living widows, abandoned wife (whose husband has disappeared without divorcing her)/(deserted wife)
A woman whose husband is alive but refrains from coming to her or having a marital relationship with her.
("And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood" - 2 Samuel 20:3. Also: "Here is another curse, that the women shall be kept as living widows, that there be no witnesses to their husbands' deaths, and they shall be forbidden to remarry and the children will be orphans" - Rashi on Exodus 22:23. Also: "Sarah Leah, Rebecca Deborah, Deborah Sushi, shut away in their houses as living widows" - Agnon, 'These and Those', 12)
Translation
Expression (Hebrew)
אַלְמְנוּת חַיּוּת ( אַלְמָנָה חַיָּה)
Definition (Hebrew)
אִשָּׁה שֶׁבַּעֲלָהּ בַּחַיִּים אַךְ נִמְנָע מִלָּבוֹא אֵלֶיהָ אוֹ לְקַיֵּם אִתָּהּ יַחֲסִי זוּגִיּוּת.
("וַיָּבֹא דָוִד אֶל בֵּיתוֹ יְרוּשָׁלִם וַיִּקַּח הַמֶּלֶךְ אֵת עֶשֶׂר נָשִׁים פִּלַגְשִׁים אֲשֶׁר הִנִּיחַ לִשְׁמֹר הַבַּיִת וַיִּתְּנֵם בֵּית מִשְׁמֶרֶת וַיְכַלְכְּלֵם וַאֲלֵיהֶם לֹא בָא וַתִּהְיֶינָה צְרֻרוֹת עַד יוֹם מֻתָן אַלְמְנוּת חַיּוּת"- שְׁמוּאֵל ב כ ג, וְכֵן:"הֲרֵי זוֹ קְלָלָה אַחֶרֶת, שֶׁיִּהְיוּ הַנָּשִׁים צְרוֹרוֹת כְּאַלְמָנוֹת חַיּוֹת, שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיוּ עֵדִים לְמִיתַת בַּעֲלֵיהֶן וְתִהְיֶינָה אֲסוּרוֹת לְהִנָּשֵׂא וְהַבָּנִים יִהְיוּ יְתוֹמִים"-רָשִׁ"י שְׁמוֹת כב כג, וְכֵן:"שָׂרָה לֵאָה, רִבְקָה דְּבוֹרָה, דְּבוֹרָה סוּשִׁי, עצורות בְּבָתֵּיהֶן כְּאַלְמָנוֹת חַיּוֹת"-עַגְנוֹן/ אֵלּוּ וָאֵלּוּ, 12)