Reformed Covenanter
Cancelled Commissioner
The answer to question 139 of the Westminster Larger Catechism ("What are the sins forbidden in the seventh commandment?") tells us that the "allowing, tolerating, keeping of stews, and resorting to them" is forbidden by this precept of the Decalogue. On this subject, the Westminster divines broke with Thomas Aquinas who thought that the toleration of brothels was a necessary evil (see our discussion in this thread). Bishop John Davenant's commentary on Colossians (one of the greatest ever commentaries on a single book of Holy Scripture) provides us with some background reading for understanding the rationale of the Westminster divines on the subject: John Davenant on the duty of suppressing brothels.