while still her dad’s house. In this way you will put an end to such wickedness among you.”
Here we see the woman was expected to be a virgin which would leave no room for sexual relations before marriage and if she was found not to be a virgin while in her dad’s house, she would be stoned to death for being a PROSTITUTE (ZANAH). This is another good indicator that sex in exchange for money isn’t why the girl would be called a prostitute, it’s because she was fornicating, whoring, prostituting, which is described as a disgraceful act.
Judges 19:2
“And his concubine PLAYED THE WHORE (ZANAH) against him, and then arose and went away from him to her dad’s house to Beth-Lehem of Judah, and remained there four whole months.”
Again, in context the unfaithful woman was a concubine and clearly not being paid for sexual relations, yet her actions defined her as a whore.
Mathew 5:32 (Aramaic English New Testament)
“But I say to you that any who put away his wife aside from a case of FORNICATION make her commit adultery.”
Mary was accused of committing fornication because they thought she had sex with someone outside of her marriage covenant with Joseph. They were technically married through the “ketubah” the marriage contract of the betrothal stage, but not yet officially married; therefore, constitutes as fornication/whoring. And this matches the famously taken out of context scripture used to support a divorce and remarriage, but is made clear in the Aramaic Peshitta Old Testament that matches YESHUA’s words. The word PROSTITUTIION is missing in most translations and clears up the issue.
Deuteronomy 24:1 (Aramaic Peshitta)
“If a man takes a wife, and lies with her, and if she finds no favor in his eyes, because he has found some evidence of open PROSTITUTION (ZANAH) in her; then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it to her, and send her out of his house.”
Here we see YESHUA uses the word fornication and the equivalent in the Old Testament is prostitution and they are similar in usage. We can clearly see that there is no mention of the woman selling her body for payment at all, so it was not prostitution in that sense of the word, but a prostitute/whore for having sex outside of the marriage covenant. And we obviously know that Mary was not prostitute because she was a virgin, but Joseph “thought” she committed fornication/prostitution/whoring until the a messenger revealed it to him in a dream.
And we see that the Pharisees tried to take a shot at YESHUA because they did not know the power of YAHWEH or the scriptures that He would be born from a virgin, so it had to be supernatural. He was brought forth by the power of the RUACH HA’KODESH, they believed He was born outside the marriage covenant through whoring, fornication, prostitution which shows us this act was unacceptable in YESHUA’s day.
John 8:28-30
“They answered and said to him, “Our father is Abraham.” YESHUA said to them, “If you are sons of Abraham, you would do the deeds of Abraham!” But now behold, you seek to kill Me, a man who truthfully spoke with you that which I heard from ELOHIM. This Abraham did not do! But you do the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We do not come from FORNICATION.” We have one Father, ELOHIM.”
Clearly fornication is a term used for sex outside of the marriage covenant. Now that we have defined what whoring and prostitution mean we can glean from examples from other book that were removed. Rueben slept with his dad’s wife Bilhah and she was not a prostitute, he did not pay money to lie with her, yet he defines his act with her as whoring and warns his sons to flee from it:
Genesis 35:22
“And it came to pass, when Yisra’el dwelt in that land that Rueben went and lay with Bilhah, his dad’s concubine; and Yisra’el heard of it…”
Testament of Rueben 1:6
“And behold I call to witness against you this day the ELOHIM of the heavens, that you should not walk in the SINS OF YOUTH AND WHORING (ZANAH), in which I indulged and defiled the bed of my dad Jacob.” And I tell you that He (YAHWEH) struck me with a heavy wound in my loins for seven months; and had my dad Jacob not prayed to YAHWEH for me, YAHWEH would have destroyed me. For I was thirty years old when I worked EVIL before YAHWEH, and I was sick to death for seven months.”
Testament of Rueben 4:5-9 (Parenthesis mine)
“Therefore, my children, I say to you, guard all things that I command you, and you will not sin. For the SIN OF WHORING is a pit to the being, SEPARATING FROM ELOHIM (This matches what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:9 “Don’t delude yourselves that people who engage in sex before marriage will not inherit the Kingdom of ELOHIM” which is a separation from ELOHIM FOREVER). Continued “And bringing it NEAR TO IDOLS (clearly separating sexual sin from idolatry), because it deceives the mind and understanding, and leading young men into SHEOL BEFORE THEIR TIME. For WHORING has destroyed many; because, though a man be old or noble, or rich or poor, he brings reproach upon himself with the sons of men and derision with Beliyya’al. For you heard regarding Joseph, how he guarded himself from a woman, and purged his thoughts from all WHORING, and found favor in the eyes of ELOHIM.”
Testament of Rueben 5:1-4
“For women are evil, my children. Since they have no power or authority over man, they plot by their appearance ways that they may draw him to themselves. And whomever they cannot enchant by appearance, him they overcome by deception. For indeed, concerning them the messenger of YAHWEH told me, and taught me, that women are overcome by the SPIRIT OF WHORING more than men, and in their heart they plot against men and by means of their adornment they deceive first the men’s minds, and by the glance of the eye instill the poison, and then through the accomplished act they take them captive. For a woman cannot force a man openly, but by a WHORE’S ATTITUDE she deceives him.”
