Numbers 5
New Life Version
People with a Bad Skin Disease
5 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to send away from the tents every person with a bad skin disease, every one with a flow that is unclean, and every one who is unclean because of a dead person. 3 Send away both male and female. Send them away from the tents so they will not make the place sinful where I live among them.” 4 The people of Israel did so. They sent them away from the tents. The people of Israel did just as the Lord had said to Moses.
Paying Back for Wrongs Done
5 Then the Lord said to Moses, 6 “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When a man or woman sins the way that man sins by not acting in faith toward the Lord, and that person is guilty, 7 then he must tell about the sins he has done. He must pay in full for his wrong-doing, and add one-fifth part to it, and give it to the one he has sinned against. 8 But if the man has no brother to whom pay for the wrong can be made, then it must go to the Lord for the religious leader. He must also give a ram to pay for his sins. And his sins will be forgiven. 9 Every gift of all the holy things of the Israelites which they bring to the religious leader will become his. 10 So every man’s holy gifts will be his. Whatever any man gives to the religious leader will be his.’”
Wives Who Are Not Faithful
11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “Say to the people of Israel, ‘If a man’s wife turns away and is not faithful to him, 13 and another man has sex with her and it is hidden from her husband’s eyes, even if it is hidden, she will be unclean. And even if no one speaks against her, because she has not been caught in the act, 14 but a spirit of jealousy comes over her husband, he will be jealous of his wife when she has made herself unclean. Or if he becomes jealous of his wife when she has done nothing to make herself unclean, 15 then the man must bring his wife to the religious leader. He must bring one-tenth part of a basket of barley as the gift needed for her. He must not pour oil on it. He must not put special perfume on it. For it is a grain gift of jealousy. It is a grain gift to make the sin remembered.
16 ‘Then the religious leader will bring her near and have her stand before the Lord. 17 The religious leader will take holy water in a clay pot. He will take some of the dust on the floor of the meeting tent and put it into the water. 18 Then the religious leader will have the woman stand before the Lord and let the hair of the woman’s head hang loose. He will put the grain gift of remembering into her hands. It is the grain gift of jealousy. In the religious leader’s hand will be the bitter water that can bring a curse to the woman. 19 Then the religious leader will have her make a promise. He will say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you and if you have not turned away into sin, while under the power of your husband, this bitter water that brings punishment will not hurt you. 20 If you have turned away, while under the power of your husband, and have made yourself unclean by having another man who is not your husband,” 21 then the religious leader will have the woman make a promise so she will be punished if she has sinned. He will say to the woman, “May the Lord make you a curse among your people. May the Lord make your leg waste away and your stomach grow bigger. 22 This water that brings a curse will go into your stomach and make it grow bigger and your leg to waste away.” And the woman will say, “Let it be so. Let it be so.”
23 ‘Then the religious leader will write these curses in a book. And he will wash them off into the bitter water. 24 He will make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse. The water that brings a curse will go into her and give her pain. 25 The religious leader will take the grain gift of jealousy from the woman’s hand. He will wave the grain gift before the Lord and bring it to the altar. 26 The religious leader will fill his hand with the grain gift, as the part to be remembered. And he will burn it on the altar. Then he will make the woman drink the water. 27 If she has not been faithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will go into her and give her pain. Her stomach will get larger and her leg will become as dead. A curse will come upon the woman among her people. 28 But if the woman has not sinned and is clean, she will be free and able to have children.
29 ‘This is the law of jealousy. If a wife who is under the power of her husband turns away and makes herself unclean, 30 and a spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, making him jealous of his wife, then he must make the woman stand before the Lord. And the religious leader will do to her all the rules of this Law. 31 The husband will be free from guilt. But the woman will carry her guilt.’”
Numbers 5
Tree of Life Version
Purity in the Camp
5 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, 2 “Command Bnei-Yisrael to send out from the camp everyone with tza’arat, who has some kind of discharge, or any contaminated by a dead body. 3 Whether male or female, you are to send them outside the camp so as not to defile the camp where I am dwelling among them.” 4 This Bnei-Yisrael did, sending them outside the camp. Just as Adonai spoke to Moses, so Bnei-Yisrael did.
5 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, 6 “Say to Bnei-Yisrael: Whenever a man or woman commits any sins against any person, thus breaking faith with Adonai, that soul bears guilt. 7 That person is to confess the sin he has committed, make full restitution for his wrong, add one fifth to it and give it to the one he wronged. [a] 8 But if that person has no close relative to whom to pay the restitution, the restitution belongs to Adonai. It is to be given to the kohen along with the ram of atonement with which he is to make atonement for him.
9 “Every contribution from all the sacred things that Bnei-Yisrael brings to the kohen will belong to him. 10 Each one’s sacred holy gifts are his own, but whatever each man gives to the kohen belongs to that kohen.”
Jealousy Ritual
11 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, 12 “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael and say to them: Suppose some man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him, 13 and another man has sexual relations with her, but it is hidden from her husband’s eyes and her impurity is not detected. Yet there was no witness against her and she was not caught in the act. 14 Then a spirit of jealousy overcomes him and he is suspicious of his wife, when she is impure. Or a spirit of jealousy overcomes him and he suspects his wife, yet she is not impure.
15 “Then he should take his wife to the kohen. He must also bring a tenth of an ephah of barley flour as an offering for her. He is not to pour oil or put incense on it, because it is an offering for jealousy, a reminder offering drawing attention to guiltiness.
16 “The kohen is to bring her near and have her stand before Adonai. 17 Then the kohen is to take some holy water in a clay jar and take some dust from the floor of the Tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 Then the kohen will have the woman stand before Adonai, loosen the woman’s hair, put into her hands the reminder offering, the offering for jealousy, while in the kohen’s own hands are the bitter waters that bring a curse. 19 Then the kohen will have her swear under oath, then say to the woman, ‘If no man other than your husband has slept with you, and if you have not gone astray into impurity from your husband, may this bitter water that brings a curse not harm you. 20 If, however, you have gone astray from your husband and if you became impure and had sexual relations with a man other than your husband’— 21 Then the kohen is to have the woman swear under this oath of a curse, and say to the woman—‘then let Adonai cause you to be cursed and denounced among your people when Adonai causes your thigh to rot and your belly to swell. 22 “May this water which brings a curse enter your body and cause your belly to swell and your thigh to rot.’
“The woman is to say, ‘Amen, amen!’
23 “Then the kohen is to write these curses on a scroll and wash them into the waters of bitterness. 24 The kohen will then have the woman drink the bitter water bearing curses, so that the water of the curses of bitterness enters her. 25 The kohen is to take the jealousy offering from the woman’s hand, wave the offering before Adonai and bring it to the altar. 26 The kohen is to take a handful of the grain offering and burn it up in smoke on the altar as a memorial offering. The kohen will then have the woman drink the water.
27 “When she is made to drink the water that carries the curse, if she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, it will enter her and cause bitterness—her abdomen will swell and her thigh will waste away. She will be accursed among her people. 28 If, however, the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, she will be free from guilt and be able to have children.
29 “This is the Torah regarding jealousy, when a woman goes astray from her husband and defiles herself, 30 or when a spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he jealously suspects his wife. The kohen is to have her stand before Adonai and apply this entire Torah to her. 31 The husband will be free of guilt, but that woman will bear her guilt.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 5:8 cf. Jacob 5:16; 1 John 1:9.
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.