page_title: Yibbum
section_title: In the Hebrew Bible
hierarchical_section_title: Yibbum / In the Hebrew Bible
context_page_description: Yibbum is the form of levirate marriage found in Judaism. As specified by Deuteronomy 25:5-10, the brother of a man who died without children is permitted and encouraged to marry the widow. However, if either of the parties refuses to go through with the marriage, both are required to go through a ceremony known as halizah, involving a symbolic act of renunciation of their right to perform this marriage.
  Jewish law has seen a gradual decline of yibbum in favor of halizah, to the point where in most contemporary Jewish communities, and in Israel by mandate of the Chief Rabbinate, yibbum is prohibited.
context_section_description: The Torah prohibits sexual relations by a man with his brother's wife, but yibbum is an exception to this rule. The surviving brother is given a choice to take his responsibility as a goel by fulfilling the yibbum obligation, or to perform halizah, though the latter choice is described by the verse disfavorably. The brother who agreed to marry his sister-in-law would be the sole benefactor of his brother's estate instead of splitting it with the family. The offspring of the levirate union would be seen as a perpetuation of the deceased brother's name. Yibbum is permissible only when the dead brother had no children at all.
  Although the stated intent of the levirate law as expressed in Deuteronomy is to provide an heir so that the deceased brother's name "will not be obliterated from Israel" (Deuteronomy 25:6), such laws effectively provided protection for widows as well. At the time the Torah was written, if a woman did not have a husband because of widowhood, she had no one to provide for her any longer and she would be disgraced, if not likely die of starvation. Children were also a means of continued provision, since they are commanded to care and show respect for the elderly as they move further along in years. A childless widow was without both means of provision. Although quite contrary to our modern day dilemmas, even becoming a second wife to a brother-in-law, as indicated in Deuteronomy 25:5-10, was better than living on the streets at the mercy of those around her. Under Torah, men had a responsibility to the women around them, which included life-sustaining provisions (i.e. food, shelter, and comfort). Those of honor were beholden to their responsibility to protect the defenseless.
  Yibbum had significant economic implications for the parties involved: the first child born to the brother's widow would be deemed the heir of the deceased brother, and able to claim the deceased brother's share of inheritance. If the deceased brother was the firstborn son, his inheritance was a double share. However, if the deceased brother were childless, the living brother would be entitled to inherit an increased share; or if he is the oldest surviving son he would be entitled to a double share of the increased share.
caption: Judah and Tamar, by Rembrandt (1650s). An early example of a Yibbum-like practice is the biblical story of Judah and Tamar.
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