Numbers 1-5

English Standard Version

A Census of Israel's Warriors

1 The Lord spoke to Moses ^(A)in the wilderness of Sinai, ^(B)in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, ²^(C)“Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, ^(D)by fathers' houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. ³^(E)From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, ^(F)company by company. ⁴And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. ⁵And these are the names of the men who shall assist you. From Reuben, ^(G)Elizur the son of Shedeur; ⁶from Simeon, ^(H)Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; ⁷from Judah, ^(I)Nahshon the son of Amminadab; ⁸from Issachar, ^(J)Nethanel the son of Zuar; ⁹from Zebulun, ^(K)Eliab the son of Helon; ¹⁰from the sons of Joseph, from Ephraim, ^(L)Elishama the son of Ammihud, and from Manasseh, ^(M)Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; ¹¹from Benjamin, ^(N)Abidan the son of Gideoni; ¹²from Dan, ^(O)Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; ¹³from Asher, ^(P)Pagiel the son of Ochran; ¹⁴from Gad, Eliasaph the son of ^(Q)Deuel; ¹⁵from Naphtali, ^(R)Ahira the son of Enan.” ¹⁶These were the ones ^(S)chosen from the congregation, ^(T)the chiefs of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel.

¹⁷Moses and Aaron took these men ^(U)who had been named, ¹⁸and on the first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by clans, by fathers' houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, ¹⁹as the Lord commanded Moses. So he listed them in the wilderness of Sinai.

²⁰The people of ^(V)Reuben, Israel's firstborn, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²¹those listed of the tribe of Reuben were ^(W)46,500.

²²Of the people of Simeon, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, those of them who were listed, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²³those listed of the tribe of Simeon were ^(X)59,300.

²⁴Of the people of Gad, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²⁵those listed of the tribe of Gad were ^(Y)45,650.

²⁶Of the people of Judah, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ²⁷those listed of the tribe of Judah were ^(Z)74,600.

²⁸Of the people of Issachar, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ²⁹those listed of the tribe of Issachar were ^(AA)54,400.

³⁰Of the people of Zebulun, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³¹those listed of the tribe of Zebulun were ^(AB)57,400.

³²Of the people of Joseph, namely, of the people of Ephraim, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³³those listed of the tribe of Ephraim were ^(AC)40,500.

³⁴Of the people of Manasseh, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁵those listed of the tribe of Manasseh were ^(AD)32,200.

³⁶Of the people of Benjamin, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁷those listed of the tribe of Benjamin were ^(AE)35,400.

³⁸Of the people of Dan, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁹those listed of the tribe of Dan were ^(AF)62,700.

⁴⁰Of the people of Asher, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ⁴¹those listed of the tribe of Asher were ^(AG)41,500.

⁴²Of the people of Naphtali, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ⁴³those listed of the tribe of Naphtali were ^(AH)53,400.

⁴⁴^(AI)These are those who were listed, whom Moses and Aaron listed with the help of the chiefs of Israel, twelve men, each representing his fathers' house. ⁴⁵So all those listed of the people of Israel, by their fathers' houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war in Israel— ⁴⁶all those listed were ^(AJ)603,550.

Levites Exempted

⁴⁷But ^(AK)the Levites were not listed along with them by their ancestral tribe. ⁴⁸For the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁴⁹“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not list, and you shall not take a census of them among the people of Israel. ⁵⁰^(AL)But appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They are to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall take care of it ^(AM)and shall camp around the tabernacle. ⁵¹^(AN)When the tabernacle is to set out, the Levites shall take it down, and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up. ^(AO)And if any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death. ⁵²The people of Israel shall pitch their tents by their companies, each man in his own camp and ^(AP)each man by his own standard. ⁵³But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there may be no ^(AQ)wrath on the congregation of the people of Israel. ^(AR)And the Levites shall keep guard over the tabernacle of the testimony.” ⁵⁴Thus did the people of Israel; they did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses.

