The unclean are removed from the camp, 1-4. Restitution is to be made in trespass, 5-10. The trial of jealousy, 11-31.
1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Command the children of Israel that they put out of the camp every leper, everyone who has an issue, and whoever is defiled by the dead. 3 Both male and female you shall put out. Outside the camp you shall put them so that they do not defile their camps, in the midst of which I dwell." 4 And the children of Israel did so and put them out outside the camp. As the LORD spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.
5 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 6 "Speak to the children of Israel, 'When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit to do a trespass against the LORD, and that person is guilty, 7 They shall confess their sin which they have done. And he shall recompense his trespass with its principal and add to it its fifth part and give it to him against whom he has trespassed. 8 But if the man has no kinsman to recompense the trespass to, let the trespass be recompensed to the LORD, even to the priest, besides the ram of the atonement, by which an atonement is made for him. 9 And every offering of all the holy things of the children of Israel which they bring to the priest shall be his. 10 And every man's hallowed things shall be his. Whatever any man gives to the priest, it shall be his.'"
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 commits a trespass against him, 13 And a man lies with her carnally, and it is hid from the eyes of her husband and is kept close, and she is defiled and there is no witness against her, neither is she taken with the manner, 14 And the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he is jealous of his wife and she is defiled, or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he is jealous of his wife and she is not defiled, 15 Then the man shall bring his wife to the priest and bring her offering for her, the tenth part of an ephah of barley-meal. He shall pour no oil upon it, nor put frankincense upon it, 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 some of the dust that is on 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, 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 causes the curse. 19 And the priest shall charge her by an oath and say to the woman, "If no man has lain with you and if you have not gone aside to uncleanness with another instead of your husband, be free from this bitter water that causes the curse. 20 But if you have gone aside to another instead of your husband, and if you are defiled and some man has lain with you besides your husband"— 21 Then the priest shall charge the woman with an oath of cursing and the priest shall say to the woman—"May the LORD make you a curse and an oath among your people when the LORD causes your thigh to perish and your belly to swell. 22 And this water that causes the curse shall go into your bowels to cause your belly to swell and your thigh to perish." 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 causes the curse. And the water that causes 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 a handful of the offering, even its memorial, and burn it upon the altar, and afterward shall cause the woman to drink the water. 27 And when he has made her to drink the water, it shall come to pass, that if she is defiled and has done trespass against her husband, that the water that causes the curse shall enter into her and become bitter, and her belly shall swell and her thigh shall perish, and the woman shall be a curse among her people. 28 And if the woman is not defiled, but is clean, then she shall be free and shall conceive children.
29 'This is the law of jealousies when a wife goes astray to another instead of her husband and is defiled, 30 Or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he is jealous over his wife. Then he shall set the woman before the LORD and the priest shall execute upon her all this law. 31 Then the man shall be guiltless from iniquity, and this woman shall bear her iniquity.'"
Matthew Henry Commentary - Numbers, Chapter 5[➚]