Numbers 5

1 Yahweh said to Moses/me,

2 “Tell this to the Israeli people: ‘You must send away from your (camp/area where you have your tents) any man or woman who has leprosy and anyone who has a discharge [of some fluid from his body], and anyone who has become unacceptable to God because of [having touched] a corpse.

3 Send them away from there in order that they will not [touch people in the camp area] where I live among you and cause them to become unacceptable to me.’”

4 So [Moses/I told that to the Israeli people, and] the Israeli people obeyed what Yahweh commanded Moses/me.

5 Yahweh also told Moses/me,

6 “Tell this to the Israeli people: ‘If someone (commits a crime against/does something wrong to) another person, [I consider that] that person has done wrong to me.

7 That person must confess that he or she is guilty, and he or she must pay to the person to whom wrong was done [what others consider to be a suitable/proper payment] for what he has done, and he must pay an extra 20 percent.

8 If the person against whom the wrong was done [has died and] there is no relative to whom the money can be paid, then the money belongs to me, and it must be paid to the priest. In addition, the one who did the wrong must give a male sheep to the priest [to sacrifice] in order that (that person’s sin may be forgiven/I can forgive that person for his sin).

9 All the sacred offerings that the Israelis bring to the priest belong to the priest.

10 The priest can keep those gifts.’”

11 Yahweh also said this to Moses/me:

12 “Tell this to the Israeli people: ‘Suppose a man thinks that his wife has slept with another man,

13 but neither he nor anyone else knows if it is true or not, because no one saw her doing that.

14 But if the woman’s husband is jealous, and if he suspects that she has committed adultery, and he wants to know whether that is true or not,

15 he should take his wife to the priest. He must take along as an offering two quarts/liters of barley flour. The priest must not pour [olive] oil or incense on it, because this is an offering that the man has brought because he (is jealous/wants his wife to sleep only with him). It is an offering to find out if she is guilty or not. [Neither olive oil nor incense should be used because are associated with joy and this is not a time for joy.]

16 The priest must tell the woman to stand [in front of the altar] in my presence.

17 He must put some sacred water in a clay jar, and then he must put some dirt from the floor of the Sacred Tent into the water.

18 He must untie/unfasten the woman’s hair. Then he must put in her hands the grain that her jealous husband is offering to determine whether she has committed adultery or not. The priest must hold [the bowl that contains] bitter water that will cause (the woman to be cursed/bad things to happen to the woman) [if she is guilty].

19 The priest must require her to solemnly declare [that she will tell the truth]. Then he must say to her, “Has another man had sex [EUP] with you? Have you faithfully [slept only with your husband] or not? If you have not slept with another man, nothing bad will happen to you if you drink the water.

20 But if you have had sex with another man, [Yahweh will curse you].

21 Your womb will shrivel up and your stomach will swell up. You will never be able to give birth to children, and as a result, everyone will curse you and avoid you. If you have committed adultery, [when you drink] this water, that is what will happen to you.” Then the woman must answer, “[If I am guilty], I will not object if that happens.”

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23 ‘Then the priest must write [with ink] on a small scroll these (curses/bad things that will happen to her if she is guilty) [and then wash the ink off into the bitter water].

24 The priest must take from her the offering of barley flour [that she is holding], and lift it up to dedicate it to me. Then he must put it on the altar

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26 and burn part of it as a sacrifice. Then the woman must drink the bitter water.

27 If the woman has committed adultery, the water will cause her to suffer greatly. Her stomach will swell up and her womb will shrink, [and she will be unable to give birth to children]. And then her (relatives/fellow Israelis) will curse her.

28 But if she (is innocent/has not committed adultery), her body will not be harmed, and she will still be able to give birth to children.

29 ‘That is the ritual that must be performed when a woman who is married has been unfaithful to her husband,

30 or when a man is jealous and suspects that his wife [has had sex with another man]. The priest must tell that woman to stand [at the altar] in my presence and obey these instructions.

31 Even if the woman has not done what the husband suspected, he will not be punished [MTY] for doing something wrong [by bringing his wife to the priest]. But if his wife is guilty, she will suffer as a result.’”