Leviticus 18:8 · Bible study
Leviticus 18:8 Commentary: The Father's Nakedness and Honor
Hebrew · 7 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Understand why sexual relations with a stepmother dishonors the father, and the meaning of 'uncovering his nakedness' in Leviticus 18:8.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Forbids a man from sexual relations with his stepmother, as it dishonors his father.
- Key words: 'uncover nakedness' (euphemism for sex), 'father's wife' (stepmother), 'nakedness of... father' (father's honor).
- Main debate: Whether the prohibition applies only to a full marriage, or includes concubines and betrothed women. Some rabbinic sources limit it, but most commentators include all.
- Theological theme: God's design for family boundaries and the sanctity of the marital bond.
- Best use: Teaching on sexual ethics, honor within families, and the seriousness of incest.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
You must not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; it would dishonor your father.
WEB World English Bible 2000
“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife. It is your father’s nakedness.
KJV King James Version 1769
The nakedness of thy father’s wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father’s nakedness.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
The nakedness of thy father’s wife shalt thou not uncover; it is thy father’s nakedness.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
`The nakedness of the wife of thy father thou dost not uncover; it is the nakedness of thy father.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's nakedness.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's wife: for it is the nakedness of thy father.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
La desnudez de la mujer de tu padre no descubrirás; es la desnudez de tu padre.
A nudez da mulher de teu pai não descobrirás; é a nudez de teu pai.
Tu ne découvriras point la nudité de la femme de ton père. C’ est la nudité de ton père.
Du sollst deines Vaters Weibes Blöße nicht aufdecken; denn sie ist deines Vaters Blöße.
Gij zult de schaamte der huisvrouw uws vaders niet ontdekken; het is de schaamte uws vaders.
Non scoprirai la nudità della moglie di tuo padre: è la nudità di tuo padre.
Sromoty żony ojca twego nie odkryjesz; sromota ojca twego jest.
Наготы жены отца твоего не открывай: это нагота отца твоего.
不可 露 你繼母 的下體；這本是 你父親 的下體。
And you may not have sex relations with your father's wife: she is your father's.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Leviticus 18:8
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that this verse forbids sexual relations with a stepmother, the wife of one's father, not one's own mother (covered in verse 7). Matthew Henry notes that the act is treated as 'uncovering the father's nakedness' because the father and his wife are one flesh; the son's action directly dishonors his father. Barnes and Gill link the law to the case of Reuben (Genesis 49:4) and to Paul's condemnation of incest in 1 Corinthians 5:1. Keil and Delitzsch add that the 'father's wife' includes a concubine, since the father's bed is defiled either way. Gill cites the Jewish commentator Jarchi to show that the prohibition remains even after the father's death. The core meaning is clear: this law protects the father's honor and the boundaries of the family.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Broad interpretation (including after death, concubines, betrothed): Based on phrase 'it is your father's nakedness,' implying permanent bond, and supported by cross-references (Deut 27:20, Lev 20:11) and historical examples (Reuben, Absalom).
- Limited scope (only while father is alive or married): Some read 'father's wife' as a present marriage, limiting applicability after divorce or death; supported by a narrower reading of the Hebrew term 'wife' and rabbinic debates.
What is clear: Sexual relations with a stepmother are a direct violation of the father's honor and are strictly forbidden by God, regardless of the father's death or the woman's status as wife or concubine.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Interpretation of 'father's wife' | Refers to a woman who is married to one's father (a stepmother), not one's biological mother. | Some rabbinic interpretations (Gersom) limit it to a woman who was actually married (not just betrothed), while Jarchi extends it to betrothed women after the father's death. |
| Duration of prohibition | All traditions affirm the act is forbidden. | Some early Jewish sources (Jarchi) emphasize it applies after the father's death; others debate whether it applies after the father has divorced her. |
| Inclusion of concubines | Keil and Delitzsch and others affirm that concubines are covered, citing Reuben and Bilhah. | A minority view tries to distinguish a milder punishment for concubines based on Leviticus 19:20-22, but Keil and Delitzsch argue against this. |
| Meaning of 'father's nakedness' | All commentators see this as referring to the father's honor or his exclusive claim over his wife. | Some read it as the father's body or his own nakedness (the wife as his extension), while others focus on the concept of shame and dishonor. |
Historical & Cultural Context
In ancient Israel and the broader Near East, polygamy was accepted. A household could include one primary wife and several secondary wives or concubines. Step relationships were common, and the temptation for a son to take his father's wife, especially after the father's death, was real. The Bible records two prominent violations: Reuben slept with his father's concubine Bilhah (Genesis 35:22), and Absalom publicly took his father's concubines as a political act (2 Samuel 16:21-22). Both were direct assaults on the father's authority and honor.
The Cambridge Bible notes that this practice 'was not uncommon in the polygamous East' and that the law may specifically condemn it because it was prevalent. The phrase 'uncover nakedness' is a euphemism for sexual intercourse used throughout Leviticus 18. By calling the stepmother 'your father's nakedness,' the text identifies her as an extension of the father's person: a violation of her is a violation of him.
This fits the broader context of Leviticus 18, which opens with God commanding Israel not to imitate the practices of Egypt or Canaan (vv.2-3). The laws that follow draw boundaries around sexuality to mark Israel as holy and distinct. The father's honor was foundational to family and tribal identity, so this prohibition is serious, with the death penalty attached in Leviticus 20:11.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Leviticus 18:8. The wording is stable across the Hebrew manuscript tradition, with minor differences in later translations (e.g., BSB clarifies the meaning as 'dishonor your father').
