1
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה, אֶל-מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר.
Jehová habló a Moisés, diciendo:
2
צַו, אֶת-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וִישַׁלְּחוּ מִן-הַמַּחֲנֶה, כָּל-צָרוּעַ וְכָל-זָב; וְכֹל, טָמֵא לָנָפֶשׁ.
Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp everyone with a
scaly disease, and everyone with a discharge, and everyone unclean because of a corpse.
noteManda a los hijos de Israel que saquen del campamento a todo el que tenga una
enfermedad escamosa, y a todo el que tenga flujo, y a todo el que esté impuro por causa de un cadáver.
3
מִזָּכָר עַד-נְקֵבָה תְּשַׁלֵּחוּ, אֶל-מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה תְּשַׁלְּחוּם; וְלֹא יְטַמְּאוּ אֶת-מַחֲנֵיהֶם, אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹכָם.
You shall put out both male and female; outside the camp you shall put them, so that they do not defile their camps, in the midst of which I dwell.
noteSacaréis tanto al varón como a la mujer; fuera del campamento los sacaréis, para que no contaminen sus campamentos, en medio de los cuales yo habito.
4
וַיַּעֲשׂוּ-כֵן, בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וַיְשַׁלְּחוּ אוֹתָם, אֶל-מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה: כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה אֶל-מֹשֶׁה, כֵּן עָשׂוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. {פ}
And the children of Israel did so, and put them outside the camp; as Jehovah spoke to Moses, so the children of Israel did.
{פ}noteY los hijos de Israel lo hicieron así, y los sacaron fuera del campamento; como Jehová habló a Moisés, así lo hicieron los hijos de Israel. {פ}
5
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה, אֶל-מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר.
And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying:
noteJehová habló a Moisés, diciendo:
6
דַּבֵּר, אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, אִישׁ אוֹ-אִשָּׁה כִּי יַעֲשׂוּ מִכָּל-חַטֹּאת הָאָדָם, לִמְעֹל מַעַל בַּיהוָה; וְאָשְׁמָה, הַנֶּפֶשׁ הַהִוא.
Speak to the children of Israel: when a man or a woman commits any of the sins of humankind,
committing a trespass against Jehovah, that person incurs guilt.
noteHabla a los hijos de Israel: cuando un hombre o una mujer cometa cualquiera de los pecados de la humanidad, cometiendo una
transgresión contra Jehová, esa persona incurre en culpa.
7
וְהִתְוַדּוּ, אֶת-חַטָּאתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ, וְהֵשִׁיב אֶת-אֲשָׁמוֹ בְּרֹאשׁוֹ, וַחֲמִישִׁתוֹ יֹסֵף עָלָיו; וְנָתַן, לַאֲשֶׁר אָשַׁם לוֹ.
then they shall confess their sin which they have done; and he shall restore his
guilt-payment in full, and add a fifth to it, and give it to the one against whom he is guilty.
noteentonces confesarán su pecado que cometieron; y restituirá su
pago de culpa en su totalidad, y añadirá a ello una quinta parte, y lo dará a aquel contra quien es culpable.
8
וְאִם-אֵין לָאִישׁ גֹּאֵל, לְהָשִׁיב הָאָשָׁם אֵלָיו--הָאָשָׁם הַמּוּשָׁב לַיהוָה, לַכֹּהֵן: מִלְּבַד, אֵיל הַכִּפֻּרִים, אֲשֶׁר יְכַפֶּר-בּוֹ, עָלָיו.
But if the man has no
kinsman-redeemer to whom restitution may be made for the guilt, the restitution made for guilt belongs to Jehovah, for the priest — besides the ram of atonement, by which atonement is made for him.
notePero si el hombre no tiene
pariente redentor a quien restituir la culpa, la restitución hecha por la culpa pertenece a Jehová, para el sacerdote —además del carnero de expiación, con el cual se hace expiación por él.
