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(iii) Adonai said to Moshe, “Order the people of Isra’el to expel from the camp everyone with tzara‘at, everyone with a discharge and whoever is unclean because of touching a corpse. Both male and female you must expel; put them outside the camp; so that they won’t defile their camp, where I live among you.” The people of Isra’el did this and put them outside the camp — the people of Isra’el did what Adonai had said to Moshe.

Adonai said to Moshe, “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘When a man or woman commits any kind of sin against another person and thus breaks faith with Adonai, he incurs guilt. He must confess the sin which he has committed; and he must make full restitution for his guilt, add twenty percent and give it to the victim of his sin. But if the person has no relative to whom restitution can be made for the guilt, then what is given in restitution for guilt will belong to Adonai, that is, to the cohen — in addition to the ram of atonement through which atonement is made for him.

“‘Every contribution which the people of Isra’el consecrate and present to the cohen will belong to him. 10 Anything an individual consecrates will be his own [to allocate among the cohanim], but what a person gives to the cohen will belong to him.’”

(A: iv) 11 Adonai said to Moshe, 12 “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘If a man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him; 13 that is, if another man goes to bed with her without her husband’s knowledge, so that she becomes impure secretly, and there is no witness against her, and she was not caught in the act; 14 then, if a spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, and she has become impure — or, for that matter, if the spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, and she has not become impure — 15 he is to bring his wife to the cohen, along with the offering for her, two quarts of barley flour on which he has not poured olive oil or put frankincense, because it is a grain offering for jealousy, a grain offering for remembering, for recalling guilt to mind. 16 The cohen will bring her forward and place her before Adonai. 17 The cohen will put holy water in a clay pot, and then the cohen will take some of the dust on the floor of the tabernacle and put it in the water. 18 The cohen will place the woman before Adonai, unbind the woman’s hair and put the grain offering for remembering in her hands, the grain offering for jealousy; while the cohen has in his hand the water of embitterment and cursing. 19 The cohen will make her swear by saying to her, “If no man has gone to bed with you, if you have not gone astray to make yourself unclean while under your husband’s authority, then be free from this water of embitterment and cursing. 20 But if you have in fact gone astray while under your husband’s authority and become unclean, because some man other than your husband has gone to bed with you . . .” 21 then the cohen is to make the woman swear with an oath that includes a curse; the cohen will say to the woman, “. . .may Adonai make you an object of cursing and condemnation among your people by making your private parts shrivel and your abdomen swell up! 22 May this water that causes the curse go into your inner parts and make your abdomen swell and your private parts shrivel up!” — and the woman is to respond, “Amen! Amen!” 23 The cohen is to write these curses on a scroll, wash them off into the water of embitterment 24 and make the woman drink the water of embitterment and cursing — the water of cursing will enter her and become bitter. 25 Then the cohen is to remove the grain offering for jealousy from the woman’s hand, wave the grain offering before Adonai and bring it to the altar. 26 The cohen is to take a handful of the grain offering as its reminder portion and make it go up in smoke on the altar; afterwards, he is to make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then, if she is unclean and has been unfaithful to her husband, the water that causes the curse will enter her and become bitter, so that her abdomen swells and her private parts shrivel up; and the woman will become an object of cursing among her people. 28 But if the woman is not unclean but clean, then she will be innocent and will have children. 29 This is the law for jealousy: when either a wife under her husband’s authority goes astray and becomes unclean, 30 or the spirit of jealousy comes over a husband and he becomes jealous of his wife, then he is to place the woman before Adonai, and the cohen is to deal with her in accordance with all of this law. 31 The husband will be clear of guilt, but the wife will bear the consequences of her guilt.’”

Isolation of the Unclean

The Lord instructed Moses: “Command the Israelites to send away anyone from the camp who is afflicted with a skin disease, anyone who has a bodily discharge, or anyone who is defiled because of a corpse.(A) You must send away both male or female; send them outside the camp, so that they will not defile their camps where I dwell among them.” The Israelites did this, sending them outside the camp. The Israelites did as the Lord instructed Moses.

Compensation for Wrongdoing

The Lord spoke to Moses: “Tell the Israelites: When a man or woman commits any sin against another, that person acts unfaithfully toward the Lord and is guilty. The person is to confess the sin he has committed. He is to pay full compensation, add a fifth of its value to it, and give it to the individual he has wronged.(B) But if that individual has no relative(C) to receive compensation,[a] the compensation goes to the Lord for the priest, along with the atonement ram by which the priest will make atonement for the guilty person.(D) Every holy contribution the Israelites present to the priest will be his.(E) 10 Each one’s holy contribution is his to give; what each one gives to the priest will be his.”

The Jealousy Ritual

11 The Lord spoke to Moses: 12 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: If any man’s wife goes astray, is unfaithful to him, 13 and sleeps with another,[b] but it is concealed from her husband, and she is undetected, even though she has defiled herself, since there is no witness against her, and she wasn’t caught in the act; 14 and if a feeling of jealousy comes over the husband and he becomes jealous because of his wife who has defiled herself—or if a feeling of jealousy comes over him and he becomes jealous of her though she has not defiled herself— 15 then the man is to bring his wife to the priest. He is also to bring an offering for her of two quarts[c] of barley flour. He is not to pour oil over it or put frankincense on it because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering for remembrance that brings sin to mind.

16 “The priest is to bring her forward and have her stand before the Lord. 17 Then the priest is to take holy water in a clay bowl, and take some of the dust from the tabernacle floor and put it in the water. 18 After the priest has the woman stand before the Lord, he is to let down her hair[d] and place in her hands the grain offering for remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. The priest is to hold the bitter water that brings a curse. 19 The priest will require the woman to take an oath and will say to her, ‘If no man has slept with you, if you have not gone astray and become defiled while under your husband’s authority, be unaffected by this bitter water that brings a curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has slept with you’— 21 at this point the priest must make the woman take the oath with the sworn curse, and he is to say to her—‘May the Lord make you into an object of your people’s cursing and swearing when He makes your thigh[e] shrivel and your belly swell.[f] 22 May this water that brings a curse enter your stomach, causing your belly to swell and your thigh to shrivel.’

“And the woman must reply, ‘Amen, Amen.’

23 “Then the priest is to write these curses on a scroll and wash them off into the bitter water. 24 He will require the woman to drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and it will enter her and cause bitter suffering. 25 The priest is to take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it to the altar. 26 The priest is to take a handful of the grain offering as a memorial portion and burn it on the altar. Then he will require the woman to drink the water.

27 “When he makes her drink the water, if she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will enter her and cause bitter suffering; her belly will swell, and her thigh will shrivel. She will become a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself and is pure, she will be unaffected and will be able to conceive children.

29 “This is the law regarding jealousy when a wife goes astray and defiles herself while under her husband’s authority, 30 or when a feeling of jealousy comes over a husband and he becomes jealous of his wife. He is to have the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest will apply this entire ritual to her. 31 The husband will be free of guilt, but that woman will bear the consequences of her guilt.”

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 5:8 If the individual has died
  2. Numbers 5:13 Lit and man lies with her [and has] an emission of semen
  3. Numbers 5:15 Lit a tenth of an ephah
  4. Numbers 5:18 Or to uncover her head
  5. Numbers 5:21 Possibly a euphemism for the reproductive organs
  6. Numbers 5:21 Or flood