Arrangement of the Camp

2 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ²^(AS)“The people of Israel shall camp each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers' houses. They shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side. ³Those to camp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Judah by their companies, the chief of the people of Judah being ^(AT)Nahshon the son of Amminadab, ⁴his company as listed being 74,600. ⁵Those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, the chief of the people of Issachar being Nethanel the son of Zuar, ⁶his company as listed being 54,400. ⁷Then the tribe of Zebulun, the chief of the people of Zebulun being Eliab the son of Helon, ⁸his company as listed being 57,400. ⁹All those listed of the camp of Judah, by their companies, were 186,400. ^(AU)They shall set out first on the march.

¹⁰“On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben by their companies, the chief of the people of Reuben being Elizur the son of Shedeur, ¹¹his company as listed being 46,500. ¹²And those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, the chief of the people of Simeon being Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, ¹³his company as listed being 59,300. ¹⁴Then the tribe of Gad, the chief of the people of Gad being Eliasaph the son of ^(AV)Reuel, ¹⁵his company as listed being 45,650. ¹⁶All those listed of the camp of Reuben, by their companies, were 151,450. ^(AW)They shall set out second.

¹⁷^(AX)“Then the tent of meeting shall set out, with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camps; as they camp, so shall they set out, each in position, standard by standard.

¹⁸“On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim by their companies, the chief of the people of Ephraim being Elishama the son of Ammihud, ¹⁹his company as listed being 40,500. ²⁰And next to him shall be the tribe of Manasseh, the chief of the people of Manasseh being Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, ²¹his company as listed being 32,200. ²²Then the tribe of Benjamin, the chief of the people of Benjamin being Abidan the son of Gideoni, ²³his company as listed being 35,400. ²⁴All those listed of the camp of Ephraim, by their companies, were 108,100. ^(AY)They shall set out third on the march.

²⁵“On the north side shall be the standard of the camp of Dan by their companies, the chief of the people of Dan being Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, ²⁶his company as listed being 62,700. ²⁷And those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, the chief of the people of Asher being Pagiel the son of Ochran, ²⁸his company as listed being 41,500. ²⁹Then the tribe of Naphtali, the chief of the people of Naphtali being Ahira the son of Enan, ³⁰his company as listed being 53,400. ³¹All those listed of the camp of Dan were 157,600. ^(AZ)They shall set out last, standard by standard.”

³²These are the people of Israel as listed by their fathers' houses. All those listed in the camps by their companies were ^(BA)603,550. ³³But ^(BB)the Levites were not listed among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.

³⁴Thus did the people of Israel. According to all that the Lord commanded Moses, ^(BC)so they camped by their standards, and so they set out, each one in his clan, according to his fathers' house.

The Sons of Aaron

3 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. ²These are the names of the sons of Aaron: ^(BD)Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ³These are the names of the sons of Aaron, ^(BE)the anointed priests, ^(BF)whom he ordained to serve as priests. ⁴^(BG)But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

Duties of the Levites

⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁶^(BH)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. ⁷They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, ^(BI)as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁸They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁹And ^(BJ)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are ^(BK)wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. ¹⁰And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and ^(BL)they shall guard their priesthood. But if ^(BM)any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.”

¹¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹²“Behold, ^(BN)I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, ¹³for ^(BO)all the firstborn are mine. ^(BP)On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.”

¹⁴And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, ¹⁵“List the sons of Levi, by fathers' houses and by clans; ^(BQ)every male from a month old and upward you shall list.” ¹⁶So Moses listed them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. ¹⁷^(BR)And these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merari. ¹⁸And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their clans: ^(BS)Libni and Shimei. ¹⁹And the sons of Kohath by their clans: ^(BT)Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ²⁰And the sons of Merari by their clans: ^(BU)Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites, by their fathers' houses.

²¹To Gershon belonged the clan of the Libnites and the clan of the Shimeites; these were the clans of the Gershonites. ²²Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was^[a] 7,500. ²³^(BV)The clans of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle on the west, ²⁴with Eliasaph, the son of Lael as chief of the fathers' house of the Gershonites. ²⁵And the ^(BW)guard duty of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting involved ^(BX)the tabernacle, ^(BY)the tent with ^(BZ)its covering, ^(CA)the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, ²⁶^(CB)the hangings of the court, ^(CC)the screen for the door of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and ^(CD)its cords—all the service connected with these.