9
וְכָל-תְּרוּמָה לְכָל-קָדְשֵׁי בְנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֲשֶׁר-יַקְרִיבוּ לַכֹּהֵן--לוֹ יִהְיֶה.
And every contribution of all the holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be his.
noteY toda contribución de todas las cosas santas de los hijos de Israel, que ofrezcan al sacerdote, será suya.
10
וְאִישׁ אֶת-קֳדָשָׁיו, לוֹ יִהְיוּ; אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר-יִתֵּן לַכֹּהֵן, לוֹ יִהְיֶה. {פ}
And every man's own holy things shall be his; whatever any man gives to the priest shall be his.
{פ}noteY las cosas santas de cada hombre serán suyas; lo que cualquier hombre dé al sacerdote será suyo. {פ}
11
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה, אֶל-מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר.
And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying:
noteJehová habló a Moisés, diciendo:
12
דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם: אִישׁ אִישׁ כִּי-תִשְׂטֶה אִשְׁתּוֹ, וּמָעֲלָה בוֹ מָעַל.
Habla a los hijos de Israel, y diles: si la esposa de algún hombre
se desvía, y comete una
transgresión contra él,
13
וְשָׁכַב אִישׁ אֹתָהּ, שִׁכְבַת-זֶרַע, וְנֶעְלַם מֵעֵינֵי אִישָׁהּ, וְנִסְתְּרָה וְהִיא נִטְמָאָה; וְעֵד אֵין בָּהּ, וְהִוא לֹא נִתְפָּשָׂה.
and a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from her husband's eyes, and she is undetected, though she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her, and she was not caught in the act,
notey un hombre se acuesta con ella carnalmente, y esto se oculta de los ojos de su marido, y ella no es descubierta, aunque se ha contaminado, y no hay testigo contra ella, y no fue sorprendida en el acto,
14
וְעָבַר עָלָיו רוּחַ-קִנְאָה וְקִנֵּא אֶת-אִשְׁתּוֹ, וְהִוא נִטְמָאָה; אוֹ-עָבַר עָלָיו רוּחַ-קִנְאָה וְקִנֵּא אֶת-אִשְׁתּוֹ, וְהִיא לֹא נִטְמָאָה.
and
a spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she has defiled herself; or a spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, though she has not defiled herself —
notey
un espíritu de celos viene sobre él, y tiene celos de su esposa, aunque ella se ha contaminado; o un espíritu de celos viene sobre él, y tiene celos de su esposa, aunque ella no se ha contaminado —
15
וְהֵבִיא הָאִישׁ אֶת-אִשְׁתּוֹ, אֶל-הַכֹּהֵן, וְהֵבִיא אֶת-קָרְבָּנָהּ עָלֶיהָ, עֲשִׂירִת הָאֵיפָה קֶמַח שְׂעֹרִים; לֹא-יִצֹק עָלָיו שֶׁמֶן, וְלֹא-יִתֵּן עָלָיו לְבֹנָה--כִּי-מִנְחַת קְנָאֹת הוּא, מִנְחַת זִכָּרוֹן מַזְכֶּרֶת עָוֺן.
then the man shall bring his wife to the priest, and shall bring her offering for her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it, nor put frankincense on it, for it is a grain-offering of jealousy, a grain-offering of remembrance, bringing iniquity to remembrance.
noteentonces el hombre traerá a su esposa al sacerdote, y traerá su ofrenda por ella, una décima parte de un efa de harina de cebada; no derramará aceite sobre ella, ni pondrá incienso sobre ella, porque es ofrenda de grano de celos, ofrenda de grano de recordación, que trae a la memoria la iniquidad.
16
וְהִקְרִיב אֹתָהּ, הַכֹּהֵן; וְהֶעֱמִדָהּ, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה.
And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before Jehovah.
noteY el sacerdote la hará acercarse, y la pondrá delante de Jehová.
