Bamidbar 5:12 Speak to the children of Israel and say to them if any man’s wife go astray and commit a treachery against him.

If any man’s wife go astray- Rashi begins this passage off with an interesting comparison and outlook on adultery. He states, אישׁ אישׁ Ish Ish (lit. man, man) teaches that she is doublly treacherous; against the Ish milchama/ man of war[1] on high and her husband, the Ish below.[2] Secondly, Rashi explains more a little cryptically and hinting towards a deeper subject in the next comment. He continues, כי־תשׂטה אשׁתו Ki-tisteh ishto if his wife goes astray- “Our Rabbis teach: Adulterers do not commit adultery unless they are imbued with a spirit of insanity, as it is written רוח שטות ruach shetuth[3] as it, and it is written, “He who commits adultery lacks sense”[4]

Rashi gives us much to think about, for it is not only adultery that insanity takes hold of, but all sin. The passage in Sotah 3a he attributes to adultery actually goes like this,

ריש לקיש אמר אין אדם עובר עבירה אא"כ נכנס בו רוח שטות שנא’ (במדבר ה) איש איש כי תשטה אשתו תשטה כתיב – Resh Lakish said, “Man does not commit transgression unless a spirit of insanity (ruach shetut) come upon him as it says: “Any man’s wife that goes astray (tisteh).” The word is written (so it can be read as) tishteh.

According to Resh Lakish, insanity can be attributed to any sin and not just adultery; including idolatry. Adultery is compared to idolatry in many instances within the Tanach. The book of Hoshea is a story of such a comparison. Y’hezkiel is also explicit also when he states:

For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. With their idols they have committed adultery, and they have even offered up to them for food the children whom they had borne to me. (Eze 23:37 ESV)

ומעלה בו מעל Uma’alah vo ma’al And commit a treachery against him- Commenting on Rashi, R. Eli Munk brilliantly points out another similarity between adultery and idolatry by explaining that the statement, ומעלה בו מעל Uma’alah vo ma’al, is used in the previous paragraph when speaking of man’s disloyalty to HaShem. Bamidbar 5:6 states,

Speak to the Children of Israel, man or woman, when they commit any of the sins of man, by committing a trespass against HaShem (למעל מעל בהי lim’oll ma’al HaShem), and that person is guilty,

We can use the reasoning that committing a trespass against our spouse is like committing a trespass against our God. This is how David can say, “Against you alone have I sinned.”[5] Additionally, it is HaShem who spends His time now (after Creation) setting up shiduchim.[6]and Who ויבאה אל־האדם “brought her to Adamץ”[7] God is responsible for giving us our spouses and when we despise our spouse, we despise God, Who gave us the gift. This follows the reasoning of Moreynu Yeshua when asked about marriages sanctity’. He brought: "For this reason a man shall leave father and mother, and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” So that they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let not man separate.(Matt 19:5-6)

Bamidbar 5:13- ושׁכב אישׁ אתה שׁכבת־זרע ונעלם מעיני אישׁה ונסתרה והיא נטמאה ועד אין בה והוא לא נתפשׂה׃ And a man lie with her sexually and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and she was concealed and defiled but no witness came against her and she was not caught.

ונעלם מעיני אישׁה ונסתרה v’nelam me’eyney isha v’nis’tehrah And it was hidden from the eyes of her husband and she was conceal – "The concealed things (הנסתרת hanistarot) belong to HaShem our God.” [8]and “There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed (ואין נעלם אשר לא יודע).[9] Nothing is hidden from the eyes of HaShem. There are no secrets that He does not see. The wicked say, "HaShem does not see; the God of Yaakov does not perceive,”[10] but we know that He, “searches out all hearts, and He understands every imagination of thoughts.”[11]

One must notice that the wicked are the ones who say “God will not see.” However, one must also notice they know there is a God. Many places we see it is the wicked who are defined as knowing of God and His ways. We see it was Korach and his cohorts that were called wicked men (Num 16:26) who served in the Mishkan and were Elders of Israel. Also, “the wicked renounce God and say in his heart, "You will not call to account"? (Psa 10:13) Another place we see that they are using scripture or bringing the covenant before the Holy One, Blessed is He, when it says, "What right have you to recite my statutes or take my covenant on your lips?(Ps. 50:16). Many say the wicked are those do not know HaShem and His love, but this is not always the case as we have seen. If we turn our back on HaShem even though we know Him, we are considered wicked. We should know that we cannot hide our actions or thoughts from He Who sees all. The Sotah (adulterous woman) tried to conceal her ways before HaShem, but He sees all and as R. Meir stated, “If a person commits a transgression in secret, the Holy One, Blessed be He, proclaims it against him in public.”[12]

Let us be careful to remember that we can slip into the actions of a wicked person if we renounce HaShem’s Torah and walk opposite of His statutes even though we know better. The wicked will go down to the pit, so it is advantageous for our souls to come before HaShem and confess our sins, no matter how horrible they are. By this action alone can we move from "wicked" to "forgiven". From estranged before God to close. The power of repentance is great and can bring us to the Throne of HaShem where we are pure and holy, how we are created to be.[13]

Shabbat Shalom

[1] Shemot 15:3
[2] Tanchuma 5
[3] B. Sotah 3a
[4] Prov 6:32;
[5] Ps. 51:6
[6] Matchmaking for marriage purpose; Bereshit Rabba 68:4
[7] Gen 2:22
[8] Deut 29:29
[9] Matt 10:26
[10] Ps 94:7
[11] 1 Chr 28:9
[12] Soncino ed. Sotah 3a
[13] See Likutey Moranan 1:6 for more on this subject.

Writen by http://thejewishcarpenter613.blogspot.com/