Numbers 5

¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

²“Instruct the sons of Israel to cast out of the camp every leper, and those who have a flow of seed, and those who have been polluted because of the dead;

³cast out of the camp both male and female, lest they contaminate it while I am dwelling with you.”

⁴And the sons of Israel did so, and they cast them out, beyond the camp, just as the Lord had spoken to Moses.

⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

⁶“Say to the sons of Israel: A man or a woman, when they have done anything out of all the sins that often befall men, or if, by negligence, they have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and so have committed an offense,

⁷they shall confess their sin, and they shall restore the principle itself, plus a fifth part above it, to any against whom they have sinned.

⁸But if there would be no one to receive it, they shall give it to the Lord, and it shall be for the priest, except for the ram, which is offered for expiation, in order to be a pleasing victim.

⁹Likewise, all the first-fruits, which the sons of Israel offer, belong to the priest,

¹⁰with whatever is offered by each one at the Sanctuary, and which is delivered into the hands of the priest; it shall be his.”

¹¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

¹²“Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: The man whose wife will have gone astray, and, disdaining her husband,

¹³will have slept with another man, and if her husband cannot discover it, but the adultery is secret, and if it cannot be proved by witnesses, because she was not caught in the shameful act,

¹⁴if the spirit of jealousy stirs up the husband against his wife, who either has been polluted or is being assailed with a false suspicion,

¹⁵he shall bring her to the priest, and he shall offer an oblation for her, a tenth part of native barley meal. He shall not pour oil over it, nor shall he place frankincense on it, because it is a sacrifice for jealousy, or an oblation investigating adultery.

¹⁶Therefore, the priest shall offer it, and he shall set it in the sight of the Lord.

¹⁷And he shall take up holy water in an earthen vessel, and he shall cast a little earth from the pavement of the tabernacle into it.

¹⁸And while the woman stands before the Lord, he shall uncover her head, and he shall place over her hands the sacrifice of recollection and oblation of jealousy. But he shall take hold of the most bitter waters, in which he has gathered curses with loathing.

¹⁹And he shall bind her by an oath, and he shall say: ‘If another man has not slept with you, and if you have not been polluted by forsaking the bed of your husband, these most bitter waters, into which I have gathered curses, shall not harm you.

²⁰But if you have turned away from your husband, and also have been defiled, and have lain together with another man,

²¹these curses shall be thrown upon you: May the Lord turn you into a curse and an example among all his people. May he cause your thigh to rot, and may your abdomen swell up and burst out.

²²May the cursed waters enter into your stomach, and may your womb swell and your thigh rot.’ And the woman shall respond: ‘Amen, amen.’

²³And the priest shall write these curses in a little book, and then he shall erase them with the very bitter waters, into which he had gathered the curses,

²⁴and he shall give it to her to drink. And when she has emptied it,

²⁵the priest shall take from her hand the sacrifice of jealousy, and he shall elevate it before the Lord, and he shall impose it upon the altar. Yet only after he first

²⁶takes a handful of the sacrifice from that which is offered, and burns it upon the altar, and then he may give the most bitter waters to the woman as a drink.

²⁷And when she drinks it, if she has been defiled, and, having despised her husband, is guilty of adultery, the curse shall pass through her, and as her belly swells up, her thigh shall decay, and the woman shall become a curse and an example to all the people.

²⁸But if she has not been defiled, she shall be unharmed and she shall bear children.

²⁹This is the law for jealousy. If a woman has turned aside from her husband, and if she has been polluted,

³⁰and if the husband, being stirred up by the spirit of jealousy, has brought her before the sight of the Lord, and the priest has acted toward her according to all that has been written:

³¹then the husband shall be without guilt, and she shall bear her iniquity.”

Numbers 5

¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

²Command the children of Israel, that they cast out of the camp every leper, and whosoever hath an issue of seed, or is defiled by the dead:

³Whether it be man or woman, cast ye them out of the camp, lest they defile it when I shall dwell with you,

⁴And the children of Israel did so, and they cast them forth without the camp, as the Lord had spoken to Moses.

⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

⁶Say to the children of Israel: When a man or woman shall have committed any of all the sins that men are wont to commit, and by negligence shall have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and offended,

⁷They shall confess their sin, and restore the principal itself, and the fifth part over and above, to him against whom they have sinned.

⁸But if there be no one to receive it, they shall give it to the Lord, and it shall be the priest's, besides the ram that is offered for expiation, to be an atoning sacrifice.

⁹All the firstfruits also, which the children of Israel offer, belong to the priest:

¹⁰And whatsoever is offered into the sanctuary by every one, and is delivered into the hands of the priest, it shall be his.

¹¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

¹²Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: The man whose wife shall have gone astray, and contemning her husband,

¹³Shall have slept with another man, and her husband cannot discover it, but the adultery is secret, and cannot be proved by witnesses, because she was not found in the adultery:

¹⁴If the spirit of jealousy stir up the husband against his wife, who either is defiled, or is charged with false suspicion,

¹⁵He shall bring her to the priest, and shall offer an oblation for her, the tenth part of a measure of barley meal: he shall not pour oil thereon, nor put frankincense upon it: because it is a sacrifice of jealousy, and an oblation searching out adultery.

¹⁶The priest therefore shall offer it, and set it before the Lord.

¹⁷And he shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and he shall cast a little earth of the pavement of the tabernacle into it.

¹⁸And when the woman shall stand before the Lord, he shall uncover her head, and shall put on her hands the sacrifice of remembrance, and the oblation of jealousy: and he himself shall hold the most bitter waters, whereon he hath heaped curses with execration.

¹⁹And he shall adjure her, and shall say: If another man hath not slept with thee, and if thou be not defiled by forsaking thy husband's bed, these most bitter waters, on which I have heaped curses, shall not hurt thee.

²⁰But if thou hast gone aside from thy husband, and art defiled, and hast lain with another man:

²¹These curses shall light upon thee: The Lord make thee a curse, and an example for all among his people: may he make thy thigh to rot, and may thy belly swell and burst asunder.

²²Let the cursed waters enter into thy belly, and may thy womb swell and thy thigh rot. And the woman shall answer, Amen, amen.

²³And the priest shall write these curses in a book, and shall wash them out with the most bitter waters, upon which he hath heaped the curses,

²⁴And he shall give them her to drink. And when she hath drunk them up,

²⁵The priest shall take from her hand the sacrifice of jealousy, and shall elevate it before the Lord, and shall put it upon the altar: yet so as first,

²⁶To take a handful of the sacrifice of that which is offered, and burn it upon the altar: and so give the most bitter waters to the woman to drink.

²⁷And when she hath drunk them, if she be defiled, and having despised her husband be guilty of adultery, the malediction shall go through her, and her belly swelling, her thigh shall rot: and the woman shall be a curse, and an example to all the people.

²⁸But if she be not defiled, she shall not be hurt, and shall bear children.

²⁹This is the law of jealousy. If a woman hath gone aside from her husband, and be defiled,

³⁰And the husband stirred up by the spirit of jealousy bring her before the Lord, and the priest do to her according to all things that are here written:

³¹The husband shall be blameless, and she shall bear her iniquity.