Were eunuchs in the bible gay?

Well, at least some of them.

The traditional view of a eunuch in the bible is a male who does not possess male genitalia - either as a birth defect or from castration. But, perhaps the bible is not meant to be taken so literally. Maybe the definition of a eunuch is more broad describing someone who is incapable of male/female bonding - for whatever reason.

Jesus describes three types of eunuchs

For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake.
Matthew 19:12

Looking at each of these individually


Born eunuch's

This could refer to men with a birth defect rendering them incapable of male/female bonding; but, was this such a common occurrence that it warranted special mention in the bible? Also, in biblical society, people born with disabilities were often shunned and relegated to a life of begging - yet eunuch's were often held in high esteem and had positions of power and authority. Why would a person with a congenital defect affecting reproduction be treated so much differently than the blind and lame?

It seems reasonable that a eunuch could be a man who was born from his mothers womb with a natural inclination towards other men. They're incapable of male/female bonding - because they don't like girls.

Man-made eunuch's

This could refer to people who have been wounded and/or castrated as an injury of war. Such people could be held in high esteem and given a position of authority because of the sacrifice they made. Others could be forcibly castrated to serve as guardians of women or harem servants, yet others as a punishment for some sin. While the former could be held in high esteem, such seems unlikely for the latter who would, presumably, be shunned.

Regardless of how someone became a eunuch, such people were excluded from the congregation by the law of Moses

He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 23:1

Self-made eunuch's

How many men will voluntarily cut off their own genitalia for the glory of God? What sort of warped logic could lead a person to conclude "God created me in his own image - yet he requires me to mutilate myself." I'm sure there are people like that in the world (both ancient and modern); but, are these who Jesus was referring to? It seems more reasonable that these are people who are physically capable of sexual relationships - but choose celibacy so as to dedicate their life to God - a sort of virtual eunuch.

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This notion of homosexuals being identified as eunuch's in the bible is certainly not something I came up with on my own. I've been following, with interest, a couple of related discussion threads in the "Thoughts and Discussions" forum on the Gay Christian Network website. This particular forum is only available to registered users on GCN; although, registration is free - for anyone interested in referring to them.

It's difficult to find any objective material on the subject given the politically charged nature of homosexuality. However, homosexuality is often viewed as a modern phenomena since it's only been relatively recently (last couple hundred years) that it's even been acknowledged. But, it seems logical to conclude that homosexuality is as old as man himself - historically disguised as something else because ancient society couldn't comprehend or explain it.

There are people who have studied this topic in great depth - exploring root meanings of words from the original Aramaic and so forth. Likewise, there are others who have made similar exploration to refute this claim. But, I am a simple man - and, frankly, when I start reading these sort of discussions, my eyes just sorta glaze over. But you can find them by googling "bible eunuch gay"

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So what if the eunuch's in the bible were gay - does it change anything?

Probably not.

But it does suggest that homosexuals do, in deed, have a place at the Lord's table - but, perhaps, the world is not quite ready to receive this teaching.