²⁷To Kohath belonged the clan of the ^(CE)Amramites and the clan of the Izharites and the clan of the Hebronites and the clan of the Uzzielites; these are the clans of the Kohathites. ²⁸According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, keeping guard over the sanctuary. ²⁹The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, ³⁰with ^(CF)Elizaphan the son of Uzziel as chief of the fathers' house of the clans of the Kohathites. ³¹And their guard duty involved ^(CG)the ark, ^(CH)the table, ^(CI)the lampstand, ^(CJ)the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and ^(CK)the screen; all the service connected with these. ³²And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the chiefs of the Levites, and to have oversight of those who kept guard over the sanctuary.

³³To Merari belonged the clan of the Mahlites and the clan of the Mushites: these are the clans of Merari. ³⁴Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was 6,200. ³⁵And the chief of the fathers' house of the clans of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. ³⁶^(CL)And the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the ^(CM)frames of the tabernacle, ^(CN)the bars, ^(CO)the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these; ³⁷also ^(CP)the pillars around the court, with their bases and ^(CQ)pegs and ^(CR)cords.

³⁸Those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, ^(CS)guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect^[b] the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. ³⁹All those listed among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron listed at the commandment of the Lord, by clans, all the males from a month old and upward, were ^(CT)22,000.

Redemption of the Firstborn

⁴⁰And the Lord said to Moses, “List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names. ⁴¹^(CU)And you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the cattle of the people of Israel.” ⁴²So Moses listed all the firstborn among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. ⁴³And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as listed were 22,273.

⁴⁴And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁴⁵^(CV)“Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle. The Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord. ⁴⁶And ^(CW)as the redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, ⁴⁷you shall take ^(CX)five shekels^[c] per head; you shall take them according to ^(CY)the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel of twenty gerahs^[d]), ⁴⁸and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are over.” ⁴⁹So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the Levites. ⁵⁰From the firstborn of the people of Israel he took the money, ^(CZ)1,365 shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. ⁵¹And Moses ^(DA)gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Duties of the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites

4 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ²“Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ³^(DB)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can come on duty, to do the work in the tent of meeting. ⁴This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: ^(DC)the most holy things. ⁵When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down ^(DD)the veil of the screen and cover ^(DE)the ark of the testimony with it. ⁶Then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin^[e] and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its ^(DF)poles. ⁷And over the ^(DG)table of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; ^(DH)the regular showbread also shall be on it. ⁸Then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet and cover the same with a covering of goatskin, and shall ^(DI)put in its poles. ⁹And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover ^(DJ)the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied. ¹⁰And they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it on the carrying frame. ¹¹And over ^(DK)the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. ¹²And they shall take all ^(DL)the vessels of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of goatskin and put them on the carrying frame. ¹³And they shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it. ¹⁴And they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the fire pans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles. ¹⁵And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that ^(DM)the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, ^(DN)but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

¹⁶“And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of ^(DO)the oil for the light, the ^(DP)fragrant incense, ^(DQ)the regular grain offering, and ^(DR)the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

¹⁷The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ¹⁸“Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, ¹⁹but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to ^(DS)the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, ²⁰^(DT)but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

²¹The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²²“Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses and by their clans. ²³^(DU)From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all who can ^(DV)come to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting. ²⁴This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens: ²⁵^(DW)they shall carry ^(DX)the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with ^(DY)its covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting ²⁶and the hangings of the court and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service. And they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them. ²⁷All the service of the sons of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do. And you shall assign to their charge all that they are to carry. ²⁸This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their guard duty is to be ^(DZ)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹“As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers' houses. ³⁰^(EA)From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the service of the tent of meeting. ³¹And ^(EB)this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases, ³²and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall ^(EC)list by name the objects that they are required to carry. ³³This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, ^(ED)under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

³⁴And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation listed the sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ³⁵^(EE)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting; ³⁶and those listed by clans were 2,750. ³⁷^(EF)This was the list of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

³⁸Those listed of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ³⁹^(EG)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the tent of meeting— ⁴⁰those listed by their clans and their fathers' houses were 2,630. ⁴¹^(EH)This was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord.

