In the Tanakh, nearly all incidental Biblical references to incest occur in the Torah, especially in Genesis (בראשית Bereshit), prior to the establishment of Jewish law as described in Leviticus. A few books contain narratives describing the circumstances of particular instances of sexual intercourse among family members, which may be construed as incest and/or endogamy. 11th century Targum Tanakh [תנ״ך] (also Tanach or Tenach) is an acronym that identifies the Hebrew Bible. ... Torah (תורה) is a Hebrew word meaning teaching, instruction, or law. ... This article is about Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). ... Halakha (הלכה in Hebrew or Halakhah, Halacha, Halachah) is the collective corpus of Jewish law, custom and tradition regulating all aspects of behavior. ... Leviticus is the third book of the Hebrew Bible, also the third book in the Torah (five books of Moses). ... The canonical list of the Books of the Bible differs among Jews, and Catholic, Protestant, and Greek Orthodox Christians, even though there is a great deal of overlap. ... In non-technical terms, no matter what the context (whether scientific, philosophical, legal, etc) a narrative is a story, an interpretation of some aspect of the world that is historically and culturally grounded and shaped by human personality (per Walter Fisher). ... It has been suggested that Sexual penetration be merged into this article or section. ... A family of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in 1997 A family is a domestic group of people, or a number of domestic groups, typically affiliated by birth or marriage, or by comparable legal relationships including domestic partnership, adoption, surname and in some cases ownership (as was the case in the Roman... Incest is sexual activity between close family members. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ...

Jewish law does not explicitly forbid cousins from marrying, but it does prohibit sexual relations with in-laws, aunts but not uncles (Lev 18: 6–18). It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Consanguinity. ... Ones aunt (or aunty) is either a female sibling of one of ones parents or the wife of an uncle who is the male sibling of a parent. ... Uncle may refer to: A family relationship, see Cousin chart A cry of surrender An idiom: Dutch uncle, a person who delivers stern lectures Uncle Sam, a national personification of the United States Uncle Tom, a pejorative term for a black person Uncle Tom Cobley, a British folk saying meaning... Leviticus is the third book of the Hebrew Bible, also the third book in the Torah (five books of Moses). ...

Torah

Genesis

• Milcah, sister of Lot, married her uncle, Nahor:

"Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife was Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah." (Gen 11:29; New International Version) Sister may refer to: a female sibling a member of a sorority a female member of a religious institution or congregation, often referred to as a nun in common language a female member of a mutual organisation such as a trade union one of a pair or larger group of... Lot is: Place Specific - A French département, see Lot (département) A French river, a tributary of the Garonne, see Lot River A Belgian town, see Lot, Belgium A Polish Airline, see LOT Polish Airlines Character Specific - A Biblical figure, the nephew of Abraham, see Lot (Biblical) Lot, a... The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view. ... (1. ... Abraham (אַבְרָהָם Father/Leader of many, (circa 1700 BCE) Standard Hebrew Avraham, Tiberian Hebrew ; Arabic ابراهيم ; Geez አብርሃም ) is regarded as a patriarch of Israelite religion, recognized by Judaism and later Christianity, and a very important prophet in Islam as well as in the Bahai Faith. ... Sarah (שָׂרָה Princess, Standard Hebrew Sara, Tiberian Hebrew Śārāh, Arabic: سارة) is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible. ... Note: Daughters is also a band. ... In the Old Testament, Haran (הָרָן) is a son of Terah, younger brother of Abram and Nahor, and father of Milcah, Lot and Iscah (or Yiskah). ... This article is about Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). ... The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Christian Bible which is the most popular of the modern translations of the Bible made in the twentieth century. ...

• While Lot and his two daughters are living in a mountain cave, the girls conspire to get Lot drunk so that he will impregnate them and thus preserve the family line. The plan succeeds, and the elder daughter later gives birth to Moab; the younger births Ben-Ammi.

"That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and lay with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.

"The next day the older daughter said to the younger, 'Last night I lay with my father. Let's get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and lie with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.' So they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went and lay with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up. "So both of Lot's daughters became pregnant by their father." (Gen 19:33–36) Lot is: Place Specific - A French département, see Lot (département) A French river, a tributary of the Garonne, see Lot River A Belgian town, see Lot, Belgium A Polish Airline, see LOT Polish Airlines Character Specific - A Biblical figure, the nephew of Abraham, see Lot (Biblical) Lot, a... Mount McKinley in Alaska has one of the largest visible base-to-summit elevation differences anywhere A mountain is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain in a limited area. ... Alternate meanings: Cave (disambiguation) This article is about natural caves; for artificial caves used as dwellings, such as those in north China, see yaodong. ... Drunkenness, in its most common usage, is the state of being intoxicated with alcohol (i. ... Moab (מוֹאָב, Standard Hebrew Moʾav, Tiberian Hebrew Môʾāḇ Greek Μωάβ; Assyrian Muaba, Maba, Maab; Egyptian Muab) is the historical name for a mountainous strip of land in modern-day Jordan running along the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. ... Pregnancy Pregnancy is the carrying of one or more embryos or fetuses by female mammals, including humans, inside their bodies. ...

