| Numbers 5:17
| And he shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and he shall cast a little earth of the pavement of the tabernacle into it.
| \f + \fr 5:17---18\ft Holy water, destined for sacred uses, which is called most bitter, ver. 18, (Menochius) and cursed, (ver. 22,) on account of the imprecations used to detect the guilty. (Worthington) --- Earth, to shew the woman, that if she had been unfaithful, she deserved to be trodden upon as dung, Ecclesiasticus 9:10. --- Head, that she may remember all is naked before the Lord. (Menochius) --- Hebrew may signify, "he shall cut the hair of her head," (see Leviticus 10:6.; Calmet) or take off her veil. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 3:10.) (Haydock) --- Remembrance, by which God was requested to manifest the truth, either by punishing or by rewarding the woman, ver. 15, 28. (Menochius) --- Bitter, either on account of the wormwood, or because of their effects on the guilty. (Calmet)
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