Then shall the man be guiltless from iniquity, and this woman shall bear her iniquity.
The ordeal ends with the husband cleared of any wrongdoing in bringing the charge, while the wife, if guilty, must herself carry the penalty of her unfaithfulness. The grain offering presented and the bitter water drunk do not make atonement for sin but function to uncover and prove guilt. When the woman is innocent the water does her no injury, yet when she is guilty it works within her unto death. By this public testing every ground for suspicion of impurity was taken away from among the people.
The whole provision declares that God hates sin. It stands as a warning to turn away from sin's ruinous path. It stands as a warning to dread sin's terrible outcome.
The ordeal ends with the husband cleared of any wrongdoing in bringing the charge, while the wife, if guilty, must herself carry the penalty of her unfaithfulness. The grain offering presented and the bitter water drunk do not make atonement for sin but function to uncover and prove guilt. When the woman is innocent the water does her no injury, yet when she is guilty it works within her unto death. By this public testing every ground for suspicion of impurity was taken away from among the people.
The whole provision declares that God hates sin. It stands as a warning to turn away from sin's ruinous path. It stands as a warning to dread sin's terrible outcome.