Bible Dictionaries
Levirate Law, Levirate Marriage
Holman Bible Dictionary
The legal provision requiring a dead man's brother (levirate) to marry his childless widow and father a son who would assume the dead man's name and inherit his portion of the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 25:5-10 ). The practice is an important element in the story of Ruth (Ruth 2:20; Ruth 3:2 ,Ruth 3:2,3:9-13; Ruth 4:1-11 ). The Sadduccees appealed to levirate law in asking Jesus a question about the resurrection (Matthew 22:23-33 ).
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, Levirate Marriage'. Holman Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hbd/l/levirate-law-levirate-marriage.html. 1991.