1Y Jehová habló a Moisés, diciendo: 2Manda a los hijos de Israel que echen del campamento a todo leproso, y a todos los que padecen flujo de semen, y a todo contaminado sobre muerto: 3Así hombres como mujeres echaréis, fuera del campamento los echaréis; para que no contaminen el campamento de aquellos entre los cuales yo habito. 4Y los hijos de Israel lo hicieron así, y los echaron fuera del campamento; como Jehová dijo a Moisés, así lo hicieron los hijos de Israel. 5Además habló Jehová a Moisés, diciendo: 6Habla a los hijos de Israel: El hombre o la mujer que cometiere alguno de todos los pecados de los hombres, haciendo prevaricación contra Jehová, y delinquiere aquella persona; 7Confesarán su pecado que cometieron, y compensarán su ofensa enteramente, y añadirán una quinta parte sobre ello, y lo darán a aquel contra quien pecaron. 8Y si aquel hombre no tuviere pariente al cual sea resarcida la ofensa, se dará la indemnización del agravio a Jehová, al sacerdote, a más del carnero de las expiaciones, con el cual hará expiación por él. 9Y toda ofrenda de todas las cosas santas que los hijos de Israel presentaren al sacerdote, suya será. 10Y lo santificado de cualquiera será suyo; asimismo lo que cualquiera diere al sacerdote, suyo será. 11Y Jehová habló a Moisés, diciendo: 12Habla a los hijos de Israel, y diles: Si la esposa de alguno se descarriare, e hiciere traición contra él, 13y alguno hubiere tenido relación carnal con ella, y su marido no lo hubiese visto por haberse ella amancillado ocultamente, y no hubiere testigo contra ella, ni ella hubiere sido tomada en el acto; 14si el espíritu de celos viniere sobre él, y tuviere celos de su esposa, habiéndose ella amancillado; o si el espíritu de celo viniere sobre él, y tuviere celos de su esposa, no habiéndose ella amancillado; 15entonces el marido traerá su esposa al sacerdote, y traerá su ofrenda con ella, la décima de un efa de harina de cebada; no echará sobre ella aceite, ni pondrá sobre ella incienso; porque es presente de celos, presente de recordación, que trae a la memoria el pecado. 16Y el sacerdote la hará acercar, y la hará poner delante de Jehová. 17Luego el sacerdote tomará del agua santa en un vaso de barro; tomará también el sacerdote del polvo que hubiere en el suelo del tabernáculo, y lo echará en el agua. 18Y hará el sacerdote estar en pie a la mujer delante de Jehová, y descubrirá la cabeza de la mujer, y pondrá sobre sus manos el presente de la recordación, que es el presente de celos; y el sacerdote tendrá en la mano las aguas amargas que acarrean maldición. 19Y el sacerdote la conjurará, y le dirá: Si ningún hombre se ha acostado contigo, y si no te has apartado de tu marido a inmundicia, libre seas de estas aguas amargas que traen maldición; 20mas si te has descarriado de tu marido, y te has amancillado, y algún hombre se ha acostado contigo, fuera de tu marido 21(El sacerdote conjurará a la mujer con juramento de maldición, y dirá a la mujer): Jehová te haga maldición y conjura en medio de tu pueblo, haciendo Jehová que tu muslo caiga, y que tu vientre se hinche; 22y estas aguas que dan maldición entren en tus entrañas, y hagan hinchar tu vientre y caer tu muslo. Y la mujer dirá: Amén, amén. 23Y el sacerdote escribirá estas maldiciones en un libro, y las borrará con las aguas amargas; 24y dará a beber a la mujer las aguas amargas que traen maldición; y las aguas que obran maldición entrarán en ella por amargas. 25Después tomará el sacerdote de la mano de la mujer el presente de los celos, y lo mecerá delante de Jehová, y lo ofrecerá delante del altar. 26Y tomará el sacerdote un puñado del presente, en memoria de ella, y lo quemará sobre el altar, y después dará a beber las aguas a la mujer. 27Le dará, pues, a beber las aguas; y será, que si fuere inmunda y hubiere hecho traición contra su marido, las aguas que obran maldición entrarán en ella en amargura, y su vientre se hinchará, y caerá su muslo; y la mujer será maldición en medio de su pueblo. 28Mas si la mujer no fuere inmunda, sino que estuviere limpia, ella será libre, y será fecunda. 29Ésta es la ley de los celos, cuando la esposa hiciere traición a su marido, y se amancillare; 30o del marido, sobre el cual pasare espíritu de celos, y tuviere celos de su esposa; la presentará entonces delante de Jehová, y el sacerdote ejecutará en ella toda esta ley. 31Y aquel varón será libre de iniquidad, y la mujer llevará su pecado.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 2 THE UNCLEAN TO BE REMOVED OUT OF THE CAMP. (
Num 5:1-
Num 5:4)
Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper--The exclusion of leprous persons from the camp in the wilderness, as from cities and villages afterwards, was a sanitary measure taken according to prescribed rules (Lev. 13:1-14:57). This exclusion of lepers from society has been acted upon ever since; and it affords almost the only instance in which any kind of attention is paid in the East to the prevention of contagion. The usage still more or less prevails in the East among people who do not think the least precaution against the plague or cholera necessary; but judging from personal observation, we think that in Asia the leprosy has now much abated in frequency and virulence. It usually appears in a comparatively mild form in Egypt, Palestine, and other countries where the disorder is, or was, endemic. Small societies of excluded lepers live miserably in paltry huts. Many of them are beggars, going out into the roads to solicit alms, which they receive in a wooden bowl; charitable people also sometimes bring different articles of food, which they leave on the ground at a short distance from the hut of the lepers, for whom it is intended. They are generally obliged to wear a distinctive badge that people may know them at first sight and be warned to avoid them. Other means were adopted among the ancient Jews by putting their hand on their mouth and crying, "Unclean, unclean" [
Lev 13:45]. But their general treatment, as to exclusion from society, was the same as now described. The association of the lepers, however, in this passage, with those who were subject only to ceremonial uncleanness, shows that one important design in the temporary exile of such persons was to remove all impurities that reflected dishonor on the character and residence of Israel's King. And this vigilant care to maintain external cleanliness in the people was typically designed to teach them the practice of moral purity, or cleansing themselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. The regulations made for ensuring cleanliness in the camp suggest the adoption of similar means for maintaining purity in the church. And although, in large communities of Christians, it may be often difficult or delicate to do this, the suspension or, in flagrant cases of sin, the total excommunication of the offender from the privileges and communion of the church is an imperative duty, as necessary to the moral purity of the Christian as the exclusion of the leper from the camp was to physical health and ceremonial purity in the Jewish church.
