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Numbers 5
New King James Version
Numbers 5
New King James Version
Ceremonially Unclean Persons Isolated(A)
5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp every (B)leper, everyone who has a (C)discharge, and whoever becomes (D)defiled [a]by a corpse. 3 You shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camps (E)in the midst of which I dwell.” 4 And the children of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as the Lord spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.
Confession and Restitution(F)
5 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Speak to the children of Israel: (G)‘When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit in unfaithfulness against the Lord, and that person is guilty, 7 (H)then he shall confess the sin which he has committed. He shall make restitution for his trespass (I)in full, plus one-fifth of it, and give it to the one he has wronged. 8 But if the man has no [b]relative to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for the wrong must go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to (J)the ram of the atonement with which atonement is made for him. 9 Every (K)offering[c] of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be (L)his. 10 And every man’s [d]holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives the priest shall be (M)his.’ ”
Concerning Unfaithful Wives
11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘If any man’s wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him, 13 and a man (N)lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she (O)caught— 14 if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes (P)jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself— 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. He shall (Q)bring the offering required for her, one-tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering for remembering, for (R)bringing iniquity to remembrance.
16 ‘And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord. 17 The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. 18 Then the priest shall stand the woman before the (S)Lord, uncover the woman’s head, and put the offering for remembering in her hands, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that brings a curse. 19 And the priest shall put her under oath, and say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband’s authority, be free from this bitter water that brings a curse. 20 But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, and if you have defiled yourself and some man other than your husband has lain with you”— 21 then the priest shall (T)put the woman under the oath of the curse, and he shall say to the woman—(U)“the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh [e]rot and your belly swell; 22 and may this water that causes the curse (V)go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot.”
‘(W)Then the woman shall say, “Amen, so be it.”
23 ‘Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water. 24 And he shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter her to become bitter. 25 (X)Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, shall (Y)wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it to the altar; 26 and the priest shall take a handful of the offering, (Z)as its memorial portion, burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then it shall be, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, that the water that brings a (AA)curse will enter her and become bitter, and her belly will swell, her thigh will rot, and the woman (AB)will become a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free and may conceive children.
29 ‘This is the law of jealousy, when a wife, while under her husband’s authority, (AC)goes astray and defiles herself, 30 or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife; then he shall stand the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute all this law upon her. 31 Then the man shall be free from [f]iniquity, but that woman (AD)shall bear her [g]guilt.’ ”
Footnotes
- Numbers 5:2 by contact with
- Numbers 5:8 redeemer, Heb. goel
- Numbers 5:9 heave offering
- Numbers 5:10 consecrated
- Numbers 5:21 Lit. fall away
- Numbers 5:31 guilt
- Numbers 5:31 iniquity
Numbers 5
New American Standard Bible
Numbers 5
New American Standard Bible
On Defilement
5 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the sons of Israel that they (A)send away from the camp everyone with leprosy, everyone having a (B)discharge, and everyone who is (C)unclean because of contact with a dead person. 3 You shall send away both male and female; you shall send them outside the camp so that they do not defile their camp where I dwell (D)in their midst.” 4 And the sons of Israel did so and sent them outside the camp; just as the Lord had spoken to Moses, that is what the sons of Israel did.
5 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Speak to the sons of Israel: ‘(E)When a man or woman commits any of the sins of mankind, acting unfaithfully against the Lord, and that person is guilty, 7 then [a]he shall (F)confess [b]his sin which [c]he has committed, and he (G)shall make restitution in full for his wrong and add to it a fifth of it, and give it to him whom he has wronged. 8 But if the person has no [d]redeemer to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution which is made for the wrong must go to the Lord for the priest, besides the ram of atonement, by which atonement is made for him. 9 (H)Also every [e]contribution pertaining to all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel, which they offer to the priest, shall be his. 10 So every person’s holy gifts shall be his; whatever anyone gives to the priest, it (I)becomes his.’”
The Adultery Test
11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘If any man’s wife (J)goes astray and is unfaithful to him, 13 and a man has (K)sexual relations with her and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband and she remains undiscovered, although she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act, 14 [f]if [g]an attitude of (L)jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has defiled herself, or if [h]an attitude of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has not defiled herself, 15 the man shall then bring his wife to the priest, and shall bring as [i]an offering for her a tenth of an [j]ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of reminder, (M)a reminder of wrongdoing.