• In one of the tales of a wife confused for a sister, Abraham claims that his wife Sarah is also his half-sister. Abraham tells the Philistine King of Gerar that Sarah and Abraham are siblings, but he does not tell him that they're married, so the king takes Sarah for his harem. However, a voice in the king's dream tells him that Sarah is a married woman and so he accuses Abraham of deception, to which Abraham responds that Sarah is his half-sister:

"Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife." (Gen 20:12) This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... Abraham (אַבְרָהָם Father/Leader of many, (circa 1700 BCE) Standard Hebrew Avraham, Tiberian Hebrew ; Arabic ابراهيم ; Geez አብርሃም ) is regarded as a patriarch of Israelite religion, recognized by Judaism and later Christianity, and a very important prophet in Islam as well as in the Bahai Faith. ... Sarah (שָׂרָה Princess, Standard Hebrew Sara, Tiberian Hebrew Śārāh, Arabic: سارة) is the wife of Abraham as described in the Hebrew Bible. ... Gerar - lodging-place - A very ancient town and district in the south border of Palestine, which was ruled over by a king named Abimelech. ... Somebodys half-sister is a female sibling with one shared parent. ... Look up mother in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

However, in the rabbinic literature, Sarah is considered to be Abraham's niece (the daughter of his brother, Haran).

• Isaac, a son of Abraham, married his second cousin, Rebekah:

"Some time later Abraham was told, 'Milcah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor: Uz the firstborn, Buz his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.' Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. Milcah bore these eight sons to Abraham's brother Nahor." (Gen 22:20–23) A Rabbi (Classical Hebrew רִבִּי ribbī; modern Ashkenazi and Israeli רַבִּי rabbī) is a religious Jewish scholar who is an expert in Jewish law. ... This article is about the domestic group. ... Look up Brother in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Brother may have the following meanings, in addition to and derived from its main one of male sibling; see Family. a male friend or acquaintance, in some cultures shortened to Bro or Brah a peer, male or female (though such usage is... An angel prevents Abraham from sacrificing Isaac in this illumation from a 14th century Icelandic manuscript. ... A son is a male offspring; a boy, man, or male animal in relation to his parents. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Consanguinity. ... Rebekah or Rivka (רִבְקָה Noose or Snare, Standard Hebrew Rivqa, Tiberian Hebrew Riḇqāh) was a biblical matriarch and the wife of Isaac. ... UZ or uz can refer to several things: An abbreviation (and TLD) for Uzbekistan The name of a son of Aram (עוץ Fertile land; counsel, Standard Hebrew עוּץ, Tiberian Hebrew ʿÛṣ), also known as Huz or Utz, according to the Book of Genesis The land of Biblical figure Job The...

• Esau married two of his first cousins, the sisters Mahalath and Basemath:

"Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac; so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had. (Gen 28:8–9; Esau (Hebrew עֵשָׂו, Standard Hebrew Ê¿Esav, Tiberian Hebrew ʿĒśāw) is the son of Isaac and Rebekah and the older twin brother of Jacob in the biblical Book of Genesis, who, in the Torah, was tricked by Jacob into giving up his birthright (leadership of Israel) for a mess of pottage (meal... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Consanguinity. ... In the Old Testament, Mahalath is the name of two women. ... In the Old Testament, Basemath (also Bashemath, Basmath): בָּשְׂמַת Sweet-smelling, Standard Hebrew Básəmat, Tiberian Hebrew Bāśəmaṯ) is the name of three women. ... Canaanite can describe anything pertaining to Canaan: in particular, its languages and inhabitants. ... An angel prevents Abraham from sacrificing Isaac in this illumation from a 14th century Icelandic manuscript. ... Ishmael or Yishmael (יִשְׁמָעֵאל God hears or obeys, Standard Hebrew YiÅ¡maÊ¿el, Tiberian Hebrew YiÅ¡māʿêl, Arabic إسماعيل) is Abrahams eldest son, born by his servant Hagar. ... Nebaioth נְבָיוֹת (Hebrew: Nevayot), (also written in English as Nebajoth or Nbioth), is mentioned at least five times in the Hebrew Bible according to which he was the firstborn son of Ishmael, and the name is among the eponyms of tribes mentioned in the Book of Genesis 25:13, and in...

