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Numbers 5:19-20  New English Translation

19 Then the priest will put the woman under oath and say to her, “If no other[a] man has gone to bed[b] with you, and if you have not gone astray and become defiled while under your husband’s authority, may you be free from this bitter water that brings a curse.[c] 20 But if you[d] have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has had sexual relations[e] with you—”[f]

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 5:19 tn The word “other” is implied, since the woman would not be guilty of having sexual relations with her own husband.
  2. Numbers 5:19 tn Heb “has lain down with.” The verb שָׁכַב (shakhav) “to lie down” acts as a euphemism, implying going to bed for sexual relations.
  3. Numbers 5:19 sn Although there would be stress involved, a woman who was innocent would have nothing to hide, and would be confident. The wording of the priest’s oath is actually designed to enable the potion to keep her from harm and not produce the physical effects it was designed to do.
  4. Numbers 5:20 tn The pronoun is emphatic—“but you, if you have gone astray.”
  5. Numbers 5:20 tn Heb “A man other than your husband has given his shekhovet.” The noun שְׁכֹבֶת (shekhovet) is related to the noun “bed,” and to the verb “to lie down [to bed]” which is used as a euphemism for sexual relations. The exact meaning of this rare noun is uncertain, but the expression in this verse is considered to be an explicit reference to sexual relations (HALOT 1488 s.v. שְׁכֹבֶת).
  6. Numbers 5:20 tn This is an example of the rhetorical device known as aposiopesis, or “sudden silence.” The sentence is broken off due to the intensity or emphasis of the moment. The reader is left to conclude what the sentence would have said.
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