16 ‘Then the priest shall bring her forward and have her stand before the Lord, 17 and the priest shall take holy water in an earthenware container; and [k]he shall take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it in the water. 18 The priest shall then have the woman stand before the Lord and let down the hair of the woman’s head, and place the grain offering of reminder [l]in her hands, that is, the grain offering of jealousy; and in the hand of the priest is to be the water of bitterness that brings a curse. 19 And the priest shall have her take an oath and shall say to the woman, “If no man has had sexual relations with you and if you have not (N)gone astray into uncleanness, as you are under the authority of your husband, be [m]immune to this water of bitterness that brings a curse; 20 if, however, you have (O)gone astray, though under the authority of your husband, and if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has had sexual intercourse with you” 21 (then the priest shall have the woman (P)swear with the oath of the curse, and the priest shall say to the woman), “may the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people by the Lord’s making your thigh [n]shriveled and your [o]belly swollen; 22 and this water that brings a curse shall go into your [p]stomach, to make your belly swell up and your thigh [q]shrivel.” And the woman (Q)shall say, “Amen, Amen.”
23 ‘The priest shall then write these curses on a scroll, and he shall [r]wash them off into the water of bitterness. 24 Then he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings a curse, so that the water which brings a curse will go into her [s]and cause bitterness. 25 And the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman’s hand, and he shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar; 26 and (R)the priest shall take a handful of the grain offering as its reminder offering and offer it up in smoke on the altar, and afterward he shall make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then it will come about, if she has defiled herself and has been unfaithful to her husband, that the water which brings a curse will go into her [t]and cause bitterness, and her belly will swell up and her thigh will [u]shrivel, and the woman will become (S)a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, she will be [v]immune and conceive [w]children.
29 ‘This is the law of jealousy: when a wife, who is under the authority of her husband, (T)goes astray and defiles herself, 30 or when [x]an attitude of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife, he shall then have the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest shall apply all of this law to her. 31 The man, moreover, will be free of [y]guilt, but that woman shall (U)bear the consequences of her [z]guilt.’”
Footnotes
- Numbers 5:7 Lit they
- Numbers 5:7 Lit their
- Numbers 5:7 Lit they have
- Numbers 5:8 I.e., male relative to act in his behalf
- Numbers 5:9 Or uplifted offering
- Numbers 5:14 Lit and
- Numbers 5:14 Lit a spirit
- Numbers 5:14 Lit a spirit
- Numbers 5:15 Lit her offering
- Numbers 5:15 About 1 cubic foot or 0.03 cubic meters
- Numbers 5:17 Lit the priest
- Numbers 5:18 Lit on her palms
- Numbers 5:19 Lit free from
- Numbers 5:21 Lit collapsed
- Numbers 5:21 Possibly the womb, and so throughout the ch
- Numbers 5:22 Or inward parts
- Numbers 5:22 Lit collapse
- Numbers 5:23 Lit wipe
- Numbers 5:24 Lit for bitterness
- Numbers 5:27 Lit for bitterness
- Numbers 5:27 Lit collapse
- Numbers 5:28 Lit free
- Numbers 5:28 Lit seed
- Numbers 5:30 Lit a spirit
- Numbers 5:31 Or wrongdoing
- Numbers 5:31 Or wrongdoing
Numbers 5
Amplified Bible
Numbers 5
Amplified Bible
On Defilement
5 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the Israelites to send away from the camp every leper and everyone who has a discharge, and whoever is defiled [that is, ceremonially unclean] by [coming in contact with] the dead. 3 You shall send away both male and female; you shall send them outside the camp so that they will not defile their camp where I dwell in their midst.” 4 The Israelites did so, and sent them outside the camp; just as the Lord had said to Moses, so the Israelites did.
5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Say to the Israelites, ‘When a man or woman commits any of the sins of mankind [against other people], thus breaking faith with the Lord, and that person is guilty, 7 then he shall confess the sin which he has committed, and he shall make restitution for his wrong in full, and add a fifth to it, and give it to [the person] whom he has wronged. 8 But if the man [who was wronged] has no redeemer (relative) to whom the restitution may be made, it is to be given to the Lord for the priest, besides the ram of atonement with which atonement is made for the offender. 9 Also every contribution pertaining to all the holy gifts of the Israelites which they offer to the priest, shall be his. 10 And every man’s holy gifts shall be the priest’s; whatever any man gives the priest, it becomes his.’”
The Adultery Test
11 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘If any man’s wife goes astray (deviates) and is unfaithful to him, 13 and a man is intimate with her, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband and it is kept secret, although she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act, 14 and if a spirit (sense, attitude) of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous and angry at his wife who has defiled herself—or if a spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife when she has not defiled herself— 15 then the man shall bring his wife to the priest, and he shall bring as an offering for her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it [the symbols of favor and joy], because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a memorial grain offering, a reminder of [the consequences of] wickedness.
