פרשת נשא — רביעי (Aliyah 4)

איש איש כי תשטה אשתו IF ANY MAN'S WIFE GO ASIDE [AND ACT DECEITFULLY AGAINST HIM] — What is stated above, immediately before this section? ואיש את קדשיו לו יהיו: If you withhold the gifts due to the priest (cf. Rashi on v. 10), by your life, you will have to come to him in order to bring him your faithless wife for the ordeal by the waters (Berakhot 63a). (The translation therefore is: "A man who remains with his holy things, not giving them to the priest, לו יהיו they — the man and his wife — will become subject to him [require his services])". איש איש — The double expression איש איש is employed to teach you that she (the faithless wife) deals treacherously in two respects — against Him above Who bears the appelation of איש, as in the text "[the Lord is] a Man of the war" (Exodus 15:3), and against her husband (אישה) here below (Midrash Tanchuma, Vaetchanan 5). כי תשטה — Our Rabbis have taught (Midrash Tanchuma, Nasso 5): "Adulterers do never sin until a spirit of madness enters into them", as it written, of her כי תשטה "if she becomes mad" (taking תִשְׂטֶה in the sense of תִשְׂטֶה, i.e. to become a שׁוֹטֶה, and so, too, of him Scripture writes, (Proverbs 6:32) "Whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding". — But the plain sense of the verse is that כי תשטה means: if she deviates from the path of modesty and thereby becomes suspect in his eyes. The word is similar to, (Proverbs 4:15) "turn away (שְׂטֵה) from it, and pass by"; (Proverbs 7:25) "Let not your heart turn (יַשְׂטְ) to her ways". ומעלה בו מעל AND SHE ACTS UNFAITHFULLY AGAINST HIM — Wherein consists this infidelity? ושכב איש אתה THAT A MAN LIETH WITH HER.

The portion dealing with a straying wife follows29The portion that deals with one who trespasses against the Lord. because the straying wife commits a trespass against her husband.30They are thus thematically connected. IF ANY MAN'S WIFE GO ASIDE. Tisteh means will go aside from the right way.31In other words, the word tisteh means to go aside. Here, to go aside from the right path. Similarly seteh (go aside) in Go aside from it (Prov. 4:15).

כי תשטה אשתו, she deviates from the path of chastity. ומעלה בו מעל, she has profaned what is holy to G'd, that which He loves, marital union, by embracing and kissing someone other than her husband. (compare Maleachi 2,11)

דבר..ואמרת..איש איש, speak..and say.."any man whose wife is unfaithful, etc." Why did the Torah write both "speak," and "say"? Why did it use different words for the same thing, i.e. דבר, אמר? Why is the word איש repeated? A Sotah, a woman suspected of marital infidelity by her husband, may belong to either one of two categories. Either the suspicion is found to have been unjustified, or 2) she is found guilty either by her own admission or by having brazenly drunk the מים המאררים, the waters of bitterness. This accounts for the Torah employing two different words for "say!" The harsher דבור is intended for the woman who is guilty, whereas the softer אמרת is addressed to the woman who turns out to have been faithful though she gave cause for suspicion. The word איש is repeated for the same consideration. At the time her husband accuses her he does not know yet if his suspicions are justified. If the woman is innocent G'd will help her to prove her innocence. We find a popular proverb in Megillah 12 which suggests that the words ומעלה בו מעל could be interpreted to mean "if he (the husband) were guilty of a trespass" i.e. both husband and wife may be guilty of infidelity. As a result our sages stated that if the husband is certain that he has not sinned at all in his marital relations he is entitled to resume relations with his wife after she has undergone the procedure of the "bitter waters" and has been vindicated. The "bitter waters" actually examined the husband as well, i.e. the procedure did not work, the miracle would not take place if the husband himself were found guilty of marital trespass. The word איש is repeated to teach us that regardless of whether the husband knows himself to be pure or not, he still has to bring his wife to the priest. Perhaps our verse referred to this idea when writing both דבר and ואמרת. A husband who is himself not blameless may be afraid to have his wife examined by the priest and the bitter waters as his own shortcomings would be exposed both in the eyes of G'd and that of his peers. As a result, he might prefer not to publicise his suspicions of his wife. On the other hand, even if this husband feels certain that his own conduct was always completely blameless he may not wish to expose marital friction between himself and his wife in public. For these various reasons he might balk at the duty the Torah imposes upon him here. The Torah therefore uses a "carrot and stick" approach" i.e. with soft urgings and with tough talk so that he would comply with the legislation in our paragraph.

ושכב איש AND A MAN LIETH [WITH HER] — a man, thus excluding a minor and a being that does not come under the term איש (i. e., an animal) (Sifrei Bamidbar 7:2; Sotah 24a). אתה שכבת זרע [AND A MAN LIETH] WITH HER CARNALLY — This implies: that only her sexual intercourse with another man makes her unfit for continuing in marital relation with her husband, but the fact that her sister had sexual intercourse with him does not make her unfit for such (Yevamot 95a) [as was once the case with two sisters who greatly resembled each other (Tanchuma 5:2:6)] תעלם מעיני אשה AND IT BE HID FROM THE EYES OF HER HUSBAND — Since it speaks of the eyes of the husband, it excludes the case of a blind man (i.e., a blind man cannot subject his wife to the ordeal). On the other hand, it states: "if it be concealed from his eyes"; it follows therefore that if he sees her improper conduct and wilfully closes his eyes to it the waters cannot try her (i.e., she cannot be subjected to the ordeal) (Sifrei Bamidbar 7:3; Sotah 27a). ונסתרה AND SHE WAS ASIDE SECRETLY with him such a period of time wherein there was a possibility for her to become defiled by intercourse (Sotah 4a). ועד אין בה AND THERE BE NO WITNESS AGAINST HER — But if there was even only one witness against her who stated that she was defiled she did not drink the מים המאררים, but was henceforth forbidden to her husband (Sotah 2b). ועד אין בה AND THERE WAS NO WITNESS AGAINST HER, as regards defilement, but there were witnesses regarding her meeting with the man privily. ונתפשה [AND SHE WAS NOT] SEIZED — i.e. subjected to force (Sifrei Bamidbar 7:3). Similar is, (Deuteronomy 22:28) "And seizes her (ותפשה) and lieth with her".

