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Week 79 - Wednesday - 30 May 2001

SOTAH: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 1

He would take her meal-offering from the Egyptian basket and place it in a service vessel, and put it in her hand. The priest would place his hand beneath hers and wave it.

Kehati

This mishnah elaborates the sotah's meal-offering sequence, after having performed all the things mentioned in the previous chapter. Our mishnah teaches that the sotah's meal-offering requires waving before bringing it to the altar, as it is said (Num. 5:25): "And the priest shall take the jealousy offering from the woman's hand and wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it near the altar."

And what is this waving? The priest takes the meal-offering in his hand and lifts it up at the eastern side of the altar, i.e., "he moves it to and fro, upward and downward." The waving of the sotah's meal-offering follows the same rule as all waving, i.e., it requires both the owner's and the priest's hand. The Sages derived this by a gezera shavah (the common expression) in the case of peace-offerings, where it is said (Lev. 7:30): "His own hands shall bring the first offerings of the Lord: the fat with the breast shall he bring, that the breast may be waved for a wave-offering before the Lord;" with regard to the sotah, it is stated (Num. 5:25): "And the priest shall take the jealousy offering from the woman's hand and wave the meal-offering before the Lord" - just as in the case of peace-offerings the priest sets his hand beneath the owner's hand and waves (see Men. 61b), so, too, in the case of a sotah's meal-offering, he sets his hand beneath the woman's hand and waves.

He would take her meal-offering - "the jealousy offering" of the sotah, from the Egyptian basket - which was in the sotah's hand (see above mishnah 2:1): "He would bring her meal-offering in an Egyptian basket and place it in her hands in order to tire her;" who would take it? Some explain: the priest would take the meal-offering out of the basket, and place it in a service vessel - the meal-offering would then be sanctified by "its placement in a service vessel" (Tosafot; Hameiri; Tiferet YisraeI).

Others explain: the husband would take her meal-offering and put it into a service vessel, since the priest's participation in the meal-offerings commenced with kemitzah (the scooping out of flour) and bringing it to the altar initiates the kemitzah since a non-priest may not approach the altar; but "placement in a vessel" may be done even by a non-priest, as may also the pouring and mixing of oil in meal-offerings requiring oil (Rashi, Bartenura).

However, the Jerusalem Talmud infers from the statement: "and the priest shall take...out of the woman's hand," that the priest must take the meal-offering from the sotah's hand, and since it is the priest who takes it, he likewise places it into a service vessel (Tosafot); and put it in her hand - after the meal-offering has been sanctified in a service vessel, he would replace it once again in the hand of the sotah.

The priest would place his hand beneath hers - beneath the woman's hand, and wave it - the priest waves the meal offering as explained above, and the sotah likewise waves it, since her hand was placed between the priest's hand and the meal-offering.

The Jerusalem Talmud explains our mishnah's emphasis, "And the priest would put his hand," rather than simply, "And he would put his hand," as throughout our mishnah, as indicating that the waving was performed by the priest. The Jerusalem Talmud asks: Is it not unseemly for the priest to put his hand under hers? It responds: He would bring a cloth and place it between his hand and hers. Again it asks: But surely this constitutes a hatzitzah (interposition)! And it responds: Indeed, no cloth was used, rather they enlisted an elderly priest; and should you say, a youthful priest, momentary contact does not arouse the evil inclination (Tosafot; and see Torah Temimah).

SOTAH: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 2

He waved it and brought it, removed a handful and burned it, and the remainder was eaten by the priests. He would make her drink and then offer her meal-offering. R. Shimon says, He offered her meal-offering and would then make her drink, as it is said (Num. 5:26): "and afterwards he shall make the woman drink the water." But if he made her drink and afterwards offered her meal-offering, it is valid.

Kehati

This mishnah further elaborates the meal-offering sequence. The Tannaim disagree whether offering the meal-offering precedes the sotah's drink or vice versa.

He waved it and brought it - the priest waved the sotah's meal-offering, (see preceding mishnah), and then took the meal-offering from the sotah's hand, and brought it to the southwest corner of the altar, removed a handful - of the meal-offering, after it was brought to the altar; kemitzah (scooping a handful) means that the priest inserted his hand into the meal-offering, folded his three (middle) fingers toward his wrist and scooped, so that his hand contained a kometz of the meal-offering, and burned it - the kometz of meal-offering on the altar, and the remainder - left over from the meal-offering after removing a handful from it, was eaten by the priests - the remains of all meal-offerings from which a kometz was removed belonged to the priests; they were considered kodesh kodashim (most holy offerings) eaten by the priests alone within the courtyard curtains. All of the tasks mentioned were performed after the sotah had been made to drink, since the Sages held that:

He would make her drink and then offer her meal-offering - according to the sequence of the relevant verses (Num. 5:24-26): First, "And he shall make the woman drink the bitter curse-causing waters," followed by, "and the priest shall take the jealousy meal-offering from the woman's hand, and wave the meal-offering before the Lord, and bring it near the altar. And the priest shall take a handful of the meal-offering, as a remembrance portion thereof, and burn it on the altar." Thus, what follows the presentation of the meal-offering (in the continuation of v.26): "and afterward shall make the woman drink the water," as also (in v.27): "And when he has made her drink the water" is meant to teach us the following lesson: "and afterward shall make the woman drink" implies that he was not to make her drink until the scroll was effectively erased; and as long as the writing left an impression, he was not to make her drink; "And when he has made her drink the water" - once the scroll has been erased, and says: I will not drink, they force her to drink against her will.

R. Shimon says, He offered her meal-offering and would then make her drink - the sotah was made to drink after her meal-offering had been made, as it is said - after specifying the meal-offering procedure: "and afterward shall make the woman drink the water" - this is a precise instruction according to R. Shimon whereas the verse preceding the offering, "And he shall make the woman drink," only meant that bediavad, after the fact, but if he made her drink and afterwards offered her meal-offering, it is valid - i.e., the meal-offering is admissible; but lekhathilah, to begin with, the sequence is: "and the priest shall take the meal-offering from the woman's hand, and wave the offering before the Lord, and bring it near the altar... and afterward shall make the woman drink the water." However, even according to R. Shimon, the verse "And when he has made her drink the water," implies as explained by the First Tanna that once the scroll has been erased and she refuses to drink, they force her to drink against her will.

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