Leviticus 20:21 (ASV)

Passage

And if a man shall take his brother`s wife, it is impurity: he hath uncovered his brother`s nakedness; they shall be childless.

Nearby Context

Leviticus 20:19 And thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother`s sister, nor of thy father`s sister; for he hath made naked his near kin: they shall bear their iniquity.

Leviticus 20:20 And if a man shall lie with his uncle`s wife, he hath uncovered his uncle`s nakedness: they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless.

Leviticus 20:21 And if a man shall take his brother`s wife, it is impurity: he hath uncovered his brother`s nakedness; they shall be childless.

Leviticus 20:22 Ye shall therefore keep all my statutes, and all mine ordinances, and do them; that the land, whither I bring you to dwell therein, vomit you not out.

Leviticus 20:23 And ye shall not walk in the customs of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "take", "brother", "wife", "impurity", "hath", and "uncovered". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "take", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "And if a man shall lie with..." into verse 22's "Ye shall therefore keep all my statutes...", so "shall" and "take" belong inside that flow. In Leviticus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "shall" and "take" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.