17
וְלָקַח הַכֹּהֵן מַיִם קְדֹשִׁים, בִּכְלִי-חָרֶשׂ; וּמִן-הֶעָפָר, אֲשֶׁר יִהְיֶה בְּקַרְקַע הַמִּשְׁכָּן, יִקַּח הַכֹּהֵן, וְנָתַן אֶל-הַמָּיִם.
And the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle the priest shall take, and put it into the water.
noteY el sacerdote tomará agua santa en una vasija de barro, y del polvo que haya en el suelo del tabernáculo el sacerdote tomará, y lo pondrá en el agua.
18
וְהֶעֱמִיד הַכֹּהֵן אֶת-הָאִשָּׁה, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה, וּפָרַע אֶת-רֹאשׁ הָאִשָּׁה, וְנָתַן עַל-כַּפֶּיהָ אֵת מִנְחַת הַזִּכָּרוֹן מִנְחַת קְנָאֹת הִוא; וּבְיַד הַכֹּהֵן יִהְיוּ, מֵי הַמָּרִים הַמְאָרְרִים.
And the priest shall set the woman before Jehovah, and unbind the hair of the woman's head, and put the grain-offering of remembrance in her hands, which is the grain-offering of jealousy; and in the priest's hand shall be the water of bitterness that brings the curse.
noteY el sacerdote pondrá a la mujer delante de Jehová, y soltará el cabello de la cabeza de la mujer, y pondrá en sus manos la ofrenda de grano de recordación, que es la ofrenda de grano de celos; y en la mano del sacerdote estará el agua amarga que trae la maldición.
19
וְהִשְׁבִּיעַ אֹתָהּ הַכֹּהֵן, וְאָמַר אֶל-הָאִשָּׁה אִם-לֹא שָׁכַב אִישׁ אֹתָךְ, וְאִם-לֹא שָׂטִית טֻמְאָה, תַּחַת אִישֵׁךְ--הִנָּקִי, מִמֵּי הַמָּרִים הַמְאָרְרִים הָאֵלֶּה.
And the priest shall make her swear, and shall say to the woman: ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray into uncleanness while under your husband's authority, be free from this water of bitterness that brings the curse.’
noteY el sacerdote la hará jurar, y dirá a la mujer: «Si ningún hombre se ha acostado contigo, y si no te has desviado hacia la impureza estando bajo la autoridad de tu marido, quédate libre de esta agua amarga que trae la maldición.»
20
וְאַתְּ, כִּי שָׂטִית תַּחַת אִישֵׁךְ--וְכִי נִטְמֵאת; וַיִּתֵּן אִישׁ בָּךְ אֶת-שְׁכָבְתּוֹ, מִבַּלְעֲדֵי אִישֵׁךְ.
‘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’ —
note«Pero si te has desviado estando bajo la autoridad de tu marido, y te has contaminado, y algún hombre aparte de tu marido se ha acostado contigo» —
21
וְהִשְׁבִּיעַ הַכֹּהֵן אֶת-הָאִשָּׁה, בִּשְׁבֻעַת הָאָלָה, וְאָמַר הַכֹּהֵן לָאִשָּׁה, יִתֵּן יְהוָה אוֹתָךְ לְאָלָה וְלִשְׁבֻעָה בְּתוֹךְ עַמֵּךְ--בְּתֵת יְהוָה אֶת-יְרֵכֵךְ נֹפֶלֶת, וְאֶת-בִּטְנֵךְ צָבָה.
then the priest shall make the woman swear with the oath of the curse, and the priest shall say to the woman: ‘Jehovah make you a curse and an oath among your people, when Jehovah makes your thigh fall away, and your belly swell;’
noteentonces el sacerdote hará jurar a la mujer con el juramento de maldición, y el sacerdote dirá a la mujer: «Que Jehová te ponga por maldición y por juramento en medio de tu pueblo, cuando Jehová haga caer tu muslo, e hinchar tu vientre;»
22
וּבָאוּ הַמַּיִם הַמְאָרְרִים הָאֵלֶּה, בְּמֵעַיִךְ, לַצְבּוֹת בֶּטֶן, וְלַנְפִּל יָרֵךְ; וְאָמְרָה הָאִשָּׁה, אָמֵן אָמֵן.