CARNALLY. Shikhvat zera (carnally) refers to carnal laying. It is called shikhvat zera32Literally, laying of seed. because its purpose is for seed.33Its purpose is for ejaculation (Weiser). Or its purpose is to produce children. AND IT BE HID. She did not reveal the matter. There is not even one witness through whom she is suspect. NEITHER SHE BE TAKEN IN THE ACT. By witnesses, men or women, so that she be suspected.

ושכב איש אותה, and another man has lain with her It is characteristic of the evil urge to cause the sinner to proceed from a relatively mild sin to ever more serious sins. ונעלם מעיני אישה, even though there had been indications of mistrust, jealousy, etc., her latest indiscretion remained hidden from the eyes of her husband. It is as if his eyes had been too weak to see what was going on. Had her husband been aware of her infidelity, the waters would not even have the power to bring this to light. Our sages have made this quite clear (Sifrey 7). ונסתרה, she had subsequently hidden, and this fact had become known to her husband.

ועבר עליו AND [THE SPIRIT OF JEALOUSY] COME UPON HIM — i.e., had come upon him before her seclusion with the man. רוח קנאה וקנא [AND] THE SPIRIT OF JEALOUSY [COME UPON HIM] וקנא — Our Rabbis said that it is an expression denoting warning — that he warns her: do not be aside privily with that man (Sotah 3a.) והוא נטמאה או עבר עליו וגו׳ AND SHE BE DEFILED, OR IF [THE SPIRIT OF JEALOUSY] COME UPON HIM [AND SHE WAS NOT DEFILED] — that is to say, he warned her but she disregarded his warning, and it is uncertain whether she has been defiled or not (Sifrei Bamidbar 8).

AND THE SPIRIT OF JEALOUSY COME UPON HIM. Ru'ach (spirit) is masculine here.34Avar (come upon), the verb governing ru'ach, is masculine. Similarly ru'ach (wind) in and a great and strong wind (I Kings 19:11).35Here too chazak (strong), one of the verbs governing ru'ach, is masculine. COME. Come upon his mind.

ועבר עליו רוח קנאה, a pure spirit, his wanting to reprimand her after he was aware that she had behaved unchastely. וקנא את אשתו, he warned her and told her not to seclude herself with the man who was suspected as her lover. Or, עבר עליו רוח קנאה, a foolish fit of jealousy, not based on any cause for suspecting her, והיא לא נטמאה, and she had not become defiled at all; nonetheless she disregarded her husband's warning and secluded herself with another man. In spite of this, והביא האיש את אשתו, we do not say that seeing that her husband had sat by silently while his wife had behaved unchastely, accusing her in his heart without saying a word, that this is proof of the husband's bad attitude and we should therefore ignore his jealousy seeing he had allowed matters to get to the point where she had slept with another man; neither do we ignore his jealousy if she had not given him cause as something not worth paying attention to. We still subject her to the destruction (erasing) of the name of G'd (in the procedure the Torah will presently describe) in order to reveal the truth.

קמח implies that it shall not be of fine sifted flour. It must be שערים BARLEY, and not wheat; because she committed a bestial act, therefore shall her offering consist of that which is food for beasts (Sifrei Bamidbar 8; Sotah 14a). לא יצק עליו שמן HE SHALL POUR NO OIL UPON IT, so that her offering shall not be embellished (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 5:11) — and also because oil is called light (it is named יצהר from the root צהר, to give light; see Tanchuma) whilst she acted in darkness (Midrash Tanchuma, Nasso 3; cf. Sotah 15a). ולא יתן עליו לבנה NOR SHALL HE PUT FRANKINCENSE THEREON — Because the matriarchs are symbolically termed frankincense, as it is said, (Songs 4:6) "I will get me … to the hill of frankincense" (which is taken as an allusion to the matriarchs), whilst she deviated from their paths (Midrash Tanchuma, Nasso 3). כי מנחת קנאת הוא FOR IT IS A MEAL OFFERING OF JEALOUSY — i.e., this קמח is a meal offering of jealousy; for the word קמח is masculine and is therefore referred to by the masc. form. מנחת קנאת A MEAL OFFERING OF JEALOUSY — The plural קנאות is used because it arouses against her two outbreaks of jealousy — the jealousy of the Omnipresent and the jealousy of her husband (Tosefta Sotah 2; Sifrei Bamidbar 8; cf. Rashi's second comment on איש איש v. 12).

