⁵ If two brothers are living together, and one of them dies without having a son, his widow must not marry ·someone [a stranger] outside her husband’s family. Her husband’s brother must marry her, which is his duty to her as a brother-in-law. ⁶ The first son she has ·counts as the son of the dead [will raise up the name of his] brother so that his name will not be ·forgotten [blotted/wiped out] in Israel [Gen. 38; Ruth 4].

⁷ But if a man does not want to marry his brother’s widow, she should go to the elders at the town gate. She should say, “My brother-in-law will not ·carry on [raise up] his brother’s name in Israel. He refuses to do his duty for me.”

⁸ Then the elders of the town must call for the man and talk to him. But if he ·is stubborn [^Lstands] and says, “I don’t want to marry her,” ⁹ the woman must go up to him in ·front of the leaders [the presence of the elders]. She must take off one of his sandals and spit in his face and say, “This is for the man who won’t ·continue [^Lbuild] his brother’s ·family [^Lhouse]!” ¹⁰ Then that man’s ·family [^Lhouse] shall be known in Israel as the ·Family [^LHouse] of the Unsandaled.