6 RESTITUTION ENJOINED. (
Num 5:5-
Num 5:10)
When a man or a woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the Lord--This is a wrong or injury done by one man to the property of another, and as it is called "a trespass against the Lord," it is implied, in the case supposed, that the offense has been aggravated by prevaricating--by a false oath, or a fraudulent lie in denying it, which is a "trespass" committed against God, who is the sole judge of what is falsely sworn or spoken (
Acts 5:3-
Acts 5:4).
and that person be guilty--that is, from the obvious tenor of the passage, conscience-smitten, or brought to a sense and conviction of his evil conduct. (See on
Lev 6:2). In that case, there must be: first, confession, a penitential acknowledgment of sin; secondly, restitution of the property, or the giving of an equivalent, with the additional fine of a fifth part, both as a compensation to the person defrauded, and as a penalty inflicted on the injurer, to deter others from the commission of similar trespasses. (See on
Exod 22:1). The difference between the law recorded in that passage and this is that the one was enacted against flagrant and determined thieves, the other against those whose necessities might have urged them into fraud, and whose consciences were distressed by their sin. This law also supposes the injured party to be dead, in which case, the compensation due to his representatives was to be paid to the priest, who, as God's deputy, received the required satisfaction.
9 every offering . . . shall be his--Whatever was given in this way, or otherwise, as by freewill offerings, irrevocably belonged to the priest.
12 THE TRIAL OF JEALOUSY. (Num. 5:11-31)
if any man's wife go aside, and commit a trespass against him--This law was given both as a strong discouragement to conjugal infidelity on the part of a wife, and a sufficient protection of her from the consequences of a hasty and groundless suspicion on the part of the husband. His suspicions, however, were sufficient in the absence of witnesses (
Lev 20:10) to warrant the trial described; and the course of proceeding to be followed was for the jealous husband to bring his wife unto the priest with an offering of barley meal, because none were allowed to approach the sanctuary empty handed (
Exod 23:15). On other occasions, there were mingled with the offering, oil which signified joy, and frankincense which denoted acceptance (
Ps 141:2). But on the occasion referred to, both these ingredients were to be excluded, partly because it was a solemn appeal to God in distressing circumstances, and partly because it was a sin offering on the part of the wife, who came before God in the character of a real or suspected offender.
17 the priest shall take holy water--Water from the laver, which was to be mixed with dust--an emblem of vileness and misery (
Gen 3:14;
Ps 22:15).
in an earthen vessel--This fragile ware was chosen because, after being used, it was broken in pieces (
Lev 6:28;
Lev 11:33). All the circumstances of this awful ceremony--her being placed with her face toward the ark--her uncovered head, a sign of her being deprived of the protection of her husband (
1Cor 11:7) --the bitter potion being put into her hands preparatory to an appeal to God--the solemn adjuration of the priest (
Num 5:19-
Num 5:22), all were calculated in no common degree to excite and appall the imagination of a person conscious of guilt.
21 The Lord make thee a curse, &c.--a usual form of imprecation (
Isa 65:15;
Jer 29:22).
22 the woman shall say, Amen, Amen--The Israelites were accustomed, instead of formally repeating the words of an oath merely to say, "Amen," a "so be it" to the imprecations it contained. The reduplication of the word was designed as an evidence of the woman's innocence, and a willingness that God would do to her according to her desert.
23 write these curses in a book--The imprecations, along with her name, were inscribed in some kind of record--on parchment, or more probably on a wooden tablet.
blot them out with the bitter water--If she were innocent, they could be easily erased, and were perfectly harmless; but if guilty, she would experience the fatal effects of the water she had drunk.
29 This is the law of jealousies--Adultery discovered and proved was punished with death. But strongly suspected cases would occur, and this law made provision for the conviction of the guilty person. It was, however, not a trial conducted according to the forms of judicial process, but an ordeal through which a suspected adulteress was made to go--the ceremony being of that terrifying nature, that, on the known principles of human nature, guilt or innocence could not fail to appear. From the earliest times, the jealousy of Eastern people has established ordeals for the detection and punishment of suspected unchastity in wives. The practice was deep-rooted as well as universal. And it has been thought, that the Israelites being strongly biassed in favor of such usages, this law of jealousies "was incorporated among the other institutions of the Mosaic economy, in order to free it from the idolatrous rites which the heathens had blended with it." Viewed in this light, its sanction by divine authority in a corrected and improved form exhibits a proof at once of the wisdom and condescension of God.