‘and this water that brings the curse shall go into your bowels, and make your belly swell, and your thigh fall away.’ And the woman shall say, ‘Amen, amen.’
note«y esta agua que trae la maldición entrará en tus entrañas, y hará hinchar tu vientre, y caer tu muslo.» Y la mujer dirá: «Amén, amén.»
23
וְכָתַב אֶת-הָאָלֹת הָאֵלֶּה, הַכֹּהֵן--בַּסֵּפֶר; וּמָחָה, אֶל-מֵי הַמָּרִים.
And the priest shall write these curses in a scroll, and shall blot them out into the water of bitterness.
noteY el sacerdote escribirá estas maldiciones en un rollo, y las borrará en el agua amarga.
24
וְהִשְׁקָה, אֶת-הָאִשָּׁה, אֶת-מֵי הַמָּרִים, הַמְאָרְרִים; וּבָאוּ בָהּ הַמַּיִם הַמְאָרְרִים, לְמָרִים.
And 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 become bitter.
noteY dará a beber a la mujer el agua amarga que trae la maldición; y el agua que trae la maldición entrará en ella y se volverá amarga.
25
וְלָקַח הַכֹּהֵן מִיַּד הָאִשָּׁה, אֵת מִנְחַת הַקְּנָאֹת; וְהֵנִיף אֶת-הַמִּנְחָה לִפְנֵי יְהוָה, וְהִקְרִיב אֹתָהּ אֶל-הַמִּזְבֵּחַ.
And the priest shall take the grain-offering of jealousy out of the woman's hand, and wave the grain-offering before Jehovah, and bring it to the altar.
noteY el sacerdote tomará de la mano de la mujer la ofrenda de grano de celos, y mecerá la ofrenda de grano delante de Jehová, y la ofrecerá en el altar.
26
וְקָמַץ הַכֹּהֵן מִן-הַמִּנְחָה אֶת-אַזְכָּרָתָהּ, וְהִקְטִיר הַמִּזְבֵּחָה; וְאַחַר יַשְׁקֶה אֶת-הָאִשָּׁה, אֶת-הַמָּיִם.
And the priest shall take a handful of the grain-offering, as its memorial portion, and burn it on the altar, and afterward make the woman drink the water.
noteY el sacerdote tomará un puñado de la ofrenda de grano, como su porción memorial, y lo quemará en el altar, y después dará a beber el agua a la mujer.
27
וְהִשְׁקָהּ אֶת-הַמַּיִם, וְהָיְתָה אִם-נִטְמְאָה וַתִּמְעֹל מַעַל בְּאִישָׁהּ--וּבָאוּ בָהּ הַמַּיִם הַמְאָרְרִים לְמָרִים, וְצָבְתָה בִטְנָהּ וְנָפְלָה יְרֵכָהּ; וְהָיְתָה הָאִשָּׁה לְאָלָה, בְּקֶרֶב עַמָּהּ.
And when he has made her drink the water, then it shall be: if she has defiled herself, and
committed a trespass against her husband, the water that brings the curse shall enter into her and become bitter, and her belly shall swell, and her thigh shall fall away; and the woman shall become a curse among her people.
noteY cuando le haya dado a beber el agua, sucederá que si se ha contaminado, y ha cometido una
transgresión contra su marido, el agua que trae la maldición entrará en ella y se volverá amarga, y su vientre se hinchará y su muslo caerá; y la mujer será maldición en medio de su pueblo.
28
וְאִם-לֹא נִטְמְאָה הָאִשָּׁה, וּטְהֹרָה הִוא--וְנִקְּתָה, וְנִזְרְעָה זָרַע.