BRING. Against her will. FOR HER. Aleha (for her) means with her or because of her.36The usual meaning of aleha is, upon her. Hence I.E.'s comment. BARLEY MEAL. Our rabbis said, she acted like a beast, let her bring the food of a beast.37Mishnah, Sotah 2:1. A free-will meal offering consists of pure wheat flower so that the celebrant will be remembered for good. However, this meal offering recalls a sin, if a sin was committed. Hence it is an inferior offering and consists of barley without oil and without frankincense.

והביא האיש את אשתו, we do not say that seeing that her husband had sat by silently while his wife had behaved unchastely, accusing her in his heart without saying a word, that this is proof of the husband's bad attitude and we should therefore ignore his jealousy seeing he had allowed matters to get to the point where she had slept with another man; neither do we ignore his jealousy if she had not given him cause as something not worth paying attention to. We still subject her to the destruction (erasing) of the name of G'd (in the procedure the Torah will presently describe) in order to reveal the truth.

והביא האיש את אשתו אל הכהן, and this man has to bring his wife to the priest, etc. There are several questions we need to answer in the course of this whole paragraph. What does the Torah mean by calling the offering of the Sotah מנחת זכרון מזכרת עון, "a meal-offering of memorial reminder of iniquity?" What did the Torah accomplish with the word זכרון? Why would the offering of a meal-offering consisting of barley as opposed to wheat be designed to be especially memorable, seeing that the Omer, an offering consisting of barley, is offered every year on the second day of Passover? We must also try to understand why the Torah refers to these bitter waters as "holy waters?" What precisely do the waters accomplish and why are they called "holy?" We are told in Sotah 15 that the term "holy" in this instance referred to the fact that the waters were sanctified in the copper basin, כיור. While this is all fine and good, why did they have to be drawn from that basin at all? Moreover, what precisely is the nature of the ספר, the book, in which the priest records the curses which he blots out by dissolving them in the bitter waters (verse 23)? Why does the Sotah have to drink the remains of that book? We can understand that Moses made the Israelites drink the water containing the residue of the golden calf as the kind of pennance described in Jeremiah 2,19, but this situation is hardly parallel. Also, why was it important to have ready loose earth from the Temple floor which had to be added to this water, and such earth could not be freshly dug (verse 17)? Our sages in Sotah 15 also quote a halachah according to which the earth had to be poured into the vessel after it was filled with water and had to float on the water. If the vessel had first been filled with earth the whole procedure was פסול, defective and useless. Why should such a minor detail disqualify the whole procedure and the name of G'd having been written in vain? I find it noteworthy that the Torah did not use the term חוקה in connection with this subject; had the Torah done so it would have prevented us from raising all these questions. I find it strange that the Torah calls the water in question מי המרים, why are they called "bitter?" Sifri claims that these waters were not bitter originally but turned bitter at the time they were used to perform the function described in our paragraph Another explanation is that they were called "bitter" because of the effect they had on the life of a Sotah who was guilty of what her husband suspected and was brazen enough to drink these waters instead of confessing her guilt. On folio 20 of the tractate Sotah the father of the famous teacher Samuel claims that some bitter material had to be added to the water in question. The reason was that since the waters were already called "bitter waters" something really bitter had to be added. This seems quite astounding. Why did the Torah fail to mention this detail? We may be able to explain the whole subject of the Sotah in light of what we explained in Parshat Bereshit on the inner structure of the Torah in connection with Genesis 2,1 on the line ויכלו השמים והארץ. We explained there that it is axiomatic that every creature harbours a desire to be re-united with the living G'd, its Creator. This feeling ,- in varying degree-is also present in all things G'd created which possess a spiritual element, something we called a two-tiered intelligence, be it pronounced or almost dormant. G'd equipped each of His creations with sufficient intelligence to ensure its continued existence and to enable it to praise its Creator. This is the true meaning of Proverbs 16,9 that whatever G'd created He made for a purpose that suited Him, (or "for its own good"). We also find that the sages in Bereshit Rabbah 5,4 explain the reason the waters are always perceived as "weeping" is that when G'd separated the upper waters from the lower waters this caused them to weep over their separation, some being confined to an area beneath the earth. The waters which wound up beneath the earth weep and groan seeing that they did not merit to come close to G'd as do the waters in the upper half of the world, something all creatures desire as part of their nature. Furthermore, G'd has demonstrated to us that He desires to have a residence on earth including areas of the waters allocated to man. Due to Adam's sin the earth was cursed and the throne of G'd was removed to higher spheres which meant the simultaneous removal of the source of our blessings to regions farther away from our domain (compare Bereshit Rabbah 19). This situation continued until the revelation at Mount Sinai when G'd once more agreed to take up residence on earth. The signal for this was G'd giving instructions to the Israelites to build a Sanctuary for Him even before they had conquered the land of Canaan. This demonstrated how eager G'd was to have a residence on earth. Had it not been for the sin of the spies and the resultant delay of Israel's conquest of the land of Canaan by almost 40 years, completion of the Tabernacle and Israel's conquering the land of Canaan would have occurred almost simultaneously. When the Jewish people became guilty of abominations even after G'd had resided amongst them for many years, He again had to withdraw His presence and He returned to His former residence in Heaven. If it were not for the sins committed by the Jewish people G'd's residence would remain permanently on earth. When this will occur eventually, it will wipe out the weeping of the "lower" waters and the "shame" of the earth which suffered from G'd's curse. It will cause them to become joyous ushering in a period when these "lovers" will be reunited. If, for some reason, sin will again prevail on earth, G'd will again withdraw from earth causing the waters to express their feelings by weeping. We must remain aware that