Talmud for Numbers 5:27

MISHNAH: He¹The officiating priest. gives her to drink and after that he presents her offering⁴⁴As the Babli (19b) points out, Mishnah 1 only described all the ritual acts to be performed for the flour offering but did not determine the time sequence.. Rebbi Simeon says, he sacrifices her offering and afterwards gives her to drink as it is said⁴⁵Num. 5:27.: “After that he shall give the water to the woman to drink.” If he gave her to drink and after that sacrificed her offering, it is valid⁴⁶Even for R. Simeon..

HALAKHAH: “He gives her to drink and after that he sacrifices her offering,” etc. What is the reason of the rabbis? “They shall come into her⁴⁷Num. 5:24: “The curse-water shall come into her as a bitter one.” This is written before the description of the presentation of the flour offering in v. 25..” What is the reason of Rebbi Simeon? “After that he shall give to the woman to drink⁴⁵Num. 5:27..” How does Rebbi Simeon explain the rabbis’ reason, “they shall come into her”? All of them, not part only⁴⁸She has to drink the rather small amount of water completely. How do the rabbis explain Rebbi Simeon’s reason, “after that he shall give the water to the woman to drink”? Against her will, without her agreement⁴⁹Cf. Mishnah 3. In the Babli, 19b, this is the position of the rabbis.. Rebbi Simeon agrees with the rabbis that if he gave her to drink and after that presented her offering, it is valid. The rabbis agree with Rebbi Simeon that if he presented her offering and after that gave her to drink, it is valid⁵⁰This statement is not in the Babli. As Tosaphot (19a, s. v. ואחר) points out, the Babli does not object.. What is the difference between them? The commandment. The rabbis say that the flour offering checks her out⁵¹In the Babli, 20b, this is given as R. Simeon’s reason to require sacrificing the offering before the drink. but Rebbi Simeon says, the water is⁵²Reading אִין as הֵן, equivalent of Babylonian אִינּוּן “they are”. Instead of אין, the Rome ms. has היו. The past tense does not agree with the rest of the text; it should be rejected. Note that there also exists a Babylonian אִין, equal to הֵן “yes”. what checks her out. What is the reason of the Sages? “A flour offering of remembrance remembering iniquity⁵³Num. 5:15..” What is the reason of Rebbi Simeon? “They shall come into her^47,Num. 5:24: “The curse-water shall come into her as a bitter one.” This is written before the description of the presentation of the flour offering in v. 25.⁵⁴The same explanationas anonymous text in Sifry Num. 18; copied in Num. rabba 9(18)..” How do the rabbis explain Rebbi Simeon’s reason, “they shall come into her”? This teaches that it shakes all her limbs⁵⁵Cf. Mishnah 4.. How does Rebbi Simeon explain the rabbis’ reason, “a flour offering of remembrance remembering iniquity”? This teaches that all iniquities she has committed are remembered at that time⁵⁶Before the Heavenly Court which decides about the water’s action..

One verse says: “For swelling of the belly and shrinking of the genitals,” another verse says “her belly will swell and her genitals shrink”, and another verse says “when the Eternal will make your genitals shrink and your belly swell.”²⁶⁶In Num. 5:22,27, the belly is mentioned before the genitals but in v. 21 the order is inverted. Does one verse weigh more than two verses? Rebbi Mana said, here for the act, there conditional²⁶⁷Num. 5:22,27 is a description of what will or did happen; v. 21 is a curse formula conditional upon the woman having sinned.. Rebbi Abin said, you may even say in both cases for the act, in both cases as a condition. “For swelling of the belly and shrinking of the genitals” for the adulterer²⁶⁸The infinitives in the sentence are gender neutral. The ordeal indirectly also affects the presumed adulterer, Mishnah 6:1. In the Babli, 27a, this is a conclusion of Rebbi.. “Her belly will swell and her genitals shrink”, for the woman. Reason decides, “the genitals were first in sin and after that the belly; the genitals should be punished first and then the belly, while the remainder of the body does not escape.” Rebbi Abba the son of Rebbi Pappeus used this as conclusion of a sermon: Since for [heavenly] punishment, which is meted out sparingly, one limb is smitten and all limbs hurt, in the case of [heavenly] benefices, which are given out in abundance²⁶⁹Babli 11a; extensive discussion in Tosephta 4:1., [may we] not [expect] so much more!

HALAKHAH: For it is written¹⁶⁷Hos. 4:14., “for they behave like donkeys with the prostitutes,” and it is written¹⁶⁸Num. 5:27.: “The woman will be a swearword among her people.” In times when her people are peaceful, not in times when her people are dissolute. “The man shall be free from sin.¹⁶⁹Num. 5:31. In the Genizah ms., the entire verse is copied, as required by the following homily: “The man shall be free from sin, then this woman will bear her iniquity.”” When does the woman carry her iniquity? If the man is free from sin¹⁷⁰A more extended treatment in the Babli, 47b; Num. rabba 9(53); Sifry Num. 21. An opposing opinion Sifry zuṭa Naśo31..