If a man marries his brother’s wife, it is an act of impurity. He has uncovered the nakedness of his brother; they shall be childless.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is an impurity. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.
- KJV And if a man shall take his brother’s wife, it is an unclean thing: he hath uncovered his brother’s nakedness; they shall be childless.
- NKJV If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is an unclean thing. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.
- NASB If there is a man who takes his brother’s wife, it is detestable; he has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They will be childless.
- NLT “If a man marries his brother’s wife, it is an act of impurity. He has violated his brother, and the guilty couple will remain childless.
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
Marrying a brother's wife is called an impurity, and the couple will be childless. This guards the honor of the family and brother.
Overview
This prohibits taking a living brother's wife, an act that dishonors him and defiles the family (note the levirate exception for a deceased brother in Deut. 25:5). The barrenness pronounced is the consequence of the impurity. This law later bears on John the Baptist's rebuke of Herod (Mark 6:18), showing its enduring moral weight against violating marriage and family bonds.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Lev 18:16You must not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would shame your brother.
- Matt 14:3–4Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife,
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 20:21 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.