Q
Why was the word “sexual” or “sexually” left out in the discussion of porneia (fornication) and only “immorality” noted?

A
I have a chapter in my book called “Men Shall Be Unholy” (2 Tim. 3:2). In it I discuss how new versions have substituted the terms “immorality” or “sexual immorality” for the word “fornication.” Webster’s Dictionary is very clear that the word “fornication” means sex before marriage. If you look up the word “immorality,” you find a definition that just says, “contrary to the moral code of the community.” The word “morals” is a Latin word, moralis, which means “customs.” What did God say about customs in Leviticus 18:30? He said, “Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs.”

God said, “the customs of the people are vain” in Jeremiah 10:3. We cannot go by customs or mores because customs and mores are relative. With the omission of the word “fornication” from the new bibles, we have no standards for young people to look to.

I did an informal survey at Kent State University asking college students their impressions about the word “immorality.” They said that “immorality” related to things like the Vietnam War, air pollution, or things like that. So, when the NASB puts the word “immorality” in place of “fornication,” they are completely missing the sin God is pointing to in his word. The NIV and New King James choose the words “sexual immorality.” In a culture such as ours today, where mores are very relative and very degraded, this reading elicits an equally vague response. When I asked students, “What is “sexua1 immorality,’” absolutely none of them ever said, “sex before marriage.” They would say something to me like, “Engaging in sex with someone you did not love,” or “Having more than one boyfriend at a time.” So the term “sexual immoraIity” in the New King James and the NIV will not communicate to young people the clear prohibitions inherent in the word “fornication.”

Now some might say that “fornication” is a difficult word. Every first-grader is taught that ph sounds like f sometimes. Every high school student, unfortunately, has heard the word “porn.” There is a trend for “dumbing down” in our schools and this trend is leaking over into the church. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a word that is clearly defined in Webster’s Dictionary. As long as it is still in the dictionary, it is not an archaic word.