Hebrew word · H2994
יְבֵ֫מֶת
yevimto
sister-in-law
The widow of one's brother (Deut 25:7, 9, from the brother-in-law's side), or the wife of one's husband's brother (Ruth 1:15, from a fellow widow's side). It is related to yabam ('husband's brother') and to the verb yibbem, 'to do the duty of a husband's brother', i.e.
Appears 5 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
sister-in-law, brother's wife, brother's widow
Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
The widow of one's brother (Deut 25:7, 9, from the brother-in-law's side), or the wife of one's husband's brother (Ruth 1:15, from a fellow widow's side). It is related to yabam ('husband's brother') and to the verb yibbem, 'to do the duty of a husband's brother', i.e. to marry a dead brother's childless widow.
- Against the English
English 'sister-in-law' is accurate but broad: it also covers a spouse's sister and a brother's wife. The Hebrew names one exact relationship, a link created through brothers and closely tied to the custom of a brother marrying his dead brother's widow.
- How it drifted
English has no single word for the relationship, so translators use the general term.
- Used elsewhere in the period
The noun occurs only here (twice) and in Deut 25:7, 9, the law of the brother-in-law marriage. The verb appears in Gen 38:8 (Judah tells Onan to do this duty for Tamar) and Deut 25:5, 7. The Septuagint here uses σύννυμφος, 'fellow bride', meaning a co-sister-in-law.
Where it appears
Deuteronomy · 3
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Deuteronomy 25:7 יְבִמְתּ֑וֹ יְבִמְתּ֨וֹ brother's wife his
But if the man does not want to marry his brother’s widow, she is to go to the elders at the city gate and say, “My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel. He is not willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.”
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Deuteronomy 25:9 יְבִמְתּ֣וֹ brother's wife his
his brother’s widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, remove his sandal, spit in his face, and declare, “This is what is done to the man who will not maintain his brother’s line.”
Ruth · 2
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Ruth 1:15 יְבִמְתֵּ֔ךְ יְבִמְתֵּֽךְ׃ sister-in-law your
“Look,” said Naomi, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; follow her back home.”
Here: This is a narrow kinship word: the widow of a husband's brother. Orpah and Ruth married two brothers, Chilion and Mahlon. The word comes from the same root as the law of a brother marrying his dead brother's widow, which Naomi has just said cannot happen for these women (vv.11–13).
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.