Originally Posted by
Akoue
Actually, it was an honest question. I have just noticed that some people think that a dictionary can settle questions such whether mental acts are really acts and the like. These are conceptual questions that require careful thought--and often a lot of study--and I am just astonished that anyone would think that a lexicon, which is nothing more than a snapshot of common usages of terms in a given period, can settle the matter.
I have done more than a few translations, and I always consult lexicons, but they settle very little. One really has to study a language and the history of its development and use, in order to make any precise decisions about meaning. This is why Boswell's work is so widely respected: He is a scholar, not a peruser of lexica. And, as you may know, Boswell has shown that "arsenokoitai" in the NT refers to male prostitution. The term is used very infrequently outside the NT, and at least a few of those refer to anal sex. In fact, we have a couple of instances where Greeks authors speak of men who engage in "arsenokoitai" with their wives. This makes it pretty clear that it doesn't refer, in any exclusive way, to homosexuality.