{
  "id": "supplemental_000007",
  "term": "Porneia",
  "slug": "porneia",
  "letter": "P",
  "entry_type": "original_language_term",
  "entry_family": "biblical_ethics",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "Porneia is a Greek term commonly translated “sexual immorality,” referring broadly to sexual sin outside God’s design for holiness and marriage.",
  "simple_one_line": "Porneia means sexual immorality in the New Testament.",
  "tooltip_text": "Greek term usually translated “sexual immorality,” covering illicit sexual conduct contrary to God’s will.",
  "aliases": [
    "sexual immorality",
    "fornication"
  ],
  "scripture_references": [
    "Matthew 5:32",
    "Matthew 19:9",
    "Acts 15:20",
    "1 Corinthians 6:18",
    "Galatians 5:19",
    "1 Thessalonians 4:3"
  ],
  "original_language_terms": [
    "πορνεία (porneia)"
  ],
  "related_entries": [
    "Sexual immorality",
    "Marriage",
    "Adultery",
    "Holiness",
    "Fornication"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Sexual ethics",
    "Marriage",
    "Adultery",
    "Holiness",
    "Sanctification"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Porneia is an important New Testament Greek term normally translated “sexual immorality.” It is broader than some modern uses of “fornication” and names sexual conduct contrary to God’s holy design.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "A Greek word for sexual immorality, covering illicit sexual conduct outside God’s will.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "Often translated “sexual immorality.”",
    "Broader than a single modern category of sexual sin.",
    "Used in Jesus’ teaching, Acts, Paul’s letters, and Revelation.",
    "Believers are commanded to flee porneia and pursue holiness."
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Porneia is a broad Greek term for sexual immorality. In New Testament usage it includes illicit sexual conduct that violates God’s design for the body, marriage, and holiness.",
  "description_academic_full": "Porneia is a Greek noun commonly rendered “sexual immorality.” It is used in a range of contexts, including Jesus’ teaching on marriage and divorce, the Jerusalem council’s instruction to Gentile believers, Paul’s ethical exhortations, and apocalyptic denunciations of idolatrous corruption. The word should not be narrowed to only one modern category unless the context demands it. It broadly identifies sexual conduct outside God’s moral will. Paul’s command to flee sexual immorality grounds sexual ethics in union with Christ, the body’s future resurrection, and the indwelling Holy Spirit. Porneia is therefore not treated as a minor private matter but as a serious violation of holiness.",
  "background_biblical_context": "The New Testament uses porneia in moral, ecclesial, and sometimes metaphorical contexts. It may describe literal sexual sin or, in prophetic/apocalyptic imagery, spiritual unfaithfulness and idolatrous corruption.",
  "background_historical_context": "The Greco-Roman world tolerated many sexual practices that biblical ethics rejects. The early church’s teaching on porneia marked a clear moral boundary for Gentile converts.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "Jewish sexual ethics, shaped by the Law and holiness codes, stood in contrast to many Gentile practices. Acts 15 shows that sexual immorality remained a serious concern in mixed Jewish-Gentile churches.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Matthew 5:32",
    "Matthew 19:9",
    "Acts 15:20",
    "1 Corinthians 6:18",
    "Galatians 5:19",
    "1 Thessalonians 4:3"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "Ephesians 5:3",
    "Colossians 3:5",
    "Revelation 2:20-21",
    "Revelation 17:1-5"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "Greek πορνεία (porneia) is related to a word group associated with illicit sexual conduct. Context determines the specific form of immorality in view.",
  "theological_significance": "Porneia is central to New Testament sexual ethics. It shows that sexual holiness belongs to discipleship, union with Christ, and the sanctifying work of the Spirit.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "The term assumes that the body has moral meaning. Sexual conduct is not merely private self-expression but an act before God involving covenant, holiness, and worship.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not narrow porneia to only one modern category unless the context requires it. Also do not soften the term so broadly that it loses its concrete moral force.",
  "major_views_note": "Interpreters generally agree that porneia refers to sexual immorality, though debates arise over its exact scope in divorce texts, Acts 15, and metaphorical uses in Revelation.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "The doctrine must remain under biblical authority, not cultural permission or private desire. Grace forgives repentant sinners, but grace does not redefine sexual sin as holiness.",
  "practical_significance": "This entry clarifies a major New Testament ethical term and helps readers understand why sexual holiness is part of discipleship.",
  "meta_description": "Porneia is a Greek term commonly translated “sexual immorality,” referring broadly to sexual sin outside God’s design for holiness and marriage.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/porneia/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/porneia.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL",
  "source_note": "Supplemental static patch added after final workbook publication to resolve missing linked dictionary pages."
}