Revised Version 1895
Numbers 5:17
17and 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:
Numbers 5:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel; and of the dust that is in the floor of the tabernacle the priest shall take, and put it into the water:
- New International Version (NIV)Then he shall take some holy water in a clay jar and put some dust from the tabernacle floor into the water.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And 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.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and take some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle and put it into the water.
Context of Numbers 5:17
15then shall the man bring his wife unto the priest, and shall bring her oblation for her, the tenth part of an ephah of barley meal; he shall pour no oil upon it, nor put frankincense thereon; for it is a meal offering of jealousy, a meal offering of memorial, bringing iniquity to remembrance. 16And the priest shall bring her near, and set her before the LORD: 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: 18and the priest shall set the woman before the LORD, and let the hair of the woman’s head go loose, and put the meal offering of memorial in her hands, which is the meal offering of jealousy: and the priest shall have in his hand the water of bitterness that causeth the curse: 19and the priest shall cause her to swear, and shall say unto the woman, If no man have lain with thee, and if thou hast not gone aside to uncleanness, being under thy husband, be thou free from this water of bitterness that causeth the curse:
Read all of Numbers 5Numbers 5:17 word by word
וְלָקַ֧ח הַכֹּהֵ֛ן מַ֥יִם קְדֹשִׁ֖ים בִּכְלִי־חָ֑רֶשׂ וּמִן־הֶֽעָפָ֗ר אֲשֶׁ֤ר יִהְיֶה֙ בְּקַרְקַ֣ע הַמִּשְׁכָּ֔ן יִקַּ֥ח הַכֹּהֵ֖ן וְנָתַ֥ן אֶל־הַמָּֽיִם׃Read the interlinear
- priestכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
- takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
- holyקָדוֹשׁqâdôsh qâdôsh · holyH6918
- waterמַיmayim · waterH4325
- earthenחֶ֫רֶשׂchereώ · earthenwareH2789
- vesselכְּלִיkelîy · article/utensilH3627
- dustעָפָר‛âphâr · dustH6083
- floorקַרְקַעqarqa‛ · floorH7172
- tabernacleמִשְׁכָּןmishkân · tabernacleH4908
- putנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
- intoאֶל'êl 'el · to(wards)H413
Cross-references for Numbers 5:17
- Numbers 19:2This is the statute of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke:
- Exodus 30:18Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and the base thereof of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.
- Job 2:12And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.
- Jeremiah 17:13O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed; they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters.
- Lamentations 3:29Let him put his mouth in the dust; if so be there may he hope.
- John 8:6And this they said, tempting him, that they might have whereof to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground.
Commentaries on Numbers 5:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Holy water - Water out of the laver, called holy because consecrated to sacred uses. This is the most ancient case of the trial by ordeal. See at Numbers 5:31; (note). In an earthen vessel - Supposed by the Jews to be such as had never been previously used. Dust that is in the floor - Probably intended to point out the baseness of the crime of which she was accused.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11-31Verses 11-31 The trial of jealousy. Since the crime of adultery is especially defiling and destructive of the very foundations of social order, the whole subject is dealt with at a length proportionate to its importance. The process prescribed has lately been strikingly illustrated from an Egyptian “romance,” which refers to the time of Rameses the Great, and may therefore well serve to illustrate the manners and customs of the Mosaic times. This mode of…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-31Verses 11-31 This law would make the women of Israel watch against giving cause for suspicion. On the other hand, it would hinder the cruel treatment such suspicions might occasion. It would also hinder the guilty from escaping, and the innocent from coming under just suspicion. When no proof could be brought, the wife was called on to make this solemn appeal to a heart-searching God. No woman, if she were guilty, could say "Amen" to the adjuration, and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17The holy water and the dust were sacred because of their association with the sanctuary.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 17-1817-18. the priest shall take holy water--Water from the laver, which was to be mixed with dust--an emblem of vileness and misery (Ge 3:14; Psa 22:15). in an earthen vessel--This fragile ware was chosen because, after being used, it was broken in pieces (Le 6:28; 11:33). All the circumstances of this awful ceremony--her being placed with her face toward the ark--her uncovered head, a sign of her being deprived of the protection of her husband (1Co…Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 5:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
Revised Version 1895 — 1895 — Public Domain
Commentaries