16 ‘Then the priest shall have her approach and have her stand before the Lord, 17 and the priest shall take holy water [from the sacred basin] in an earthenware vessel; and he shall take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it in the water. 18 The priest shall then have the woman stand before the Lord, and let the hair of the woman’s head hang loose, and put the memorial grain offering in her hands, which is the jealousy offering, and in the hand of the priest is to be the water of bitterness that brings a curse. 19 Then the priest shall have her take an oath and say to the woman, “If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone astray into uncleanness [while married], then be immune to this water of bitterness that brings a curse; 20 but if you have gone astray [while married] and you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has been intimate with you” 21 (then the priest shall have the woman swear the oath of the curse, and say to the woman), “The Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people when the Lord makes your thigh [a]waste away and your abdomen swell; 22 and this water that brings a curse shall go into your stomach, and make your abdomen swell and your thigh waste away.” And the woman shall say, “Amen. Amen (so let it be).”
23 ‘The priest shall then write these curses on a scroll and shall wash them off into the water of bitterness; 24 and he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings a curse, and the water that brings the curse will go into her and cause bitterness. 25 Then the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy out of the woman’s hand, and he shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and offer it on the altar. 26 Then the priest shall take a handful of the grain offering as the memorial portion of it and offer it up in smoke on the altar, and afterward he shall make the woman drink the water. 27 When he has made her drink the water, then it shall come about, that if she has defiled herself and has been unfaithful to her husband, the curse water will go into her and cause bitterness and cause her abdomen to swell and her thigh to waste away, and the woman will become a curse among her people. 28 But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then she will be free and conceive children.
29 ‘This is the law of jealousy: when a wife goes astray [while married] and defiles herself, 30 or when a spirit (sense, attitude) of jealousy and suspicion comes on a man and he is jealous of his wife; then he shall have the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest shall apply this law to her. 31 Further, the husband will be free from guilt, but that woman [if guilty] shall bear her guilt.’”
Footnotes
- Numbers 5:21 Lit fall.
Numbers 5
New International Version
Numbers 5
New International Version
The Purity of the Camp
5 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Command the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone who has a defiling skin disease[a](A) or a discharge(B) of any kind, or who is ceremonially unclean(C) because of a dead body.(D) 3 Send away male and female alike; send them outside the camp so they will not defile their camp, where I dwell among them.(E)” 4 The Israelites did so; they sent them outside the camp. They did just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
Restitution for Wrongs
5 The Lord said to Moses, 6 “Say to the Israelites: ‘Any man or woman who wrongs another in any way[b] and so is unfaithful(F) to the Lord is guilty(G) 7 and must confess(H) the sin they have committed. They must make full restitution(I) for the wrong they have done, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the person they have wronged. 8 But if that person has no close relative to whom restitution can be made for the wrong, the restitution belongs to the Lord and must be given to the priest, along with the ram(J) with which atonement is made for the wrongdoer.(K) 9 All the sacred contributions the Israelites bring to a priest will belong to him.(L) 10 Sacred things belong to their owners, but what they give to the priest will belong to the priest.(M)’”
The Test for an Unfaithful Wife
11 Then the Lord said to Moses, 12 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man’s wife goes astray(N) and is unfaithful to him 13 so that another man has sexual relations with her,(O) and this is hidden from her husband and her impurity is undetected (since there is no witness against her and she has not been caught in the act), 14 and if feelings of jealousy(P) come over her husband and he suspects his wife and she is impure—or if he is jealous and suspects her even though she is not impure— 15 then he is to take his wife to the priest. He must also take an offering of a tenth of an ephah[c](Q) of barley flour(R) on her behalf. He must not pour olive oil on it or put incense on it, because it is a grain offering for jealousy,(S) a reminder-offering(T) to draw attention to wrongdoing.
16 “‘The priest shall bring her and have her stand before the Lord. 17 Then he shall take some holy water in a clay jar and put some dust from the tabernacle floor into the water. 18 After the priest has had the woman stand before the Lord, he shall loosen her hair(U) and place in her hands the reminder-offering, the grain offering for jealousy,(V) while he himself holds the bitter water that brings a curse.(W) 19 Then the priest shall put the woman under oath and say to her, “If no other man has had sexual relations with you and you have not gone astray(X) and become impure while married to your husband, may this bitter water that brings a curse(Y) not harm you. 20 But if you have gone astray(Z) while married to your husband and you have made yourself impure by having sexual relations with a man other than your husband”— 21 here the priest is to put the woman under this curse(AA)—“may the Lord cause you to become a curse[d] among your people when he makes your womb miscarry and your abdomen swell. 22 May this water(AB) that brings a curse(AC) enter your body so that your abdomen swells or your womb miscarries.”
