A Sample Biblical Narrative: The Story of Ruth
clan member who can no longer perform a specified duty or right, e.g. have a child or redeem a piece of land.
The word "levirate" comes from the Latin word "levir" which denoted, from a wife's perspective, "the husband's brother." As explained above, one must not understand "brother" in a purely horizontal sense, i.e. a male related to one by virtue of having the same father (e.g. James and John, the sons of Zebedee). It can also be applied to males sharing the same grandfather or great grandfathers. In an extreme case, the law of the levir was also made to apply to Judah with respect to his son Shelah (Gen. 38), making him "brother" to this latter, since both are -- in the sense explained above -- "sons of Jacob". (The wide meaning of the term "brother" in Israelite mentality should make us think twice about the way we interpret a passage like "James, the brother of the Lord.").
The main reference for the Levirate law is Deuteronomy 25:5-10. V. 5-6 sets forth the duty of the "husband's brother" towards the widowed and childless sister-in-law while verses 7-10 deals with procedures applying to cases when the "husband's brother" refuses to perform his duty. V.10 describes what a widowed and childless sister-in-law should do in case her right is refused by her dead husband's brother:
In the presence of the elders (she) shall go up to him and strip his sandal from his foot and spit in his face saying publicly, 'This is how one should be treated who will not build up his brother's family!'The title "The One-Whose-Sandals-Have-Been-Stripped" then becomes the official name tag that his family will bear in Israel. The price to pay for refusing one's levirate duty is high. One must remember Onan whom God struck when he spilled his seed outside his sister-in-law's womb realizing that the child that will result from the union would be ascribed not to him, but to his brother (Gen.38:8-10). In the case of Deuteronomy's legislation, one bears the shame of being spitted at publicly, being stripped of one's sandals and letting one's lineage be reminded of that breach of duty.
Tips for Reading A Biblical Narrative:
1. Read the story at least three times: (a) scan it to get an overview of the story; (b) understand it (try to see how each of the parts contribute to the flow of the story);
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