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4 ‎[1] With regard to **a betrothed woman** who secluded herself with another man after being warned by her betrothed, **and a widow waiting for her brother-in-law [*yavam*]** to perform levirate marriage who secluded herself with another man after being warned by her *yavam*, **they neither drink** the bitter water **nor collect** payment of their **marriage contracts.** The reason they are not entitled to payment of their marriage contracts is that the betrothed woman became forbidden to her betrothed or the widow became forbidden to her *yavam* due to her own actions of entering into seclusion with the paramour. And the fact that they do not drink the bitter water is **as it is stated:** “This is the law of jealousy, **when a wife, while under her husband, goes astray,** and is defiled” (Numbers 5:29). The verse **excludes a betrothed woman and a widow awaiting her *yavam*;** since they are not yet married, neither is considered as “under her husband.” The mishna delineates cases where the woman’s marriage was prohibited in the first place: With regard to **a widow** who was married **to a High Priest,** or **a divorcée or *ḥalutza*** who was married **to a common priest,** or **a *mamzeret*** **or Gibeonite woman** who was married **to a Jew** of unflawed lineage, **or a Jewish woman** of unflawed lineage who was married **to a *mamzer* or a Gibeonite,** all of these women **neither drink** the bitter water **nor collect** payment of their **marriage contracts,** as the *sota* ritual applies only to permitted marriages.
‎[2] **And the following** women **neither drink** the bitter water **nor collect** payment of their **marriage contracts:** A woman **who** confesses and **says: I am defiled, and** a woman **with regard to whom witnesses came** and testified **that she is defiled, and** a woman **who says: I will not drink** the bitter water, even if she does not confess her guilt. However, a woman whose **husband said: I will not have** her **drink, and** a woman **whose husband engaged in sexual intercourse with her on the way** to the Temple, **collect** payment of their **marriage contracts** even though **they do not drink** the bitter water, as it is due to the husbands that they do not drink. If **the husbands** of *sota* women **died before** their wives **drank** the bitter water, **Beit Shammai say: They collect** payment of their **marriage contracts and they do not drink** the bitter water. **And Beit Hillel say: They either drink** the bitter water **or they do not collect** payment of **their marriage contracts.**
‎[3] **A woman who was pregnant** with the child **of another** man at the time of her marriage **and a woman who was nursing** the child **of another** man at the time of her marriage **neither drink** the bitter water **nor collect** payment of their **marriage contracts.** This is because by rabbinic law they may not marry for twenty-four months after the baby’s birth, and therefore these also constitute prohibited marriages. This is **the statement of Rabbi Meir. And the Rabbis say: He can separate** from **her, and remarry her after** the **time** of twenty-four months has elapsed, and therefore these are considered permitted marriages, and the women can drink the bitter water. **A sexually underdeveloped woman** who is incapable of bearing children **[*ailonit*], and an elderly woman, and** a woman **who is incapable of giving birth** for other reasons, **neither collect** payment of their **marriage contracts nor drink** the bitter water, as marrying a woman who cannot give birth constitutes a violation of the mitzva to be fruitful and multiply. **Rabbi Elazar says: He can marry another woman and procreate through her;** therefore, these are considered permitted marriages, and women in these categories can drink the bitter water. **And all other women either drink** the bitter water **or do not collect** payment of their **marriage contracts. **
‎[4] The wife of a priest drinks, and if she is found to be innocent of adultery, she **is permitted to her husband. The wife of a eunuch** also **drinks.** A husband **can issue a warning** to his wife forbidding her to seclude herself with any man, even **with regard to all those** men **with whom relations are forbidden,** e.g., her father or brother, with the **exception of a minor and of one who is not a man,** i.e., in a situation where a man suspects his wife of bestiality.
‎[5] **And these** are the women **to whom the court issues a warning** in place of their husbands: **One whose husband became a deaf-mute or became an imbecile, or was incarcerated in prison.** The Sages **said** that the court warns her **not** in order **to have her drink** the bitter water if she disobeys the warning, **but** in order **to disqualify her from** receiving payment of **her marriage contract. Rabbi Yosei says:** The court’s warning **also** serves **to have her drink,** and **when her husband is released from prison he has her drink.**
Version: William Davidson Edition - English
Source: https://korenpub.com/collections/the-noe-edition-koren-talmud-bavli-1
License: CC-BY-NC