You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s blood relative.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister: for she is your mother’s near kinswoman.
- KJV Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother’s sister: for she is thy mother’s near kinswoman.
- BSB You must not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s close relative.
- NKJV You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is near of kin to your mother.
- NLT “Do not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s close relative.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Relations with a maternal aunt are forbidden because she is a near kinswoman.
Overview
Paralleling the previous verse, this guards the mother's side of the family with equal care. The repeated appeal to near kinship shows the consistent logic of these laws. God's commands protect every branch of the family from corruption, honoring the bonds he has created.
Cross-references & the web
No cross-references recorded for this verse.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 18:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.