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Nasso: Ramchal: The Sotah and the Mabul



“The Kohen shall bring her near and have her stand before God. The Kohen shall take sacred water in an earthenware vessel, and the Kohen shall take from the Earth that is on the floor of the Tabernacle and put it in the water (Numbers 5:16–17).”

 

The wicked flip the Attribute of Compassion to the Attribute of Judgment. Therefore, through the water, which represents the Attribute of Kindness, Judgment is pronounced over her. This is the secret behind the waters of the Flood, that took water, the Attribute of Kindness, and switched it to Judgment. This is why something bitter had to be placed in the water that the woman would drink; there has to be some element of Judgment in the water that would affect the transformation from Kindness to Judgment.

The Name of God that is dissolved in the water is what empowers the human action to change the Divine Attribute that will be affected. It is not the water itself or the bitter ingredient that makes the switch; but the Holy Name of God.

It is also this Name that empowers the water to bring blessing to a woman who was falsely accused.

The earthenware vessel represents physicality, which was damaged by the woman’s actions. It represents how the actions of the lower worlds relate to the functioning of the Heavens.

It is astounding to note that the woman must bring an offering before she is examined, a Minchah that brings peace between the Upper and Lower Worlds that will be responding to each other through this process. (Ramchal; Commentary to the Torah)

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