תלמוד על סוטה 2:1

MISHNAH: He¹The officiating priest. took the flour-offering from the Egyptian palm-leaf basket²See Mishnah 2:1., put it into a Temple vessel and laid that on her hands. The Cohen puts his hands under hers and performs the weave³The prescribed movements for the dedication of private offerings. The movements in the six directions (fore and aft, right and left, up and down) are imitated today as the motions of the palm-branch on Tabernacles.. He weaved, presented⁴Before the altar receives its part, the entire offering in the vessel is presented to the altar at its South-West corner., took a fistful and put it into the fire. The remainder is eaten by the priests⁵As are all offerings except those of a priest; cf. Lev. 6:7–11..

Did we not state: “Just as the water checks her out so it checks him out”? ¹⁶The next few sentences are copied from Chapter 1, Note 128. But see the Tosaphot text in which only one sentence from there (and Yebamot Chapter 10, Notes 49 ff.) appears. Just as she is forbidden to her husband, so she is forbidden to her paramour. Just as she is forbidden to her husband’s brother, so she is forbidden to her paramour’s brother. Just as the water checks her out for every single intercourse for which she receives her husband after [intercourse with] her paramour, so it checks him out. Since she in general becomes forbidden, whether by him or by another [man], she is checked out¹⁷Cf. Mishnah 2:5 that the husband may stipulate that the water check her out not only for adultery with the named respondent but with any man whosoever.. But when he¹⁸The husband. makes [her] drink, he¹⁹The suspected adulterer. is checked out²⁰The water is presumed to act at a distance, to make the adulterer’s belly swell and his waist disappear. (Cf. Note 14).. If it checked him out but not her, I would say that merit suspends for her²¹Cf. Chapter 3, Halakhot 4,5.. That is according to him who says that merit suspends and it is not recognizable. But following him who says that merit suspends and it is recognizable? Look, she was not recognized! But I could say that she drank uncovered water²²Water which was left standing uncovered and unattended may contain snake poison, cf. Terumot 8:5, in particular Notes 113 ff. and it²³Meaning the adulterer’s. swelled. They should not have her¹⁵The scribe wrote מבדקונַיה. It seems that the ms. before him had מבדקוניה, “to check him out”, but the scribe recognized that the masculine was inappropriate and indicated that one should read מבדקונַהּ, “to check her out”. checked out in this way but correctly²⁴Reading כדין “correctly” with Tosaphot, against a nondescript כדון “so” in the text. It would be against all rules if water which was left unattended in a vessel were used in the Temple.! But I could say that he was in secret with other women²⁵The accused boy friend was an adulterer but not with that woman.. Did we not think to say, when he makes [her] drink, he is checked out²⁶The water acts at a distance only from a woman with whom he actually committed adultery; the explanation attempted in the previous sentence is impossible.? Explain it that he had criminal intent but she acted in error; then the water checked him out but not her²⁷If either it was a case similar to date rape or that the adulterer impersonated the husband.. [²⁸Added from Tosaphot, missing in the mss. If the water checked her out but not him,] I would say that merit suspends for (her) [him]²⁹From Tosaphot text.. That is according to him who says that merit suspends and it is not recognizable. But following him who says that merit suspends and it is recognizable? Look, she was not recognized! But I could say that she drank uncovered water and her belly swelled. They should not have her checked out in this way but correctly!²⁴Reading כדין “correctly” with Tosaphot, against a nondescript כדון “so” in the text. It would be against all rules if water which was left unattended in a vessel were used in the Temple. But I could say that she was in secret with other men. Then if he¹⁸The husband. divorced her, she would be permitted to him.¹⁹The suspected adulterer. Explain it that he acted in error but she had criminal intent; then the water checked her out but not him. If he had criminal intent but she acted in error, then it is obvious that she is permitted to her house¹⁸The husband.. If he¹⁸The husband. divorced her, would she be permitted to him¹⁹The suspected adulterer.? Is it possible to say that he had criminal intent and you say so? If he acted in error but she had criminal intent, it is obvious that she is forbidden to her house. If he¹⁸The husband. divorced her, would she be permitted to him¹⁹The suspected adulterer.? Is it possible to say that she left because of him and you say so³⁰The Yerushalmi forbids the wife even to the unintentional adulterer; e. g., if she told him that she was single.? From where do we know that all depends on her? Simeon bar Abba in the name of Rebbi Joḥanan: Is is written³¹Lev. 18:20.: “Do not ejaculate semen into your neighbor’s wife to be impure through her.” It depends on her; if she had criminal intent, she is forbidden, acted in error she is permitted³²Everything depends on her status; since a rape victim is permitted to her husband, the divorced rape victim is permitted to the rapist but the woman who pretended to be single is forbidden to her boyfriend after her divorce..