Before the Bible, you didn’t have Elton John communicating to the masses that Jesus Christ was a homosexual.
Homosexuality was even more prevalent during the rule of the Roman Empire. Remember, Nero, the man to kill Paul and Peter, had his boyfriend castrated and married him. Homosexuality was looked upon as normal by everyone but the Jews at the time.
So while they may not have had Elton John, they did have advocates in Rome, the Emperors.