"Esau took his wives from the women of Canaan: Adah daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite—also Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth." (Gen 36:2–3) For other uses, see Canaan (disambiguation). ... Categories: Hebrew Bible/Tanakh-related stubs | Torah people ... In the Bible, Elon (Hebrew אֵילֹן Oak, Standard Hebrew Elon, Tiberian Hebrew ʾÊlōn) was a judge of Israel. ... Hittite can refer to either: The ancient Anatolian people called the Hittites; or The Hittite language, an ancient Indo-European language they spoke. ... Aholibamah (אָהֳלִיבָמָה My tabernacle of/is height/exaltation, Standard Hebrew Oholivama, Tiberian Hebrew ʾOhŏlîḇāmāh), the name given to Judith, the daughter of Beeri = Anah (Gen. ... This article is about the town of Anah. ... Nebaioth נְבָיוֹת (Hebrew: Nevayot), (also written in English as Nebajoth or Nbioth), is mentioned at least five times in the Hebrew Bible according to which he was the firstborn son of Ishmael, and the name is among the eponyms of tribes mentioned in the Book of Genesis 25:13, and in...

• In Genesis 29, Jacob marries two of his first cousins—daughters of his mother's brother, Laban. While living with his uncle, Jacob falls in love with Laban's daughter, Rachel. Jacob agrees to work for Laban for seven years to be allowed to marry Rachel, but at the end of the seven years, Laban gives his older daughter Leah to Jacob instead, citing their custom to marry-off the eldest daughters first. Jacob and Leah are betrothed, and a week later Laban gives Rachel to Jacob in exchange for an additional seven years of indentured servitude. Since Jacob prefers Rachel to Leah, God causes Rachel to become infertile, and Leah becomes pregnant with Reuben.

• In Genesis 36, Judah, the fourth son of Jacob, mistakes his daughter-in-law Tamar for a prostitute while she is veiled. Without knowing her identity, he impregnates her. About three months later, someone misreports to Judah that Tamar became pregnant while prostituting herself; furious, Judah orders her to be burned to death. He rescinds the order after learning that he himself perpetrated the incident. Tamar gives birth to twin sons, Perez and Zerah.

To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... In the Book of Genesis, Laban (לָבָן White, Standard Hebrew Lavan, Tiberian Hebrew Lāḇān) is the brother of Rebekah and the father of Leah and Rachel. ... Rachel (רָחֵל Ewe, also innocence and gentility of a lamb and may mean Lamb of God. Standard Hebrew Raḥel, Tiberian Hebrew Rāḫēl, Rāḥēl) is the second and favorite wife of Jacob and mother of Joseph and Benjamin, first mentioned in the Book of Genesis of the Christian Bible. ... Look up Leah and לֵאָה in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view. ... An indentured servant is an unfree labourer under contract to work (for a specified amount of time) for another person or a company/corporation, often without any monetary pay, but in exchange for accommodation, food, other essentials, training, or passage to a new country. ... Michelangelos depiction of God in the painting Creation of the Sun and Moon in the Sistine Chapel This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and derived henotheistic forms. ... Infertility is the inability to naturally conceive a child or the inability to carry a pregnancy to term. ... Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, Standard Hebrew Rəʾuven, Tiberian Hebrew Rəʾûḇēn) is the first-born son of Jacob and the founder of the Tribe of Reuben, as related in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible. ... In Genesis (the first book of the Bible) Judah (יְהוּדָה Praise, Standard Hebrew YÉ™huda, Tiberian Hebrew YÉ™hûḏāh) is the fourth son of Jacob and Leah, born in Padan-aram (Genesis xxix. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The name Tamar has a number of different meanings: Tamar of Georgia Tamar (biblical figure) Tamar - palm tree, Arecaceae River Tamar, Devon, England Tamar River, Tasmania, Australia Tamar, Slovenia, the end of the Planica valley This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise... Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ... Fraternal twin boys in the tub Twin births occur in most species. ... In the Book of Genesis, Pharez or Péretz (פֶּרֶץ / פָּרֶץ Breach, Standard Hebrew Péreẓ / Páreẓ, Tiberian Hebrew Péreṣ / Pāreṣ) is the son of Judah by the Canaanitish woman Tamar. ... Zerah or Zérach (זֶרַח / זָרַח Sunrise, Standard Hebrew Zéraḥ / Záraḥ, Tiberian Hebrew Zéraḥ / Zāraḥ) 1. ...

