The Sotah Ritual in Ancient Israel Introduction The ritual of the sotah from the book of Numbers is a fascinating passage to read in the Hebrew Bible. For one thing, this ritual deals with the idea of a man being able to bring his wife to trial, even if he has no evidence against her. While such an instance might be seen as negative treatment of women, others might explain it as the Israelites’ constant concern over the idea of impurity. Another interesting aspect of the sotah rite is that
and holiness leads to humility, and humility leads to the shunning of sin, and the shunning of sin leads to the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit leads to the resurrection of the dead” (Sotah 9:15). The Holy Spirit appeared to be given those who were in right standings with God. This is further seen in the t. Sotah 13: 2-4, where the Holy Spirit was present in Israel only because of a righteous follower named Hillel. The spirit of God was not given to those who did wrong in the eyes of the Lord, but
The Role of Women in Religion The role of women in religious scripture dictates an inferior position in society. Beginning with the creation of Adam and then Eve, as his helpmate. Her purpose was that Adam would not be lonely. This origin provides the ground work for inequality of genders on the basis of religious scripture. The roles prescribed determined that women should be in a subordinate position to man. The female role and relationship with God is defined by the various books of the Old
His Mission to the Greek Cities & His Competitors“. 13 September 1997. Metzger, B.M. & Coogan, M.D. “The Oxford Companion to the Bible”. Oxford University Press. New York, NY. (1993). P. 806-818. Rabbi Eliezer, “Mishnah, Sotah 3:4”. THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE CHRISTIAN GOSPELS. 2004. 20 October 2004. THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE HEBREW SCRIPTURES (OLD TESTAMENT). 2004. 21 October 2004. www.religioustolerance.org THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE NEW TESTAMENT EPISTLES. 2004