Deuteronomy 27:20
New International Version
“Cursed is anyone who sleeps with his father’s wife, for he dishonors his father’s bed.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”

New Living Translation
‘Cursed is anyone who has sexual intercourse with one of his father’s wives, for he has violated his father.’ And all the people will reply, ‘Amen.’

English Standard Version
“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s nakedness.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Berean Standard Bible
‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his father’s wife, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

King James Bible
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he uncovereth his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

New King James Version
‘Cursed is the one who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s bed.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

New American Standard Bible
‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s garment.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

NASB 1995
‘Cursed is he who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s skirt.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

NASB 1977
‘Cursed is he who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s skirt.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Legacy Standard Bible
‘Cursed is he who lies with his father’s wife because he has uncovered his father’s skirt.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Amplified Bible
‘Cursed is he who is intimate with his father’s [former] wife, because he has violated what belongs to his father.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Christian Standard Bible
‘The one who sleeps with his father’s wife is cursed, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And all the people will say, ‘Amen! ’

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The one who sleeps with his father’s wife is cursed, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And all the people will say, ‘Amen!’

American Standard Version
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife, because he hath uncovered his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

English Revised Version
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he hath uncovered his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"Whoever has sexual intercourse with his father's wife will be cursed. He has disgraced his father." Then all the people will say amen.

Good News Translation
"'God's curse on anyone who disgraces his father by having intercourse with any of his father's wives.' "And all the people will answer, 'Amen!'

International Standard Version
"Cursed is the one who has sexual relations with his father's wife, because he has disgraced his father. "Then all the people are to respond by saying, 'Amen!'

Majority Standard Bible
‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his father’s wife, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’

NET Bible
Cursed is the one who has sexual relations with his father's former wife, for he dishonors his father.' Then all the people will say, 'Amen!'

New Heart English Bible
'Cursed is he who lies with his father's wife, because he has uncovered his father's skirt.' All the people shall say, 'Amen.'

Webster's Bible Translation
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he uncovereth his father's skirt: and all the people shall say, Amen.

World English Bible
‘Cursed is he who lies with his father’s wife, because he dishonors his father’s bed.’ All the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
“Cursed [is] he who is lying with his father’s wife, for he has uncovered his father’s skirt.” And all the people have said, “Amen.”

Young's Literal Translation
Cursed is he who is lying with his father's wife, for he hath uncovered his father's skirt, -- and all the people have said, Amen.

Smith's Literal Translation
Cursed he lying with his father's wife, for he uncovered his father's wing: and all the people said, Amen.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife, and uncovereth his bed: and all the people shall say: Amen.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Cursed be he who lies with his father’s wife, and so exposes the covering of his bed. And all the people shall say: Amen.

New American Bible
“Cursed be anyone who has relations with his father’s wife, for he dishonors his father’s bed!” And all the people shall answer, “Amen!”

New Revised Standard Version
“Cursed be anyone who lies with his father’s wife, because he has violated his father’s rights.” All the people shall say, “Amen!”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Cursed be he who lies with his father's wife; and thus uncovers his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Cursed is everyone who will have sexual intercourse with the wife of his father and will expose the skirts of his father, and all the people shall say, “Amen.”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he hath uncovered his father's skirt. And all the people shall say: Amen.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Cursed is he that lies with his father's wife, because he has uncovered his father's skirt: and all the people shall say, So be it.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Curses Pronounced from Ebal
19‘Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ 20‘Cursed is he who sleeps with his father’s wife, for he has violated his father’s marriage bed.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ 21‘Cursed is he who lies with any animal.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’…

Cross References
Leviticus 18:8
You must not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; it would dishonor your father.

Leviticus 20:11
If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

1 Corinthians 5:1
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is intolerable even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife.

Genesis 35:22
While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it. Jacob had twelve sons:

2 Samuel 16:21-22
Ahithophel replied, “Sleep with your father’s concubines, whom he has left to take care of the palace. When all Israel hears that you have become a stench to your father, then the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.” / So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof, and he slept with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.

