Homosexuality is one of the hardest topics for Muslims to talk about but the Qur'an doesn't avoid it. This article breaks down what the Qur'an actually says, and how to understand it without the confusion prevalent today. Key to this discussion is the recurring story of Prophet Lot and his people; a narrative that appears in multiple chapters of the Qur'an and is described consistently with clarity and deliberate language.
The Qur'an describes the homosexual actions of Lot's people as a new form of immorality that humanity had not previously committed. There are two plausible understandings here: either Prophet Lot’s people were the first to engage in homosexuality altogether, or they were the first to institutionalise and normalise it as a public, collective behaviour. The Prophet Lot asked them "...do you commit immorality (faahishah) such as none of those of the worlds had done before?" (7:80) or "...you commit an immorality (faahishah) that no others in the world have done before!" (29:28). And as for those who promote such behaviours and "...enjoy that immorality (faahishah) spreads among those who have believed..." (24:19), then they have been warned of "...a painful retribution in this world and the hereafter..." (24:19).
The term faahishah is used throughout the Qur'an to denote sexual immorality, which the Qur'an forbids in all forms, both "...what is public of it and private..." (6:151 and 7:33).
We discuss faahishah in more detail here.
Allah’s natural order
The Qur’an explicitly contrasts the people's actions with the natural order established by Allah. Prophet Lot said to his people "you are approaching the men out of desire instead of the women..." (7:81 and 27:55). This choice is presented as a conscious act of turning away from the female partners Allah had provided.
Prophet Lot's warning highlights this directly when he says "...and you leave what your Lord has created for you of mates? You are an intrusive people" (26:166). The label of 'intrusive people' given by Prophet Lot to his people further characterises this not as a choice, but as a hostile transgression that goes beyond the limits set by Allah. This is reinforced elsewhere in the Qur'an where Allah states that the natural way is for men "...to love the desire of women..." (3:14). The Qur'an therefore frames the choosing of men not as an alternative choice but as a deliberate rejection of Allah's natural order.
Some people today make the argument that homosexuals are born that way and don't have a choice in how they feel. However, this understanding, which is not grounded in science, directly contradicts the Qur'an itself. The Qur'an clearly states that this type of immorality is from satan as he "...only orders you to evil and faahishah..." (2:169) or "the devil promises you poverty and orders you to faahishah..." (2:268). The Qur'an forbids the believers to "...follow the footsteps of the devil..." (24:21) and those that do "...should know that he advocates faahishah..." (24:21).
On the other hand, "...Allah does not order faahishah..." (7:28) which concludes that homosexuality originates from satan and can never be attributed to Allah's natural order.
Impurity and wickedness
The Qur'an employs strong, condemnatory language to describe the act of homosexuality and the people who commit it. They are described as "overindulgent" (7:81), "ignorant" (27:55), perpetrators of "vile things" (21:74), as "evil" (21:74), "wicked" (29:34), and in Lot’s own supplication to Allah, "the wicked people" (29:30). Separately, Allah does not like people who overindulge as the Qur'an repeatedly states, "eat and drink and do not overindulge; He does not like the overindulgers" (7:31, 6:141).
In a desperate plea to avert their incoming punishment from Allah, Prophet Lot even offers his own daughters to the men, saying, "...they are purer for you..." (11:78), creating a direct contrast between the purity of divinely sanctioned marriage between a man and a woman versus the inherent impurity of homosexuality.
This is further confirmed when the people mockingly demand the expulsion of Lot's family, "...for they are a people who make out to be pure" (7:82) or "...expel the family of Lot from your town, for they are a people who make out to be pure" (27:56). This is obviously an ironic admission of their own state of impurity.
Source of society's corruption
The narrative of Prophet Lot links his people's actions to a broader decay in society. Beyond the act of men approaching other men, the Prophet Lot accuses them of two other social crimes when he says to his people "...you cut off the way, and you bring all vice into your society..." (29:29).
From the perspective of the Qur'an, homosexuality is not treated as a private matter but as a threat to the very fabric of society. The wording 'cutting off the way' is traditionally understood to mean highway robbery which it may be possible. However, it appears to be referring to cutting off the path to procreation as this would tie in more with the act of homosexuality and one of its unwanted outcomes.
Furthermore, the charge of bringing "...all vice into your society..." (29:29) demonstrates how this main transgression of homosexuality creates an environment where other forms of corruption become normalised, leading to the complete breakdown of society’s moral order.
Punishment for homosexuality
The narrative ends with a catastrophic divine punishment against the people for their refusal to stop their actions. The Qur'an describes the city being completely flattened when Allah "...made its highest part become
its lowest, and We rained on it clusters of devastating rocks" (11:82) and Allah "...rained down upon them a rain..." (7:84 & 26:173). Amid this destruction, the righteous were saved including Lot "...and his family, except for his wife; she was of those
who were destroyed" (7:83).
As for worldly punishments for homosexuality today, we discuss this here on our article on immorality.
Conclusion
The narrative of the people of Prophet Lot presents an uncompromising message. It defines homosexuality as a form of immorality, a conscious rejection of Allah’s natural order, and an act marked by inherent impurity leading to moral corruption.
The society of Prophet Lot mirrors many aspects of our own: the normalisation of homosexual behaviour and widespread adultery have shifted from hidden practices to dominant public norms, eroding the family structure and destabilising the moral foundation of society. As these behaviours have become normalised, other vices have followed, and birth rates have declined—further weakening the continuity and stability of society.
The Qur'an presents all this as a clear warning for future generations. Through its repeated and condemnatory language, the Qur'an establishes an unambiguous position of total prohibition on the faahishah of homosexuality.