But if the woman has not defiled herself, and is clean, then she shall be free, and shall conceive children.
notePero si la mujer no se ha contaminado, y está limpia, entonces quedará libre, y concebirá hijos.
29
זֹאת תּוֹרַת, הַקְּנָאֹת, אֲשֶׁר תִּשְׂטֶה אִשָּׁה תַּחַת אִישָׁהּ, וְנִטְמָאָה.
This is the law of jealousies, when a wife, being under her husband's authority, goes astray, and defiles herself;
noteEsta es la ley de los celos, cuando una esposa, estando bajo la autoridad de su marido, se desvía, y se contamina;
30
אוֹ אִישׁ, אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲבֹר עָלָיו רוּחַ קִנְאָה--וְקִנֵּא אֶת-אִשְׁתּוֹ; וְהֶעֱמִיד אֶת-הָאִשָּׁה, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה, וְעָשָׂה לָהּ הַכֹּהֵן, אֵת כָּל-הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת.
or when a spirit of jealousy comes over a man, and he is jealous of his wife; then he shall set the woman before Jehovah, and the priest shall carry out this whole law upon her.
noteo cuando un espíritu de celos viene sobre un hombre, y tiene celos de su esposa; entonces pondrá a la mujer delante de Jehová, y el sacerdote llevará a cabo sobre ella toda esta ley.
31
וְנִקָּה הָאִישׁ, מֵעָוֺן; וְהָאִשָּׁה הַהִוא, תִּשָּׂא אֶת-עֲוֺנָהּ. {פ}
And the man shall be free from iniquity; and that woman shall bear her iniquity.
{פ}noteY el hombre quedará libre de iniquidad; y aquella mujer llevará su iniquidad. {פ}
Numbers 5 meaning — three laws about what defiles a camp Jehovah lives in
Vv1-4 close out the camp geometry Numbers 1-4 have spent four chapters building: now that everyone has a place, this law says who cannot stay in any of them. ⚠ The three categories — skin disease, bodily discharge, corpse-contact — are each Leviticus's own subject (chapters 13–15, 21–22, already on these pages), gathered here into a single expulsion order, and the reason given is not hygiene but geography: these things cannot stay ‘in the midst of which I dwell’ (v3). The chapter's own three laws share nothing in subject matter — camp purity, financial restitution, marital suspicion — except this: all three are about what Jehovah's presence in the camp actually requires of the people living around it.
The debt gets paid before God gets anything — a promise from three books back, kept
⚠ This is the payoff Leviticus 5:14-19's own note (already on these pages) named by number: 'a close parallel exists later in Numbers 5:5-8.' The mechanics match exactly — confess, repay the principal, add a fifth, and only then does the ram of atonement enter the picture — and this chapter adds the one case Leviticus never covered: what happens when the wronged party has died with no kinsman-redeemer left to receive the money (v8). The answer is not that the debt disappears. It transfers to the priest, standing in for Jehovah himself, so that a wrong done to a now-absent person still gets paid in full — restitution has no expiration date just because the person owed it does.
No confession, no witness, no crime provable — and a law anyway
⚠ The case this law addresses is deliberately the hardest one: v13 states three times, in three different ways, that there is no evidence at all — hidden, undetected, no witness, not caught in the act. Ordinary Israelite law required two or three witnesses to convict anyone of anything (Deuteronomy 19:15, not yet on these pages); this is the one procedure in the Torah built specifically for the case that ordinary law cannot touch. The suspicion itself is named a spirit of jealousy (v14) — stated twice, once for a guilty wife and once for an innocent one, because the husband's jealousy is not evidence of anything except his own state of mind. The barley-meal offering (v15) gets none of the usual oil or frankincense that mark a joyful gift — a grain-offering stripped down to its plainest form, because what it accompanies is not a celebration.
