Bible Dictionaries
Levirate Law
Holman Bible Dictionary
From the Latin levir meaning “husband's brother.” A widespread practice in the ancient Near East assigning family responsibility to the husband's brother in case of disaster. The Mosaic law provided for the continuation of a man's name should he die before fathering a male child. According to Deuteronomy 25:5-10 , the deceased's brother was to marry the widow. The first male child born to this union was to carry the name of the dead man.
Copyright Statement
These dictionary topics are from the Holman Bible Dictionary, published by Broadman & Holman, 1991. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Broadman & Holman.
Bibliography Information
Butler, Trent C. Editor. Entry for 'Levirate Law'. Holman Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hbd/l/levirate-law.html. 1991.