⁴²Those listed of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ⁴³^(EI)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting— ⁴⁴those listed by clans were 3,200. ⁴⁵^(EJ)This was the list of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the Lord by Moses.

⁴⁶All those who were listed of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of Israel listed, by their clans and their fathers' houses, ⁴⁷^(EK)from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come to do the service of ministry and the service of bearing burdens in the tent of meeting, ⁴⁸those listed were 8,580. ⁴⁹According to the commandment of the Lord through Moses they were listed, ^(EL)each one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus they were listed by him, ^(EM)as the Lord commanded Moses.

Unclean People

5 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²“Command the people of Israel that they ^(EN)put out of the camp everyone who is leprous^[f] or has ^(EO)a discharge and everyone who is ^(EP)unclean through contact with the dead. ³You shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camp, ^(EQ)in the midst of which I dwell.” ⁴And the people of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as the Lord said to Moses, so the people of Israel did.

Confession and Restitution

⁵And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁶“Speak to the people of Israel, ^(ER)When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person realizes his guilt, ⁷^(ES)he shall confess his sin that he has committed.^[g] ^(ET)And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. ⁸But if the man has no next of kin to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for wrong shall go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to ^(EU)the ram of atonement with which atonement is made for him. ⁹And ^(EV)every contribution, all the holy donations of the people of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be his. ¹⁰Each one shall keep his holy donations: whatever anyone gives to the priest shall be his.”

A Test for Adultery

¹¹And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹²“Speak to the people of Israel, If any man's wife goes astray and breaks faith with him, ¹³if a man ^(EW)lies with her sexually, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and she is undetected though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her, ^(EX)since she was not taken in the act, ¹⁴and if the spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife who has defiled herself, or if the spirit of jealousy comes over him and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself, ¹⁵then the man shall bring his wife to the priest and bring the offering required of her, a tenth of an ephah^[h] of barley flour. ^(EY)He shall pour no oil on it and put no frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of remembrance, ^(EZ)bringing iniquity to remembrance.

¹⁶“And the priest shall bring her near and set her before the Lord. ¹⁷And the priest shall take holy water in an earthenware vessel and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water. ¹⁸And the priest shall set the woman before the Lord and ^(FA)unbind the hair of the woman's head and place in her hands the grain offering of remembrance, which is the grain offering of jealousy. And in his hand the priest shall have the water of bitterness that brings the curse. ¹⁹Then the priest shall make her take an oath, saying, ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have not turned aside to uncleanness while you were under your husband's authority, be free from this water of bitterness that brings the curse. ²⁰But if you have gone astray, though you are under your husband's authority, and if you have defiled yourself, and some man other than your husband has lain with you, ²¹then’ (let the priest make the woman take the oath of the curse, and say to the woman) ^(FB)‘the Lord make you a curse and an oath among your people, when the Lord makes your thigh fall away and your body swell. ²²May this water that brings the curse ^(FC)pass into your bowels and make your womb swell and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say, ^(FD)‘Amen, Amen.’

²³“Then the priest shall write these curses in a book and wash them off into the water of bitterness. ²⁴And he shall make the woman drink the water of bitterness that brings the curse, and the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain. ²⁵And the priest shall take the grain offering of jealousy out of the woman's hand ^(FE)and shall wave the grain offering before the Lord and bring it to the altar. ²⁶And the priest ^(FF)shall take a handful of the grain offering, as its memorial portion, and burn it on the altar, and afterward shall make the woman drink the water. ²⁷And when he has made her drink the water, then, if she has defiled herself and has broken faith with her husband, the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and cause bitter pain, and her womb shall swell, and her thigh shall fall away, and the woman ^(FG)shall become a curse among her people. ²⁸But if the woman has not defiled herself and is clean, then she shall be free and shall conceive children.

²⁹“This is the law in cases of jealousy, when a wife, ^(FH)though under her husband's authority, goes astray and defiles herself, ³⁰or when the spirit of jealousy comes over a man and he is jealous of his wife. Then he shall set the woman before the Lord, and the priest shall carry out for her all this law. ³¹The man shall be free from iniquity, but the woman ^(FI)shall bear her iniquity.”