Reception History
Throughout Jewish tradition, this verse was understood as a core prohibition against incest with a stepmother. Rabbinic commentators such as Jarchi (11th century) and Gersom elaborated on its application after the father's death and in betrothal cases. In early Christianity, the apostle Paul applied the same principle to the Corinthian church, condemning a man who had 'his father's wife' (1 Corinthians 5:1) and demonstrating that the law's moral force continued for Gentile believers. Reformation-era Protestant commentators like Matthew Henry and John Gill highlighted the patriarchal honor at stake and connected the sin to Reuben's forfeited birthright. The verse has served as a clear biblical boundary for family ethics across eras and traditions.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Prohibition is Absolute. The verse forbids a man from having sexual relations with his father's wife, his stepmother. It applies whether the father is alive or dead, and whether the woman was a full wife or a concubine. The command is categorical: 'you shall not uncover.'
- The Violation Attacks the Father's Honour. The act is not simply incest; it is a direct dishonour to the father. The woman is 'your father's nakedness' because she belongs to him. To take her is to invade his most intimate space. This reflects the biblical principle that a man and his wife become one flesh (Genesis 2:24).
- The Law Protects the Family Order. By drawing this boundary, God preserves the integrity of the family. The father's role as head of the household is protected, and clear lines of kinship are maintained. This is part of Israel's calling to be a holy people, distinct from the surrounding nations.
Five-point outline
- Sexual boundaries within the family are a matter of holiness, not just custom.
- The prohibition covers all configurations: full wife, secondary wife, concubine, and even a betrothed woman (as per Jewish tradition).
- The offense remains even after the father's death: the dead father's honor is still to be respected.
- The phrase 'father's nakedness' links the wife's body to her husband's person, showing that the violation is against the father himself.
- Scripture treats this sin as especially grievous: it brought a curse in Deuteronomy 27:20 and was a capital crime in Leviticus 20:11.
Illustration hooks
- A modern blended family: a man's father remarries, and after the father dies, the son begins a relationship with his stepmother. The family is torn apart by broken trust. This law sees that rupture before it happens and forbids it.
- In a culture where step-parent relationships are sometimes normalized, this verse stands as a clear boundary, not because step-parents are not real family, but because the father's bond is sacred.
Questions your congregation is asking
- 'What about a widower's second wife? Could I marry her after he dies?' The verse says no, because she was your father's wife.
- 'Does this apply if my parents divorced and my father remarried?' Yes, the prohibition is about the relationship, not the marriage status.
- 'Why is this so serious? Other sins seem worse.' The answer lies in the father's honor and the need for clear family lines.
Leading a Discussion
This short verse sits within a list of forbidden sexual relationships. It seems straightforward, but its logic about honor and family raises questions for us today.
Discussion questions
- What does the phrase 'uncover nakedness' mean throughout Leviticus 18? (Observation)
- Why does the law call the stepmother 'your father's nakedness'? What does that tell us about how God views marriage? (Interpretation)
- How does this law connect to the story of Reuben in Genesis 49:4? (Application)
- In what ways might we 'uncover the nakedness' of a parent today, if not literally? (Application)
- How does protecting the father's honor in this way also protect the family and the community? (Interpretation)
- Paul references this law in 1 Corinthians 5:1 when a man has his father's wife. What does that tell us about the continuing relevance of this command? (Observation/Application)
- How can we honor parents in our relationships and choices, especially in blended families? (Application)
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Genesis 35:22 | While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard of it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. |
| Genesis 49:4 | Boiling over like water, you shall not excel, because you went up to your father’s bed, then defiled it. He went up to my couch. |
| Leviticus 20:11 | “‘The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon themselves. |
| Deuteronomy 22:30 | A man shall not take his father’s wife, and shall not uncover his father’s skirt. |
| Deuteronomy 27:20 | ‘Cursed is he who lies with his father’s wife, because he dishonors his father’s bed.’ All the people shall say, ‘Amen.’ |
| II Samuel 16:21 | Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father’s concubines that he has left to keep the house. Then all Israel will hear that you are abhorred by your father. Then the hands of all who are with you will be strong.” |
| II Samuel 16:22 | So they spread a tent for Absalom on the top of the house, and Absalom went in to his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel. |
| Ezekiel 22:10 | In you have they uncovered their fathers’ nakedness. In you have they humbled her who was unclean in her impurity. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
7 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes directs the reader to compare the case of Reuben, who dishonored his father's bed, with the scandal Paul addresses in Corinth. He sees a clear parallel: both involve a man taking his father's wife as his own.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator notes that this specific prohibition appears in Deuteronomy in slightly different wording, and some have thought this points to an earlier law code. A simpler explanation is that the practice was widespread enough in that polygamous culture to need a separate, direct prohibition.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Notes point out that the shame of a father's wife is treated as the father's own shame. To uncover her reveals his dishonor, not just hers. The prohibition therefore rests on the close marital bond that makes her condition his.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill explains that the command against uncovering a father's wife refers to a stepmother, not the biological mother, so it does not repeat the earlier law. He stresses that this prohibition remains in force even after the father's death, and it applies even if the woman was only betrothed or divorced from the father, because she is one flesh with him.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil and Delitzsch emphasize that intercourse with a stepmother is forbidden because it uncovers the father's nakedness, not because of any blood relation to the son. The law protects the father's honor, and the offense is punishable by death as incest, applying equally to a lawful wife or a concubine since either defiles the father's bed.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange argues these marriage laws prevent a self-centered retreat into one's own bloodline. By forcing families to form bonds with outsiders, the law counters what he calls "family egoism" and builds a wider web of love, expanding the community through ever-new relationships.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes that these prohibitions rest on God's own authority and the natural bonds of family. He stresses that approaching near kin violates the honor due to parents and corrupts the sacred order of relationships, making such acts not merely unclean but wicked.