Leviticus 18:14

Summary

The verse prohibits uncovering the 'ervat ("nakedness of", H6172) of the father's brother, specified through two parallel prohibitions: not uncovering the paternal uncle's nakedness, and not drawing near to his wife, who is identified as dodah ("aunt", H1733).

Key words

• 'Ervat ("[the] nakedness of", H6172) — feminine singular construct noun opening the verse, setting up a construct chain with "brother of your father"; this same term governs prohibitions throughout Leviticus 18.
• Te.ga.Leh ("you will uncover", H1540I) — piel (intensive) imperfect, second person masculine; the piel stem intensifies the action of "uncovering," distinct from a simple qal exposure.
• Tik.Rav ("you will draw near", H7126G) — qal (simple) imperfect, second person masculine; this verb introduces a second, distinct prohibition beyond the "uncovering" language, using approach/proximity rather than exposure.
• Dodah ("[is] aunt", H1733) — feminine singular construct noun, appearing without a preceding article, functioning as the predicate identifying the woman's relational status.
• Hi' ("she", H1931) — independent personal pronoun placed at the end of the clause, forming a nominal sentence: "she [is] your aunt."

What the text says

The verse contains two grammatically distinct prohibitions joined by lo' ("not", H3808) plus imperfect verb, a common construction for negative commands in this chapter. The first clause uses the construct chain 'er.Vat 'a.chi- 'a.Vi.kha ("nakedness of the brother of your father") as the object of te.ga.Leh ("you will uncover", H1540I), a piel verb. The second clause shifts syntax: instead of a direct object, it uses the preposition 'el ("to", H0413) with 'ish.T-o ("his wife", H0802H) as the target of tik.Rav ("you will draw near", H7126G), a qal verb. This alternation between piel "uncovering" language and qal "drawing near" language appears elsewhere in Leviticus 18's prohibitions.

The final clause, do.da.te.kha hi' ("your aunt, she"), is a nominal sentence with no verb — the pronoun hi' ("she", H1931) serves as the copula-equivalent, identifying the woman's kinship status as a closing clarification rather than a new command.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders the second verb as eiseleusē ("you will enter/go in to"), whereas the Hebrew verb is tik.Rav ("you will draw near", H7126G) — a difference in the specific verb of approach. The Vulgate identifies the father's brother directly as patrui ("paternal uncle"), collapsing the Hebrew construct phrase 'a.chi- 'a.Vi.kha ("brother of your father") into a single kinship term. The Vulgate also renders the final identifying clause as quæ tibi affinitate conjungitur ("who is joined to you by affinity"), a descriptive paraphrase rather than the Hebrew's direct nominal predicate dodatekha hi' ("she is your aunt").