Ezekiel 22:10
In you they have uncovered the nakedness of their fathers; in you they violate women during their menstrual impurity.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, / nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

Galatians 5:19-21
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; / idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, / and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5
For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality; / each of you must know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, / not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God;

Romans 1:26-27
For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. / Likewise, the men abandoned natural relations with women and burned with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

1 Timothy 1:9-10
We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers, / for the sexually immoral, for homosexuals, for slave traders and liars and perjurers, and for anyone else who is averse to sound teaching

Hebrews 13:4
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

Revelation 21:8
But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

Revelation 22:15
But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

Genesis 9:22-23
And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. / Then Shem and Japheth took a garment and placed it across their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.


Treasury of Scripture

Cursed be he that lies with his father's wife; because he uncovers his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

Deuteronomy 22:30
A man shall not take his father's wife, nor discover his father's skirt.

Genesis 35:22
And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve:

Genesis 49:4
Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.

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Deuteronomy 27
1. The people are commanded to write the law upon stones
5. and to build an altar of whole stones
11. The tribes to be divided on Gerizim and Ebal
14. The curses to be pronounced on mount Ebal














Cursed
The Hebrew word for "cursed" is "אָרוּר" (arur), which signifies being under a divine curse or ban. In the context of Deuteronomy, curses are pronounced as part of the covenantal blessings and curses that the Israelites agree to upon entering the Promised Land. This curse serves as a divine warning against actions that violate God's laws and disrupt the social and moral fabric of the community.

is he who sleeps
The phrase "sleeps with" is a euphemism for engaging in sexual relations. The Hebrew verb "שָׁכַב" (shakab) is used here, which often implies illicit or inappropriate sexual activity. This highlights the seriousness of the offense, as it is not merely a private sin but one that has communal and covenantal implications.

with his father’s wife
This phrase specifically refers to a stepmother, as the father's wife would not be the offender's biological mother. The act is considered a grave sin because it violates the sanctity of the family unit and the respect due to one's father. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, such an act would be seen as a usurpation of the father's authority and a disruption of familial order.

for he has violated
The Hebrew word "גִּלָּה" (gillah) means to uncover or expose, often used in the context of uncovering nakedness, which is a metaphor for sexual relations. This term underscores the shame and dishonor brought upon the family and community by such an act. It is a deliberate and conscious violation of moral and social boundaries.

his father’s marriage bed
The "marriage bed" symbolizes the intimate and exclusive relationship between a husband and wife. In Hebrew, the term "כָּנָף" (kanaph) can also mean "wing" or "corner," suggesting a place of protection and intimacy. Violating this sacred space is an affront to the sanctity of marriage, which is a covenantal relationship reflecting God's covenant with His people.

And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
The word "Amen" is a Hebrew term meaning "so be it" or "truly." It is an affirmation of agreement and acceptance of the terms of the covenant. By saying "Amen," the people collectively acknowledge the seriousness of the curse and their commitment to uphold God's laws. This communal response emphasizes the corporate responsibility of the Israelites to maintain holiness and justice within their society.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
‘Cursed is
אָר֗וּר (’ā·rūr)
Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular
Strong's 779: To execrate

he who sleeps
שֹׁכֵב֙ (šō·ḵêḇ)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 7901: To lie down

with
עִם־ (‘im-)
Preposition
Strong's 5973: With, equally with

his father’s
אָבִ֔יו (’ā·ḇîw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1: Father

wife,
אֵ֣שֶׁת (’ê·šeṯ)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 802: Woman, wife, female

for
כִּ֥י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

he has violated
גִלָּ֖ה (ḡil·lāh)
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1540: To denude, to exile, to reveal

his father’s
אָבִ֑יו (’ā·ḇîw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1: Father

marriage bed.’
כְּנַ֣ף (kə·nap̄)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 3671: An edge, extremity, a wing, a flap, a quarter, a pinnacle

And {let} all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

the people
הָעָ֖ם (hā·‘ām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5971: A people, a tribe, troops, attendants, a flock

say,
וְאָמַ֥ר (wə·’ā·mar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘Amen!’
אָמֵֽן׃ (’ā·mên)
Adverb
Strong's 543: Sure, faithfulness, truly


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OT Law: Deuteronomy 27:20 Cursed be he who lies with his (Deut. De Du)
Deuteronomy 27:19
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