Israel's exemplary behaviour at Mount Sinai was in itself sufficient to cause G'd's presence to reside on earth and to fill the earth with the knowledge of G'd so that G'd's residing on earth would not be considered as G'd "lowering" Himself from a holier region. On the contrary, earth would be elevated to rank as equal in sanctity to Heaven. You will find that our sages said in Shemot Rabbah 41,7 that the meaning of true freedom, i.e. חרות, is freedom from the angel of death, i.e. the evil urge. The sin of the golden calf was responsible for the angel of death again asserting himself in our lives. Israel's subsequent repentance was not enough to banish the activities of the angel of death other than within certain parts of the confines of the encampment of the Jewish people. In the rest of the world the angel of death operated as it had prior to the revelation at Mount Sinai. The era envisaged by the prophet in Zachariah 13 is one when death will have ceased on earth permanently. Earth will then be known as ארץ החיים, living earth, seeing that the angel of death will have been banned. In order to understand the subject of Sotah we must keep all the foregoing in mind. The objective of the whole Sotah legislation is for the husband (priest) to examine his wife in a place where G'd resides. I have already explained elsewhere that this place is called ארץ העליונה, the "higher" earth, on account of G'd having His residence there. It is not included in the part of the earth which had been subjected to G'd's curse as a result of man's sin. Also any of the waters in that area are not subject to "tears," i.e. have not been afflicted by said curse. This is why G'd commanded that "holy waters" be taken for this procedure. Waters which are found in the sacred precincts of the Temple are sacred by definition. This does not contradict the halachah that these waters be taken from the copper basin which serves the priests to wash their hands and feet. The Torah also commanded the priest to use earth from the floor of the Holy Temple precisely because it is the closest to G'd's residence. The reason that this earth should not now be dug up is also because if it were already at hand it is closer to the site where G'd resides. The closer the earth is to the place where the Shechinah resides, the more its awareness of its proximity to its Creator. Earth from outside the precincts of the Temple would not be as aware of the nearness of G'd. The earth is better able to fulfil what the Creator demands of it once it has "tasted" the proximity of the Lawgiver. The reason that G'd commanded for the earth to be added to the water and not vice versa is based on the waters having been created before the earth during the process of creation. When our sages decided that if the earth had been in the vessel before the water the whole procedure is null and void, they did not nullify the procedure in the event that both water and earth had been poured into the vessel simultaneously. The reason is that such a procedure still resembles the order of creation when water and solid particles were thoroughly mixed up before G'd created the light. We do not find that earth is ever at the bottom of the source of springwater (מים חיים), however. Rabbi Shimon (Sotah 16) held that it does not matter whether the earth had been placed in the vesel first as long as the water is holy water. He obviously felt that this suffices for both the waters and the earth to be imbued with the appropriate awareness for both elements to perform the task G'd allocated to them as part of the whole procedure. The Torah commanded to write the portion of the Sotah including the holy name of G'd where it appears in it and to allow the bitter waters to erase these holy names of G'd due to the nature of the water and the earth it contains. The residue of the names of G'd provided the water with the power to produce the desired effect in the woman who drank this water. The Torah also commanded for the meal-offering of the woman in question to consist primarily of barley, i.e. a reminder of the offering Cain had brought, who had offered something of inferior value. This inferior offering was also an indirect result of the sin committed by Adam and Eve. This it what the Torah means when it speaks of מזכרת עון, "a reminder of sin," i.e. the original sin. It was this original sin which had led to the weeping of the waters and the curse which rests on Earth. When the Sotah drinks this mixture of water, earth and the residue of the holy name of G'd which dissolved in that water, the name of the meal-offering as "reminder of sin" is most appropriate if she has indeed been guilty of marital infidelity. It will recall also earlier sins. When the waters become aware of this they will turn bitter reflecting on their own sorry fate, as we described earlier. These waters will then take their revenge on this woman who has caused them all these tears and they will ruin the woman's intestines. All of this will be accomplished by the power of the holy name of G'd which has been dissolved in these waters. Whoever is familiar with the sin of Eve who had been contaminated by sexual intercourse with the original serpent, and who had thus been disloyal to her husband, will realise that the sin the Sotah is guilty of is indeed the original sin committed by man, i.e. woman. This sin had caused the original light G'd had bestowed on this world to withdraw to the celestial regions. The action of these waters (as well as the earth although the earth has not been mentioned by the Torah as also causing the death of the woman) may be viewed as an attempt to forestall an attack on them. We have a principle that when someone is about to kill you you are to forestall him and kill the attacker first. The kind of sin committed by a Sotah is one which drives G'd from our midst, and it is therefore logical that the water and the earth would react in the manner described by the Torah.

AND THE PRIEST SHALL BRING HER NEAR. Her38Hebrew, otah. refers to the meal offering.39Not the woman. The word otah literally means her. However, it also means it. AND SET HER40The meal offering. I.E. explains our verse in this way because verse 18 tells us that the kohen is to make the woman stand before the Lord. BEFORE THE LORD. Before the altar.

מים קדשים HOLY WATER — i.e., water that has become holy through being in the laver. — The water was taken from the laver because that was made of the copper mirrors of the women who had gathered (Exodus 38:8) [at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting] and this woman deviated from their chaste ways. Because they had cherished their husbands' love in Egypt (cf. Rashi on Exodus 38:8), while this woman depravedly gave herself over to another, she was to be examined through it (Bamidbar Rabbah 9 :14). בכלי חרש IN AN EARTHEN VESSEL — She gave the adulterer excellent wine to drink in valuable goblets, therefore she shall drink the bitter water in a common earthenware cup. (Sotah 9a.)

