“No Israelite man or woman is to become a shrine prostitute.”(Deuteronomy 23:17 ,NIV)
In a world enslaved by lust, people abuse one another’s bodies and souls through the buying and selling of sex in order to gratify their own desires. The Old Testament shows that even among God’s chosen people, Israel, there were prostitutes, including male prostitutes. Today, prostitution continues to thrive, and in some countries it constitutes a significant portion of the national economy.
According to the Korean Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’s 2019 Prostitution Survey, 42.1% (631 out of 1,500 men surveyed) reported having purchased sex at least once in their lives — a decrease of 8.6 percentage points from 2016. However, the percentage of Korean men who experienced prostitution abroad (49%) was far higher than in the United States (15%), the Netherlands (16%), Australia (16%), or the United Kingdom (7%).
In terms of access points, online chatting (33.2%), massage parlors (30.8%), and hostess bars (12.9%) were the most common across all age groups, with online platforms showing a notable increase compared to 2016. This trend is impacting youth as well — 11.1% of teenagers reported experiencing unwanted sexual solicitation through the internet over the past three years.
Since 2004, South Korea has enforced the “Act on the Punishment of Acts of Prostitution,” which criminalizes both the buying and selling of sex. While this has reduced traditional red-light districts and entertainment venues, newer forms of prostitution through karaoke rooms, massage parlors, and online platforms continue to expand.
In 2015, Amnesty International sparked backlash from women’s groups in Korea by announcing a policy direction that called for decriminalizing prostitution and repealing laws regulating it. The organization argued that since sexuality is a personal matter, it should not be regulated by law. They claimed that banning prostitution could increase exploitation and trafficking, and drive the sex trade further underground. They also cited Sweden, where sexual crime rates reportedly rose after prostitution was outlawed.
However, in Victoria, Australia, the first region in the world to legalize prostitution, illegal activity actually increased after legalization, with more unlicensed establishments than legal ones, undermining the very purpose of the policy. In Germany, after prostitution was legalized, sex tourism surged, with around 1 million people entering border cities annually, and the number of sex workers more than doubling to nearly 100,000.
Human history demonstrates that laws and policies alone cannot solve the problem of prostitution. Sexual lust, which lives and moves within sinners, bears the fruit of prostitution — a reality that transcends time and nation. In the face of this persistent evil, the church bears a great responsibility to become a channel of salvation for those trapped in the grip of sin.
》Prayer Points
1. History and society show that laws and systems that prohibit and punish prostitution cannot control the lust of the flesh. Let us pray that people will recognize prostitution—where bodies and souls are violated through the buying and selling of sex—as sin. Let us also pray that the Church will faithfully carry out its mission to proclaim the gospel of salvation to those enslaved by the lust of the flesh because of sin dwelling in their lives.
》Scripture Prayer
Hosea 4:1–2, 11-14, 16-18(NIV) 1 Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites, because the Lord has a charge to bring against you who live in the land:“There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land.2 There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
11 to prostitution; old wine and new wine take away their understanding. 12 My people consult a wooden idol, and a diviner’s rod speaks to them. A spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God. 13 They sacrifice on the mountaintops and burn offerings on the hills, under oak, poplar and terebinth, where the shade is pleasant. Therefore your daughters turn to prostitution and your daughters-in-law to adultery.14 “I will not punish your daughters when they turn to prostitution, nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery, because the men themselves consort with harlots and sacrifice with shrine prostitutes—a people without understanding will come to ruin!
16 The Israelites are stubborn, like a stubborn heifer. How then can the Lord pasture them like lambs in a meadow? 17 Ephraim is joined to idols; leave him alone! 18 Even when their drinks are gone, they continue their prostitution; their rulers dearly love shameful ways.
》Pray that the Word may become the Conclusion.
1. Let us pray for mercy on those who are deceived by lustful desires and suffer under the weight of sexual sin and prostitution. May God grant them the grace to realize that they are sinners—rebellious, corrupt, and powerless to overcome the desires of the flesh apart from Him—so that they may return to Him with all their hearts.
2. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth about sin, righteousness, and judgment to those who commit violence and impurity without the knowledge of God, so that Satan’s schemes—dragging them toward death—will be destroyed. Let us intercede for souls who have surrendered to lust and sell or purchase sex, that they may repent, turn from their sin, and receive salvation.
3. Let us cry out for the liberation of women and children around the world who are trapped in the bondage of prostitution. Pray that the message of the cross alone would reach those who love sin and shameful acts and are speeding toward destruction, so they may be saved. And let us pray that they will rise as holy children who praise the God who gave His Son, Jesus Christ, and declare His name throughout all the earth.
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