Dust from the floor she is standing on, water she is about to drink
The ordeal is built from the most ordinary materials in the sanctuary: plain water, and dust swept up from the tabernacle floor itself — not some rare or symbolic substance, ground she may have walked across a hundred times. ⚠ Unbinding a woman's hair (v18) is elsewhere in this project's own notes a sign of mourning or distress (already flagged at Leviticus 13's own note on the leprous person's torn clothes and loosened hair, already on these pages); here it marks her as a defendant, not yet a convict. The entire ritual is engineered around ambiguity resolving itself: nothing the priest does forces an outcome either way, and the water itself does nothing to a woman who has done nothing.
‘Amen, amen’ — likely the first time this word is ever spoken in the Bible
⚠ By the order the Torah itself is arranged in, v22 is the first time anyone in the Bible's narrative is recorded saying the word amen — and it is not a hymn or a blessing but a defendant consenting, in advance, to a curse that will only land if she is guilty. KJV and ASV both keep the doubling exactly, ‘Amen, amen’; NIV smooths it into ‘Amen. So be it,’ trading the repetition for a gloss; NWT keeps ‘Amen! Amen!’ with its own footnote offering ‘So be it! So be it!’ as the literal sense. The word will return doubled on a much larger scale in Deuteronomy 27's own string of covenant curses (not yet on these pages), and centuries later becomes Jesus' own signature opening, ‘amen, amen, I say to you’ (John, already on these pages in part) — the identical doubled word, run all the way from one woman's oath to a teacher's own claim to authority.
Ink and water, mixed — the only spell-like act Jehovah's own law prescribes
⚠ Writing a curse and then washing the ink into water the accused will drink (v23) is, on its face, closer to sympathetic magic than to anything else this law code does — which is exactly why scholars have long flagged this passage as unique in the Torah. What keeps it from being magic in the ordinary ancient sense is what it does NOT do: the water carries no independent power of its own; v27's own consequence is stated as something Jehovah does (‘when Jehovah makes your thigh fall away,’ v21) to a guilty woman, not something the water does automatically to anyone who drinks it. An innocent woman drinks the identical cup and is simply, flatly, fine (v28) — the water is the mechanism of the ritual, not the source of the verdict.
The husband is never guilty of anything, whichever way this goes
⚠ V31's closing line is easy to read past: whether the accusation was true or false, the husband himself bears no consequence at all for having raised it — only the wife's own guilt or innocence is ever adjudicated. Nothing in the text supplies a matching procedure for a wife who suspects her husband. This is one of the places this project's own neutrality rule applies directly: the asymmetry is real, it is what the text says, and it belongs in the note stated plainly rather than either defended or apologized for.
Notes on this translation
Decisions. Hebrew and English Numbers 5 both run 1–31 — verified against the Masoretic text, no versification shift. Three Masoretic paragraphs divide it, all open: after v4, v10, v31. Two new dictionary entries: satah, ‘to go astray,’ and qin'ah, ‘jealousy’ (kept distinct from the differently-voweled, unrelated qinah, ‘lament,’ already on these pages from 2 Samuel 1). Established renderings continued: go'el as ‘kinsman-redeemer’ (already on these pages from Genesis 48 and Leviticus 25), maal as ‘a trespass,’ asham as ‘guilt-payment/guilt-offering,’ tzaraat as ‘a scaly disease,’ not ‘leprosy.’
Echoes paid. Leviticus 5:14-19’s own planted promise (already on these pages) of a fuller restitution law here in Numbers 5:5-8, now delivered, plus the one case Leviticus never covered; Leviticus 13's own note on unbinding hair as a mark of mourning/distress (already on these pages), reused here for a very different kind of defendant.
Echoes planted. Deuteronomy 19:15's two-or-three-witness rule (not yet on these pages), which this chapter's own no-witness case exists specifically outside of; Deuteronomy 27's own repeated congregational ‘amen’ to a string of curses (not yet on these pages); Numbers 35's own fuller treatment of the go'el as blood-avenger (not yet on these pages).
⚠ A note on order: Numbers stands on these pages at chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, and now 34. Chapters 35–36 remain the open sequence.