HOLY WATER. From the basin, for it has already become holy.41By being in the basin. ON THE FLOOR OF THE TABERNACLE. The reference is to the well-known floor.42The word afar (dust) has a definite article before it, a heh with a segol beneath it. Hence I.E.'s comment. The word afar (dust) has a definite article before it. It refers to the earth which is beneath the floor.43In other words, be-afar (in the dust) refers to the earth which is beneath the floor of a certain spot in the tabernacle. See Mishnah Sotah 2:2.

והעמיד הכהן וגו׳ AND THE PRIEST SHALL PRESENT [THE WOMAN BEFORE THE LORD] — But has it not already been stated, (v. 16) "and he shall present her before the Lord"? But they used to move her about from place to place (and thus, as it were, present her many times) in order to wear her out so that her thoughts should become confused and she be unable to invent explanations of her conduct and so she would confess her guilt (Sotah 8a). ופרע AND HE SHALL PUT IN DISORDER [THE WOMAN'S HAIR] — i.e. he pulls away her hair-plaits in order to make her look despicable. — We may learn from this that as regards married Jewish women an uncovered head is a disgrace to them (Sifrei Bamidbar 11). לפני ה׳ [AND THE PRIEST SHALL PRESENT THE WOMAN] BEFORE THE LORD — i.e. in the gateway of Nicanor (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 14:11 and Note thereon) which was the eastern gate of the court, the passage for all who entered the court [and where she was therefore most exposed to public view] (Sotah 7a). ונתן על כפיה AND HE SHALL PUT [THE MEAL-OFFERING OF MEMORIAL] IN HER HANDS — to wear her out even more (cf. Rashi on the beginning of the verse); — perhaps her thoughts would become confused now, so that she would confess her guilt and it would become unnecessary to blot out from the parchment the Divine Proper Name by the water (cf. Sifrei Bamidbar 11; Sotah 14a). המרים THE BITTER [WATERS] — They were called bitter waters because of their final effect, viz., that they proved bitter for her (Sifrei Bamidbar 11; Sotah 20a). המאררים means, the waters that make her disappear (pine away) from the world. It has the same meaning as, (Ezekiel. 28:24): "a removing (ממאיר) brier" (one that removed some of the flesh). It would not be correct to explain מים המאררים as מים ארורים, "cursed waters" for actually they are holy (cf. v. 17). Besides, even if the meaning has anything to do with "cursing", Scripture does not write ארורים, "waters that are cursed", but מאררים — "that bring a curse to others"; and Onkelos, too, does not render it by ליטיא — "cursed waters" but by מלטטיא — "waters that show a curse on the body of this woman".

AND LET THE HAIR OF THE WOMAN'S HEAD GO LOOSE. Para (go loose) means he shall uncover.44According to this opinion the meaning of our verse is, and he shall uncover (u-fara) the hair of the woman. However, I believe that it means he shall take out the hair of the woman, which was covered, and let it go loose. THE WATER OF BITTERNESS. It is my opinion that the word me (water) is in the construct45With a missing word. and the word ha-marim is an adjective.46Describing the missing word. If so, then its secret is known.47We know what word is missing. According to I.E. the phrase me ha- marim is short for me ha-sammim ha-marim (the water containing the bitter ingredient). See Sotah 20a. It is also possible that the waters were so called because of their ultimate taste.48The waters were not yet bitter. They only turned bitter at the end. Hence I.E. explains that they are called the bitter waters because they were ultimately bitter. Compare, And stripped the naked of their clothing (Job 22:6).49One cannot strip a naked person. Thus what Scripture means is that the one who was ultimately naked was stripped. And the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her and become bitter (v. 24) is proof of this, for this verse indicates that the oaths,50Mentioned in verse 19. The waters turned bitter after the oaths were dissolved in it. which they that cause the curses51The curses come about through her false swearing. refers to, will make the sweet waters bitter. The word ha-me'arerim (that causeth the curse) is a pi'el. It is like the word erarah (cursed) in which the Lord hath cursed (Gen. 5:29).52It too is a pi'el. The root alef, resh, resh usually comes in the kal. Hence I.E.'s comment.

והשביע אתה וגו׳ AND [THE PRIEST] SHALL ADJURE HER etc. — and wherein does this adjuration consist? In that he says to the woman, "if no man hath lain with thee … הנקי, be thou free", which implies: "if, however, a man hath lain with thee, חנקי, thou deservest to be suffocated", because from a negative statement you may deduce its converse, the positive statement. It is true that in an adjuration it would be more appropriate to make this threat of punishment if guilty, and to allow the converse to be derived from it, but here it mentions first what will happen if she has not sinned, since it intends to suggest that it is a duty in capital cases to begin the proceedings with the statement of something that bears upon the innocence of the accused (Sotah 17a; Shevuot 36a; Sanhedrin 33a).