Exodus

• Amram married his paternal aunt:

"Amram married his father's sister Jochebed, who bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years." (Exod 6:20) Amram (עַמְרָם Friend of the most high (God), Standard Hebrew ʿAmram, Tiberian Hebrew ʿAmrām) is a Levite, a son of Kohath, the husband of Jochebed (Ex 6,20 and Num 26,59) and father of Aaron, Miriam and Moses. ... Exodus is the second book of the Torah (the Pentateuch) and also the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible), and the Christian Old Testament. ...

Numbers

• God commands that each of Zelophehad's five daughters should marry endogamously since Israeli land inheritances are passed through the patrilineage. Each of the girls subsequently marries one of their paternal cousins:

"Then at the Lord's command Moses gave this order to the Israelites: 'What the tribe of the descendants of Joseph is saying is right. This is what the Lord commands for Zelophehad's daughters: They may marry anyone they please as long as they marry within the tribal clan of their father. No inheritance in Israel is to pass from tribe to tribe, for every Israelite shall keep the tribal land inherited from his forefathers. Every daughter who inherits land in any Israelite tribe must marry someone in her father's tribal clan, so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of his fathers. No inheritance may pass from tribe to tribe, for each Israelite tribe is to keep the land it inherits.' This entry incorporates text from Eastons Bible Dictionary, 1897, with some modernisation. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... In cultural anthropology, a patrilineage is a consanguineal kin group whose descent is traced through males from a known common ancestor. ... An Israelite is a member of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, descended from the twelve sons of the Biblical patriarch Jacob who was renamed Israel by God in the book of Genesis, 32:28 The Israelites were a group of Hebrews, as described in the Bible. ... Viewed historically or developmentally, a tribe consists of a social formation existing before the development of, or outside of, states. ... Joseph is a given name originating from Hebrew, recorded in the Hebrew Bible, as יוֹסֵף, Standard Hebrew Yosef, and Tiberian Hebrew YôsÄ“pÌ„. In Arabic, including in the Quran, the name is spelt يوسف or YÅ«suf. ...    This article is a stub. ... Forefather are an Anglo-Saxon Heavy Metal band from Surrey, England. ...

So Zelophehad's daughters did as the Lord commanded Moses. Zelophehad's daughters—Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah and Noah—married their cousins^[1] on their father's side. They married within the clans of the descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained in their father's clan and tribe." (Num 36: 5–12) This entry incorporates text from the public domain Eastons Bible Dictionary, originally published in 1897. ... Joseph is a given name originating from Hebrew, recorded in the Hebrew Bible, as יוֹסֵף, Standard Hebrew Yosef, and Tiberian Hebrew YôsÄ“pÌ„. In Arabic, including in the Quran, the name is spelt يوسف or YÅ«suf. ... The Book of Numbers is the fourth of the books of the Pentateuch, called in the Hebrew ba-midbar במדבר, i. ...

Nevi'im

2 Samuel

In 2 Samuel 13, Amnon, King David's eldest son and heir to the throne, rapes his beautiful half-sister Tamar. Tamar's brother, Absalom, learns of the incident, and offers Tamar sanctuary in his house. Two years later, Absalom orders his servants to murder his half-brother Amnon. The Books of Samuel, also referred to as [The Book of] Samuel (Hebrew: שְׁמוּאֵל), are (two) books in the Hebrew Bible (Judaisms Tanakh and originally written in Hebrew) and the Old Testament of Christianity. ... Amnon was Davids eldest son. ... King David (Standard Hebrew דָּוִד, Davíd, Beloved, Tiberian Hebrew Dāwíð; Arabic داؤد, Dāūd, Beloved), was the second king of the united kingdom of Israel (c. ... For other uses, see inheritance (disambiguation). ... In the Bible Tamar - תָּמָר Palm tree, Standard Hebrew Tamar, Tiberian Hebrew Tāmār was the daughter-in-law of Judah, to whose eldest son, Er, she was married (Gen. ... Absalom or Avshalom (אַבְשָׁלוֹם Father/Leader of/is peace, Standard Hebrew Avšalom, Tiberian Hebrew ʾAḇšālôm), in the Bible, is the third son of David, king of Israel. ... A servant is a person who is hired to provide regular household or other duties, and receives compensation. ... A half-brother is a male sibling with one shared parent. ...

Notes

1. ^  Some scholars assert that, in this passage, the word cousins refers to paternal relatives more distant than first cousins.

A scholar is either a student or someone who has achieved a mastery of some academic discipline. ...

See also

• Sex in the Bible

Sex occurs frequently in the Old Testament. ...

Sources

• Akerly, Ben Edward, The X-Rated Bible: An Irreverent Survey of Sex in the Scriptures (Feral House, 1998) ISBN 0-922915-55-5; pp. 1-13