Nowhere does Rueben mention whoring by means of paying for sex, he is referring to the act and how she adorns herself with make-up which he equated with a whore’s attitude. And the messenger of YAHWEH even mentions the spirit of whoring that overcomes them.
Testament of Rueben 6:-1-4 (Parenthesis mine)
“Therefore beware of WHORING. And if you wish to be pure in mind, guard your senses from EVERY WOMAN (notice no mention of being on guard against whoring as a prostitute for money sense). And command the women likewise not to associate with men, that they also may be pure in mind. For constant meetings, even if the profane act is not committed, are an incurable disease, and to us a destruction of Beliyya’al and an eternal reproach. For in WHORING there is neither understanding nor reverence, and all jealousy dwells in the lust of it.”
Testament of Simeon 5:2-4
“And now, my children, make your hearts good before YAHWEH, and your ways straight before men. And you will find favor before YAHWEH and men. Beware, therefore, of WHORING, for WHORING is MOTHER OF ALL EVILS, SEPARATING FROM ELOHIM (This matches what Paul and Rueben said) and bringing near to Beliyya’al.”
Jubilees 25:4-7
“And when Jacob spoke to Rebecca, his mother, and said to her, “Behold, mother, I am nine weeks of years old, and I have not KNOWN (sexually) OR TOUCHED A WOMAN (Jacob was a virgin, so clearly he wasn’t running around having sex before marriage), nor betrothed myself to any, nor even think of taking a wife from the daughters of Canaan. For I remember, mother, the words of Abraham, our father, for he commanded me not to take a wife from the daughters of Canaan, but to take a wife from the seed of my dad’s house and from my relatives. I have heard before that daughters have been born to Laban, your brother, and I have set my heart on them to take a wife from among them. And for this reason I have GUARDED MYSELF IN MY SPIRIT AGAINST SINNING or being corrupted in all my ways throughout all the days of my life; for Abraham my father gave me many commands with regard to lust and WHORING.”
Abraham instructed Jacob and he listened to him by remaining pure. He waited to take a wife before he had sex because Abraham told him that whoring (sex outside of a marriage covenant) is sinning along with taking a wife from the land of Canaan.
Serious punishment for it:
Men are not exempt from this as we see from the writings of the 12 Patriarchs about how ashamed they were for committing the act and warned their children not to do it. For, women sex outside of a marriage covenant (Zanah, whoring, fornication, prostitution) could mean death for the act which shows how serious this issue was as we will see in the scriptures below:
Leviticus 21:9
“And the daughter of any priest, when she starts playing the WHORE (ZANAH), she profanes her dad; she shall be burned with fire.”
Nowhere is it indicated that she was selling her body for money, but rather that she was having sex outside of a marriage covenant while under her dad’s authority, because she was living with him, which is why she profanes her dad. Numbers 30 gives us proof of this by how a dad can cancel the vow of his daughter while she is living with him or even her husband when she is living with him under his authority.
Numbers 30:3-5
“If a woman also vows a vow to YAHWEH and binds herself by a bond while she is in her dad’s house in her youth, and her dad hears the vows and the bonds wherewith she has bound herself, and her dad shall keep silent toward her; then all her vows shall stand and every bond wherewith she has bound herself shall stand. But if her dad shall make them void in the day that he hears of all the vows and all the bonds by which she has bound herself, then they shall not stand; and YAHWEH shall forgive her because her dad had declared them void.”
Deuteronomy 22:20-21
“But if this thing is true, and the tokens of virginity are not found for the damsel; then they shall bring out the damsel to the door of her dad’s house, and the men of the city shall stone her with stones that she die; because she has committed a shameful act in Yisra’el, to play the whore in her dad’s house; so you shall put away evil from among you.”
Jubilees 20:4
“And if any woman or maiden WHORES amongst you, BURN HER WITH FIRE, and let them not whore with her after their eyes and their heart…”
Genesis 38:24
“And it came to pass, about three months later, that it was told Judah, saying, Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has played the HARLOT; and moreover, she is with child because of harlotry. And Judah said, bring her out, and let her be burned.”
Jubilees 41:17
“And Judah went to the house of her dad, and said to her dad and her brothers, “bring her (Tamar) forth, and let them burn her, for she has worked uncleanness in Yisra’el.”
I pray that this message opens some eyes to anyone who looked at whoring and prostitution through the western lens and not the Hebraic lens, to see that it constitutes as money for sex or sex outside of a marriage covenant with the multiple witnesses presented, and that is not acceptable which is why Paul says again:
1 Corinthians 6:9 (Complete Jewish Bible)
“Don’t you know that UNRIGHTEOUS PEOPLE will have no share in the Kingdom of ELOHIM? Don’t delude yourselves- people who ENGAGE IN SEX BEFORE MARRIAGE, who worship idols, who engage in sex after marriage with someone other than their spouse…”
Again, Paul distinguishes between fornication and idol worship just a Rueben did in the 12 Patriarchs. This is a serious issue, so don’t let your fleshly desires be the thing that holds you out of the kingdom of heaven. As always may our Father YAHWEH bless you in YESHUA’s Name!