[SHALL CAUSE HER TO SWEAR.] Its meaning is that the woman shall answer, Amen, Amen. IF NO MAN HAVE LAIN WITH THEE. Its meaning is, if another man has not forced himself upon you.53If no man have lain with thee cannot be taken literally because we are dealing with a married women. Hence I.E.'s comment. AND IF THOU HAST NOT GONE ASIDE. Willingly. Satit means you have gone aside and committed an unclean act.54In other words, satit is short for satit tume'ah. It is similar to thou shalt not build it of hewn stones (Ex. 20:25).55Ex. 20:25 literally reads, you shall not build them uncut stones. I.E. believes that this is short for: you shall not build a hewn structure out of them. See I.E. on Ex. 20:25 and the notes thereto (Vol. 2, p. 443-4). BE THOU FREE. The meaning of hinnaki is, be thou free.56Hinnaki is an imperative. It literally means free yourself. However, it cannot mean that here, for it is not in the power of the woman to free herself. Hence hinnaki must be taken as an imperfect rather than as an imperative, even though it has the form of the latter. It is similar to and die in the mount (Deut. 32:50).57U-mot (and die), an imperative, must be interpreted as if written ve-tamut (and you will die), for the time of one's natural death is not in one's hands. See I.E. on Gen. 1:22 and the notes thereto (Vol. 1, p. 42). It is possible that the first time Scripture says, and the priest shall cause her to swear58That is, in our verse. means, and the priest shall cause her to swear by invoking God's name. The second time this phrase is used59That is, in verse 21. it means, as Scripture notes,60In verse 21. via the curses.

והשביע, the priest will tell her to accept the oath on condition that it (the procedure) will be the judge of her guilt or innocence. אם לא שכב, now, ואם לא שטית טומאה, and if you have not been guilty of defiling yourselves on other occasions of which your husband was totally unaware, and did not suspect you; הנקי, the reason why the Torah has to state something so obvious is that the Torah had already stated in Exodus 20,6 that no one causing the name of G'd to be mentioned needlessly will be completely innocent of that sin, and we might have thought that this woman, seeing she had sown doubt in the hearts of those who have to judge her had already become guilty of causing a needless oath, i.e. a needless mention of the holy name of G'd; the priest, i.e. the Torah, assures her that she has nothing to fear on that account.

ואת כי שטית BUT IF THOU HAST BUT IF THOU HAST GONE ASIDE ASIDE — The word כי must here be employed in the meaning of "if" (cf. Rashi on Genesis 18:15).

ואת, accept it also. כי שטית תחת אישך וכי נטמאת, that the curse will apply on account of your having defiled yourself and for no other reason at all. However, if the reason you have to drink this proves to be a false accusation you have nothing to fear from this curse.

בשבעת האלה [AND THE PRIEST SHALL ADJURE THE WOMAN] WITH AN ADJURATION OF CURSING — i.e., an oath which contains the curse. יתן ה' אותך לאלה THE LORD MAKE THEE AN EXECRATION — i.e. that everybody will curse through thee (i.e., by mention of thy name), saying, "May misfortune come upon you just as it came upon Mrs. so-and-so!" ולשבעה [THE LORD MAKE THEE AN EXECRATION] AND AN OATH — This means, that everybody will swear through thee (i.e., by mention of thy name) — "If not (i.e., if I am not speaking the truth) may misfortune happen to me just as it happened to Mrs. So-and-so!" In a similar sense it states, (Isaiah 65:15) "and ye shall leave your name as an oath unto my chosen" which means that the righteous take an oath by mention of the punishment that came upon evil-doers. So, too, in reference to the blessing, does it state, (Genesis 12:3) "and through thee (i.e., by mention of thy name) shall bless themselves [all the families of the earth]"; (Genesis 48:20) "By thee shall Israel bless, saying, [God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh]" (Sifrei Bamidbar 14). את ירכך [WHEN THE LORD DOTH MAKE] THY THIGH [TO FALL, AND THY BELLY TO SWELL] — In uttering the curse that will befall her because of her sin he mentions the thigh before the belly (whilst in v. 22 the belly is stated to be affected first), because with it (the thigh) she began to sin (cf. Sotah 8b, 9b). צבה — Understand this as the Targum does: SWOLLEN.

THY THIGH…THY BELLY. They are the neighbors.61They are near the genital organs. TO SWELL. The word tzavah means to swell. The word is not found anywhere else in Scripture.62Literally, has no neighbor except in this chapter. Neither this word nor any word with the same root is found any where else in Scripture, only here.

לצבות בטן is the same as לְהַצְבּוֹת בטן (the verb being the Hiphil infinitive). This is the usage of the Patach: that the "lamed" has it as its vowel instead of the ה having it (viz., that it is a contraction of לה). Similar is (Exodus 13:21) לַרְאתכם הדרך and (Deuteronomy 1:33) לַנְחֹתָם בדרך אשר הלכו בה (which are equivalent to לְהַרְאֹתְכֶם and לְהַנְחֹתָם). And so, too, in this verse, לַנְפִּל ירך, which is the same as לְהַנְפִּיל ירך. The meaning is: that the waters cause the belly to swell, and cause the thigh to fall. לצבות בטן ולנפל ירך [AND THIS WATER THAT CAUSETH THE CURSE SHALL GO INTO THY BOWELS] TO MAKE THE BELLY TO SWELL AND THE THIGH TO WASTE — i.e. the belly and the thigh of the adulterer (Note that Scripture does not state here, as in the preceding verse, "thy thigh", "thy belly"). Or perhaps this is not so, but it means those of the adulteress? But when it states, (v. 21) "[when the Lord doth make] thy thigh to waste and thy belly to swell", you see, that those of the adulteress are mentioned already (Sotah 28a; cf. Sifrei Bamidbar 15:1). אמן אמן [AND THE WOMAN SHALL SAY] AMEN, AMEN — The utterance of the word אמן by a person implies the acceptance of an oath which has been recited by another with reference to him. — The two words אמן (which may mean "It is so", or, "May it be so") respectively signify, "Amen" with reference to the curse invoked, and "Amen" with reference to the oath recited. Accordingly she declares: "Amen" ("may it be so" i. e., may the אלה "the curse" befall me) if I have received defilement from this man, and "Amen" if I have received defilement from any other man; "Amen" ("It is so" — the terms of the oath are true) that I have not gone astray either when I was betrothed to my husband or since I have been married to him; (or in the case of a woman who has married her deceased husband's brother; cf. Deuteronomy 25:7, it implies), "either when I was awaiting marriage with my brother-in-law or after I was married to him" (Sotah 18a).

