This adjective describes someone without children. Jesus addresses a Sadducees' question using Moses's law: if a man dies 'childless,' his brother should marry the widow to raise up offspring (Luke 20:28, 29, 30). The scenario involves seven brothers consecutively marrying the same woman, all dying without children. The term emphasizes the absence of offspring, which in ancient context represented loss of legacy and failure to fulfill cultural expectations. The law of levirate marriage addressed this crisis by preserving family lines.