“‘Then the woman is to say, “Amen. So be it.(AD)”
23 “‘The priest is to write these curses on a scroll(AE) and then wash them off into the bitter water. 24 He shall make the woman drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and this water that brings a curse and causes bitter suffering will enter her. 25 The priest is to take from her hands the grain offering for jealousy, wave it before the Lord(AF) and bring it to the altar. 26 The priest is then to take a handful of the grain offering as a memorial[e] offering(AG) and burn it on the altar; after that, he is to have the woman drink the water. 27 If she has made herself impure and been unfaithful to her husband, this will be the result: When she is made to drink the water that brings a curse and causes bitter suffering, it will enter her, her abdomen will swell and her womb will miscarry, and she will become a curse.(AH) 28 If, however, the woman has not made herself impure, but is clean, she will be cleared of guilt and will be able to have children.
29 “‘This, then, is the law of jealousy when a woman goes astray(AI) and makes herself impure while married to her husband, 30 or when feelings of jealousy(AJ) come over a man because he suspects his wife. The priest is to have her stand before the Lord and is to apply this entire law to her. 31 The husband will be innocent of any wrongdoing, but the woman will bear the consequences(AK) of her sin.’”
Footnotes
- Numbers 5:2 The Hebrew word for defiling skin disease, traditionally translated “leprosy,” was used for various diseases affecting the skin.
- Numbers 5:6 Or woman who commits any wrong common to mankind
- Numbers 5:15 That is, probably about 3 1/2 pounds or about 1.6 kilograms
- Numbers 5:21 That is, may he cause your name to be used in cursing (see Jer. 29:22); or, may others see that you are cursed; similarly in verse 27.
- Numbers 5:26 Or representative
Numbers 5
King James Version
Numbers 5
King James Version
5 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead:
3 Both male and female shall ye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell.
4 And the children of Israel did so, and put them out without the camp: as the Lord spake unto Moses, so did the children of Israel.
5 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
6 Speak unto the children of Israel, When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the Lord, and that person be guilty;
7 Then they shall confess their sin which they have done: and he shall recompense his trespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed.
8 But if the man have no kinsman to recompense the trespass unto, let the trespass be recompensed unto the Lord, even to the priest; beside the ram of the atonement, whereby an atonement shall be made for him.
9 And every offering of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring unto the priest, shall be his.
10 And every man's hallowed things shall be his: whatsoever any man giveth the priest, it shall be his.
11 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
12 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man's wife go aside, and commit a trespass against him,
13 And a man lie with her carnally, and it be hid from the eyes of her husband, and be kept close, and she be defiled, and there be no witness against her, neither she be taken with the manner;
14 And the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of his wife, and she be defiled: or if the spirit of jealousy come upon him, and he be jealous of his wife, and she be not defiled:
15 Then shall the man bring his wife unto the priest, and he shall bring her offering for her, the tenth part of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil upon it, nor put frankincense thereon; for it is an offering of jealousy, an offering of memorial, bringing iniquity to remembrance.
16 And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the Lord:
17 And the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel; and of the dust that is in the floor of the tabernacle the priest shall take, and put it into the water:
18 And the priest shall set the woman before the Lord, and uncover the woman's head, and put the offering of memorial in her hands, which is the jealousy offering: and the priest shall have in his hand the bitter water that causeth the curse:
19 And the priest shall charge her by an oath, and say unto the woman, If no man have lain with thee, and if thou hast not gone aside to uncleanness with another instead of thy husband, be thou free from this bitter water that causeth the curse:
20 But if thou hast gone aside to another instead of thy husband, and if thou be defiled, and some man have lain with thee beside thine husband:
21 Then the priest shall charge the woman with an oath of cursing, and the priest shall say unto the woman, The Lord make thee a curse and an oath among thy people, when the Lord doth make thy thigh to rot, and thy belly to swell;
22 And this water that causeth the curse shall go into thy bowels, to make thy belly to swell, and thy thigh to rot: And the woman shall say, Amen, amen.
23 And the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall blot them out with the bitter water:
24 And he shall cause the woman to drink the bitter water that causeth the curse: and the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her, and become bitter.
25 Then the priest shall take the jealousy offering out of the woman's hand, and shall wave the offering before the Lord, and offer it upon the altar:
26 And the priest shall take an handful of the offering, even the memorial thereof, and burn it upon the altar, and afterward shall cause the woman to drink the water.
27 And when he hath made her to drink the water, then it shall come to pass, that, if she be defiled, and have done trespass against her husband, that the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her, and become bitter, and her belly shall swell, and her thigh shall rot: and the woman shall be a curse among her people.
28 And if the woman be not defiled, but be clean; then she shall be free, and shall conceive seed.
29 This is the law of jealousies, when a wife goeth aside to another instead of her husband, and is defiled;
30 Or when the spirit of jealousy cometh upon him, and he be jealous over his wife, and shall set the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall execute upon her all this law.
31 Then shall the man be guiltless from iniquity, and this woman shall bear her iniquity.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
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Amplified Bible (AMP)
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.