TO FALL AWAY. The lamed of lanpil (to fall away) is vocalized with a pattach because the heh of the form63The hifil. is missing.64Lanpil is short for le-hanpil. The same is true of the word lashmid (to destroy) (Is. 23:11).65Lashmid is short for le-hashmid. AMEN, AMEN. The word amen is repeated for emphasis.66To indicate that the woman fully agrees with what the kohen says.

אמן אמן. The reason she has to repeat the word אמן is that she thereby acknowledges that she accepts the verdict both if it is in her favour and if it would incriminate her.

[IN A SCROLL.] They had a specific scroll for curses.67According to I.E. they had a special book which was used for this ritual. Our verse reads ba-sefer (in a book). Ba-sefer literally means in the book. Hence I.E.'s comment.

והשקה את האשה AND HE SHALL CAUSE THE WOMAN TO DRINK [THE BITTER WATER] — This was not the actual order of the proceedings, because really he offered her meal-offering first (before giving her the water to drink; cf. v. 26, 27), but Scripture here merely informs you that when he afterwards gives her the water to drink it will become bitter in her belly (cf. Sotah 19a). — Since only the thigh and the belly are mentioned (vv. 21. 22), I might conclude that only these are affected (see Sifrei Bamidbar 18); whence do we know that this applies also to the rest of the body? Because Scripture states here, "[and the water … shall come] into her [and become bitter]" — into all of her body! But if so, why does Scripture explicitly mention only the thigh and the belly? Because they (these two) were the first to begin the sin, therefore it (Scripture) makes the punishment begin with them (and for this reason Scripture mentions them explicitly, but, as a matter of fact, it extends to the whole body as is implied in the word בה (Sifrei Bamidbar 18). למרים (The text is more lit., "and the waters shall enter into her as bitter") — i.e. to become bad and bitter for her.

והניף THEN [THE PRIEST] SHALL WAVE [THE MEAL-OFFERING] — He moves it about horizontally and vertically, and she, too, waves it together with him, because her hand has to be above the hand of the priest (Sotah 19a). והקריב אתה — This refers to what is known as the הגשה — bringing it to the south-west corner of the altar before the קמיצה, "the taking off of the handful of flour", just as is the case with all other meal-offerings (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 7:7 and Sotah 14b).

אזכרתה THE MEMORIAL PART THEREOF — i.e. the handful, and it is so called because through its being burnt the meal-offering is brought to remembrance before the Most High God (Sifrei Bamidbar 17; cf. Rashi on Leviticus 2:2 and 24:7).

THE MEMORIAL-PART THEREOF.68The Hebrew reads azkaratah. This literally means her memorial. Hence I.E.'s comment. That which served as her memorial, for good or bad in accordance with her deeds.

והשקה את המים AND HE SHALL MAKE HER DRINK THE WATER — This statement made after Scripture has just said (v. 26) "and afterwards he shall make the woman drink the waters" (see Siphre) is intended to include the case that if she says, "I will not drink" after the scroll on which the Holy Name was written had been blotted out, they pour it into her and make her drink the water against her will — except if she adds: "I have been defiled" [when, of course, no further test is necessary] (Sotah 19b). וצבתה בטנה AND HER BELLY SHALL SWELL, [AND HER THIGH SHALL WASTE] — Although when uttering the curse (v. 21) he (the priest) mentioned the thigh first, for the reason given by Rashi in his comment there, the water tested her (i.e., affected her) only according to the manner it passed into her body (i.e., it affected the belly first since it first entered that part of her body and then the thigh) (Sotah 9b). והיתה האשה לאלה AND THE WOMAN SHALL BE AN EXECRATION — This means, as I have already explained (v. 21), that everyone shall curse by mention of her name. בקרב עמה [AND THE WOMAN SHALL BE AN EXECRATION] AMONG HER PEOPLE — This is stressed: "among her people" — because there is a difference between a person who is brought to disgrace in a place where he is well known and a person who is brought to disgrace in a place where he is unknown.

AND HAVE ACTED UNFAITHFULLY. Va-timal ma'al (and have acted unfaithfully) is to be understood here as I have explained.69See I.E. on Lev. 5:15. It refers to something covered.70According to I.E. on Lev. 5:15, the phrase li-me'ol ma'al means to remove a cover (me'il), to uncover that which should remain covered. Va-time'ol ma'al thus means, and have committed an act of treachery.

