I am intrigued by this addition, since it shows exactly where Paul got the word he “invented”.  He was clearly taking the two Greek words “male” and “sex” from the Greek version of the Leviticus passage and pasting them together… I have no idea how this would be confusing.  He actually didn’t even use the words that Lings and others use to make the case – he uses the ones that are most obviously about males sharing sex (sperm).  I think I would make the case, that if anything, this is Paul clarifying the Lev 18 & 20 passages!

Leviticus 18:22 – meta arsenos ou koimethese koiten gunaikos

Leviticus 20:13 – hos an koimethe meta arsenos koiten gunaikos

Here is one author’s consideration of this question:
“Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 forbid a man lying with another man as one would with a woman. Leviticus was originally written in Hebrew, but Paul was a Greek-educated Jew writing to Gentiles in Greek, the common language of the day, and probably was using the Greek translation of the Old Testament available in that day, the Septuagint, or LXX, for his Scripture quotations.

The Greek translation of these Leviticus passages condemns a man (arseno) lying with (koitai) another man (arseno); these words (excuse the pun) lie side-by-side in these passages in Leviticus. Paul joins these two words together into a neologism, a new word (as we do in saying “database” or “software”), and thus he condemns in 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy what was condemned in Leviticus.

Jones believes, then, that the most credible translation of what Paul is condemning in 1 Corinthians 6:9 is a person doing exactly what Leviticus condemns: engaging in homosexual sex (a man being a “man-lier”). Far from dismissing the relevance of Leviticus, Paul is implicitly invoking its enduring validity for our understanding of sexual sin, and drawing on it as the foundation of his teaching on homosexual conduct. He is saying, “Remember what it said not to do in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13? Don’t do that!”

https://www.equip.org/article/is-arsenokoitai-really-that-mysterious/

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Dr. Gordon Fee, a leading conservative heterosexual Greek scholar, points out that arsenokoites is rarely used in Greek literature “especially when describing homosexual activity.”

-The New International Commentary on the New Testament, The First Epistle To The Corinthians, Eerdmans, 1987, Dr. Gordon D. Fee, p. 244.

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I am not an expert on Fee, but he is not considered a “conservative” Christian.  I don’t know why that claim is made. However, in response to this comment by him, before Paul, again, the word was never used.  After Paul, it was rarely used.  So, Dr. Fee is correct.  He is much more of an actual scholar and actually has some reactions written to his materials.   He is correct that these passages, each stand alone, is worthy of evaluation and can be tough.  And, it is key to recognize that they have been, all along.  There are excellent reasons to think that the intention of the Levitical writers and Paul were to exclude homosexual behaviors – to label them as sin.  Consider how this makes perfect sense when you consider that when God created marriage, He created them male and female – and there certainly isn’t any commendation for same-sex in the Genesis passages when marriage is created.  It is key to note that same-sex marriages or relationships are never mentioned in a positive light for sure… while marriage between men and women is taught about dozens of times.  The fact that people make the claims that Paul, Jesus, knew about homosexuality, but NEVER mention homosexuality at all… or is it more likely that the passages that certainly seem to be referencing it, are in fact, referencing it.

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When we remember that ancient Judaism did not view Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 as applicable to lesbians, we must conclude that the Apostle Paul would therefore not have used words from Lev 18:22 and 20:13 to condemn lesbians in 1 Cor 6:9 and 1 Tim 1:10 because there was no basis in Old Testament law or Jewish thinking to do that. Because the Jewish view was that Lev 18:22 and 20:13 (Deu 23:17) prohibited shrine prostitution, it is highly unlikely that Paul would have used arsenokoitai with a meaning unfamiliar to most of his readers. 

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We know no such thing.  We do not know how they applied it, but Paul certainly uses it to apply to lesbianism in Romans 1.  Once again, this Greek conversation feels very dishonest to me… Paul is not using a word merely “unfamiliar” with his audience.  He is inventing a new word from two words they certainly DID know – and the Jews among them would have known the source.  This just feels so agenda driven rather than a search for authentic meaning – do you think this is a non-biased search for authentic best interpretation or an extreme intentional effort to make the passage say what he wants it to say? 

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And because arsenokoitai is never used in any extant Greek text from AD 57 to AD 1450, to refer to two men or two women in committed partnership, it is highly unlikely that Paul would have used arsenokoitai with that meaning, which would have baffled his first century readers. 

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You know what is funny?  The link he posts makes it clear that HE THINKS the usages of this word are not overtly externally defined, except ONE time in 1000 years.  Do you see how misleading this comment is, based on that?  As said before, it would NOT have baffled his readers.  The creation of new words was common in Greek.  Just like in modern English.

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If this information is historically and Scripturally accurate, it poses the question of whether or not Paul was actually speaking about homosexuality in any of those passages. 

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I was aware of these arguments before – with Fee and others.  I think the points some of them make have some validity… but in total, I think they fall apart.

I would love to talk more with your question of a loving God calling homosexual behavior an abomination.  Sam Allberry may help you with that.  According to Zach Tingle, a student in these matters, the Hebrew “abomination” and the English meanings of the word are not really the same. The basis of that word in Hebrew are probably the idea that it means the opposite of a nice fragrance. In other words, homosexual behavior is like an unnatural smell to God. It is therefore, in my opinion, connected to the idea of the opposite of “sacred”. Sacred indicates something that is to be used for a special purpose. It makes sense to me that “Abomination” would mean something being used for something NOT as was intended.

It is not uncommon for God to forbid things that we would want.  Sexual and EROS love is the weakest form of love. God has very tight reigns on it – only one person of the opposite sex until death.  Think of how restrictive that is!  What if I really want to have romantic love with another woman?  What if I want to have a romantic relationship with a child?  A family member?  Couldn’t I have a loving, life-long committed relationship with a cousin?  With 3 women?  Of course, I could.  And yet, God restricts that.  What if I really want a car that I cannot afford?  Shouldn’t I be allowed to get that?  I could steal it or blackmail someone for it… why am I not allowed to do that?  God isn’t impressed by our desires – He wants us to choose what His perfect designs are.  Again, Allberry is the best at talking about some of this stuff.

These are excellent and in-depth questions – and I am going to publish our conversation here…   Does this help?  I greatly appreciate the effort to find ways to consolidate the biblical teaching with homosexual behavior – but this argument isn’t a very strong one, sadly.  In the end, I am thinking that it is seeming less and less likely to exist.

On that note, I want to make sure again, that part of what needs to be clear is that Christians are commanded to love people. All people. We are to treat human beings with the dignity afforded them being created in the image of God. The person receiving these things from us may or may not define our efforts to love as love, but we answer to God for whether or not we are loving them. We certainly know when we are being hateful, abusive or cruel, and there have certainly been times in the past when Christians, sometimes using passages like these, have been abusive and cruel. This was wrong; it was, and is, and we should stand up against it at every opportunity.

We must strive to show the fruit of the Spirit with people who disagree with us and even with people we believe are caught up in sin – actually, especially when that is the case! According to our own beliefs, THEY are not our enemy, their beliefs and the sources of their beliefs are (Ephesians 6:12). As we rightly call one thing sin, let us always call other things that are sin the same.

I recommend Sam Allberry and Rosaria Butterfield as further resources into these issues.  If there is no biblical way to integrate homosexual behavior and obedience, then it is the Christian calling to help integrate the person wrestling with these issues into the biblical teaching and the joy found there. These two leaders take that calling seriously.