This is probably the most difficult chapter in Numbers that I have read. If a husband suspected his wife of adultery but had no proof, she appeared before the priest. The point of this was that God (not the husband)would determine the truth. The purpose was not to encourage jealousy, but to prevent human injustice by placing judgment into God’s hands. Throughout Scripture, God’s relationship with us is described as a marriage. Jesus is the groom and we (the church) are his bride. Israel repeatedly committed spiritual adultery by worshiping idols. Jesus came for an unfaithful bride. Instead of condemning us, He gave Himself to make us holy. Ephesians 5:25-27 says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her to make her holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word. He did this to present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless.” Jesus bears the judgment of our unfaithfulness so His bride can be declared righteous. This chapter gives us a picture of what we actually deserve because of our sin. Because of our sin we are unclean. The only thing that cleanses us is the blood of Jesus Christ. If Jesus had not died on the cross for me and for you we would not have a relationship with him today. The craziest part to me is that we can do nothing to earn atonement for our sin. Jesus did all of the work. He now gladly bears all of our shame and guilt. The work was finished when he pushed up on his nail pierced feet, said “it is finished,” and bowed his head. At that point in time sin no longer separates us from him. All we have to do is repent and believe that when he died on the cross that payment counted for me and for you. We all have the free will to accept the greatest gift ever given. Love y’all! Have a great day!
Numbers 5:1-31
Read scripture…
“The Lord instructed Moses, “Command the Israelites to send away anyone from the camp who is afflicted with a skin disease, anyone who has a discharge, or anyone who is defiled because of a corpse. Send away both male or female; send them outside the camp, so that they will not defile their camps where I dwell among them.” The Israelites did this, sending them outside the camp. The Israelites did as the Lord instructed Moses. The Lord spoke to Moses: “Tell the Israelites: When a man or woman commits any sin against another, that person acts unfaithfully toward the Lord and is guilty. The person is to confess the sin he has committed. He is to pay full compensation, add a fifth of its value to it, and give it to the individual he has wronged. But if that individual has no relative to receive compensation, the compensation goes to the Lord for the priest, along with the atonement ram by which the priest will make atonement for the guilty person. Every holy contribution the Israelites present to the priest will be his. Each one’s holy contribution is his to give; what each one gives to the priest will be his.” The Lord spoke to Moses: “Speak to the Israelites and tell them: If any man’s wife goes astray, is unfaithful to him, and sleeps with another, but it is concealed from her husband, and she is undetected, even though she has defiled herself, since there is no witness against her, and she wasn’t caught in the act; and if a feeling of jealousy comes over the husband and he becomes jealous because of his wife who has defiled herself — or if a feeling of jealousy comes over him and he becomes jealous of her though she has not defiled herself — then the man is to bring his wife to the priest. He is also to bring an offering for her of two quarts of barley flour. He is not to pour oil over it or put frankincense on it because it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering for remembrance to draw attention to guilt. “The priest is to bring her forward and have her stand before the Lord. Then the priest is to take holy water in a clay bowl, take some of the dust from the tabernacle floor, and put it in the water. After the priest has the woman stand before the Lord, he is to let down her hair and place in her hands the grain offering for remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. The priest is to hold the bitter water that brings a curse. The priest will require the woman to take an oath and will say to her, ‘If no man has slept with you, if you have not gone astray and become defiled while under your husband’s authority, be unaffected by this bitter water that brings a curse. But if you have gone astray while under your husband’s authority, if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has slept with you’ — at this point the priest will make the woman take the oath with the sworn curse, and he is to say to her — ‘May the Lord make you into an object of your people’s cursing and swearing when he makes your womb shrivel and your belly swell. May this water that brings a curse enter your stomach, causing your belly to swell and your womb to shrivel.’ “And the woman will reply, ‘Amen, Amen.’ “Then the priest is to write these curses on a scroll and wash them off into the bitter water. He will require the woman to drink the bitter water that brings a curse, and it will enter her to cause bitter suffering. The priest is to take the grain offering of jealousy from the woman, present the offering before the Lord, and bring it to the altar. The priest is to take a handful of the grain offering as a memorial portion and burn it on the altar. Afterward, he will require the woman to drink the water. “When he makes her drink the water, if she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will enter her to cause bitter suffering; her belly will swell, and her womb will shrivel. She will become a curse among her people. But if the woman has not defiled herself and is pure, she will be unaffected and will be able to conceive children. “This is the law regarding jealousy when a wife goes astray and defiles herself while under her husband’s authority, or when a feeling of jealousy comes over a husband and he becomes jealous of his wife. He is to have the woman stand before the Lord, and the priest will carry out all these instructions for her. The husband will be free of guilt, but that woman will bear her iniquity.”
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