ואם לא נטמאה האשה AND IF THE WOMAN WAS NOT DEFILED on the occasion of this secluding herself with this man, וטהרה הוא AND BE CLEAN (guiltless) as regards any other place, ונקתה THEN SHE SHALL BE FREE from the effect of the water that waste the body and not only this, but ונזרעה זרע SHE SHALL CONCEIVE SEED — i.e. if until now she used to bear children in pain, she will from now bear with ease (free from pain), if up to now she used to bear black (ugly) children, from now on she will bear white (beautiful) children (Sifrei Bamidbar 19; Sotah 26a).

AND SHALL CONCEIVE SEED. God will give her seed in recompense for the shame which befell her.

ונקתה, from the penalty that would apply for causing a needless oath. In this instance, G'd, Who knows the true circumstances, will certainly not consider this oath as having been a frivolous one.

לא נטמאה האשה וטהורה היא ואם, And if the woman had not been defiled and remained pure, etc. The reason the Torah repeats that the woman had remained pure is that the Torah wishes to tell us that not only has she become exonerated so that the waters will not harm her, but she shall even conceive seed. The additional word וטהורה also indicates that not only had the woman in question not been guilty of intercourse with someone other than her husband, but she had not indulged in any of the caressing and fondling which usually precedes sexual intimacy. When both these conditions exist she will be blessed by becoming pregnant in accordance with what the Torah writes. If, on the other hand, לא נטמאה, she had not become defiled through actual intercourse but could not claim to be "pure" by not having indulged in foreplay, she will not be blessed with child although she will escape punishment for her conduct. You will note that the priest who made her take the oath (verse 19-20) employed somewhat peculiar language. What did the Torah mean with the words כי שטית? If it means becoming defiled why does the Torah write וכי נטמאת, "and you have become defiled with the conjunctive letter ו? Clearly the word refers to something which precedes the actual defilement of a woman through intimacy. The priest cautioned: "if you have actually become defiled, then you qualify for the punishment provided by the Torah." When speaking about the reverse situation, i.e. אם לא שכב איש אתך, "if no man other than your husband has slept with you, etc.," then there are two possibilities. 1) You are exempt from the damaging effect of these bitter waters; 2) you may be totally exonerated and benefit by the blessing of becoming pregnant as promised by the Torah. The third possibility ("she is pure" as distinct from "she has not been defiled") can be understood as our sages say in Sotah 18 וטהורה היא מאיש אחר, that she is pure "as far as having slept with another man" (not the one her husband suspected her of) is concerned. According to our approach, "the other man" is already included in the statement that she has not been defiled which includes the man with whom her husband suspected her as well as any other man who is not her husband.

זאת תורת הקנאות; jealousy which is legally approved on the one hand, and jealousy which is legally not approved. This becomes clear from the words אשר תשטה אשה תחת אישה ונטמאה, this is the example of the legally justified jealousy. The Torah goes on to write או איש אשר תעבור עליו רוח קנאה, as an example of legally unjustified jealousy.

או איש — The word או here has the same meaning as in the phrase (Exodus 21:36): או נודע, "If it be known" (cf. Rashi on that verse and our Note thereon) — that is to say: if the man is a jealous man, then just on account of this, he shall present the woman [before the Lord and then the priest shall execute upon her all this law]."

וקנא את אשתו, warning her not to seclude herself with any man anywhere. ועשה לה הכהן את כל התורה הזאת, and he is not concerned with erasing the holy name of G'd on the scroll placed in the water.

ונקה האיש מעון THEN SHALL THE MAN BE GUILTLESS FROM INIQUITY — This means, if the waters try her (have effect on her), he should not worry and say: "I have incurred guilt through her death!" — No, he is free from punishment. Another explanation is: As soon as he has made her drink the water and she is proved innocent she may lawfully remain with him as his wife, and he is free from sin in permitting this, but if he lives with her before this, he is not free, for a סוטה (a wife suspected of infidelity) is forbidden to her husband pending her trial (cf. Sifrei Bamidbar 21).

SHALL BEAR HER INIQUITY. If she was defiled. Our verse states, And the man shall be clear from iniquity.71If the woman is exonerated and he has relations with her. For if a spirit of jealousy came upon him she is prohibited to him. He is not allowed to be with her.72If a man suspects his wife of adultery, he is prohibited from having sexual relations with her until she is exonerated. If he sleeps with her, he is guilty of sin. Some say that the section dealing with the Nazirite follows the section dealing with the wife who is accused of adultery because if the latter was not defiled, then she will have a son who is a Nazirite. However, I believe that the chapter dealing with the Nazirite follows [the chapter dealing with the wife who is accused of adultery] because it lays down the law regarding a female Nazirite who is the reverse of the unfaithful wife. Now wine73Which the Nazirite forswears. causes most sins. Furthermore, a woman who does not fix her hair74The Nazirite is prohibited from cutting hair. does not seek sexual relations.75Thus the female Nazirite who abstains from wine and does not cut her hair is the reverse of the unfaithful wife who drinks wine and does cut her hair.

ונקה האיש מעון, even though he had suspected his wife's fidelity. The reason is that by her conduct she had given him just cause for such suspicions. Had she not ignored his warnings things would not have come to such a pass. We have our sages in Shabbat 56 on record that David did not accept badmouthing which was designed to make Mephiboshet appear as having been disloyal to him. He rather based himself on visual evidence. [This was Sh'muel's interpretation of what had occurred. Rav disagrees with his assessment. Ed.] והאשה ההיא תשא את עונה, that if she had been guilty of adultery she would die, and if not, her public embarrassment at undergoing the procedure as a punishment for having had the effrontery to ignore her husband's warning would be her punishment.