Deuteronomy 25:8

Deuteronomy 25:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then the elders of his city shall call him, and speak unto him: and if he stand to it, and say, I like not to take her;
• New International Version (NIV)Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, “I do not want to marry her,”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, 'I do not wish to take her,'
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him. But if he stands firm and says, ‘I do not want to take her,’

Context of Deuteronomy 25:8

6The first son she bears to him will be considered the son of the dead brother, so that his name will not be forgotten in Israel. 7“But if the man refuses to marry his brother’s widow, she must go to the town gate and say to the elders assembled there, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel—he refuses to fulfill the duties of a brother-in-law by marrying me.’ The elders of the town will then summon him and talk with him. If he still refuses and says, ‘I don’t want to marry her,’ 9the widow must walk over to him in the presence of the elders, pull his sandal from his foot, and spit in his face. Then she must declare, ‘This is what happens to a man who refuses to provide his brother with children.’ 10Ever afterward in Israel his family will be referred to as ‘the family of the man whose sandal was pulled off’!

Deuteronomy 25:8 word by word

וְקָֽרְאוּ־ל֥וֹ זִקְנֵי־עִיר֖וֹ וְדִבְּר֣וּ אֵלָ֑יו וְעָמַ֣ד וְאָמַ֔ר לֹ֥א חָפַ֖צְתִּי לְקַחְתָּֽהּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then the eldersזָקֵןzâqên · old: elderH2205
• of his cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• shall callקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
• him, and speakדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• he standעָמַד‛âmad · to stand: standH5975
• and sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• I likeחָפֵץchâphêts · to delight inH2654
• not to takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: marryH3947

Cross-references for Deuteronomy 25:8

• Ruth 4:6“Then I can’t redeem it,” the family redeemer replied, “because this might endanger my own estate. You redeem the land; I cannot do it.”

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 25:8

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5-10Verses 5-10 The law of levirate marriage. The law on this subject is not unique to the Jews, but is found (see Genesis 38:8) in all essential respects the same among various Oriental nations, ancient and modern. The rules in these verses, like those upon divorce, do but incorporate existing immemorial usages, and introduce various wise and politic limitations and mitigations of them. The root of the obligation here imposed upon the brother of the deceased…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-12Verses 5-12 The custom here regulated seems to have been in the Jewish law in order to keep inheritances distinct; now it is unlawful.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-105-10. the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother ... shall take her to him to wife--This usage existed before the age of Moses (Ge 38:8). But the Mosaic law rendered the custom obligatory (Mt 22:25) on younger brothers, or the nearest kinsman, to marry the widow (Ru 4:4), by associating the natural desire of perpetuating a brother's name with the preservation of property in the Hebrew families and tribes. If the…Read the comment

Topics related to Deuteronomy 25:8

• Brother
• Government
• Inheritance
• Marriage
• Widow

In the dictionaries

• Beat
• Exceed
• Hindmost
• Levirate Law
• Muzzle
• Stripe
• Atonement, Day of
• Criticism
• Exodus, the Book of
• Genesis

Commentaries on Deuteronomy 25

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings