Deuteronomy 25:5-10 – Lesson from a Levirate marriage

Deuteronomy 25:5-10 describe the Levirate marriage, a law that God required of the people of Israel. What is a Levirate marriage? It had nothing to do with the tribe of Levi. The word Levirate comes from a Latin word that means “a husband brother.” In this custom, when a man died without a son, his unmarried brother was obliged to take his brother’s widow as his own wife and help him to bear a son. The firstborn son whom she gave birth with the husband's brother would have to bear the name of the deceased. God would not allow the dead brother’s name to be blotted out from Israel.

The widow had recourse if the husband's brother refused to do his Levirate duty. She could go to the elders of the city and publicly declare, “My husband’s brother refuses to establish a name for his brother in Israel; he is not willing to perform the duty of a husband’s brother to me.” The elders of the city would then have the task of summoning the brother and ascertained that he would not do his duty as required. If he stubbornly refused to marry the brother’s widow and clearly stated it, she would come forward, pull the sandal off his foot, and spat at his face. He would have to bear the insult of a man whose sandal was loosened.  

The reasons for this custom were two. Firstly, it was to enable the man to have a successor to inherit and perpetuate his family name. Secondly, it was to ensure that a man would not lose his inheritance. God would not allow his allotted land to become the property of another. While this practice is extinct, the principle behind this practice is worthy of consideration. God wants one’s family line to continue. This is especially so for us as Christians. None of us would want any of our family members to lose out on his inheritance in Christ Jesus. We must make it our ambition to perpetuate the name of Christ in our family so that none would lose their divine inheritance in Christ Jesus. Hence, we must make every effort to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with every one of our family members. It is our God-given assignment!