Translation:Shulchan Aruch/Even ha-Ezer/178

The Laws of Sotah, 22 Seifim: 1. One who legally expresses jealousy over his wife and she is secluded but he doesn't know if she was defiled, she is prohibited to him. And this is true as long as the expression of jealousy and seclusion were performed as the law requires. And in such a case she loses her ketubah, even if he dies before he divorces her.

2. How is jealously [legally performed]? He says to her in front of two [witnesses]: Do not be secluded with so-and-so? Even if he is her father or brother or a non-Jew or a "shahuf" (one who cannot get an erection, Tur), as long as he is of majority age. But if he said to her: Don't be secluded with so-and-so, and he is a minor or an animal, this is not legally performed jealousy. And he may profess jealous over her whether she is betrothed or married or awaiting levirate marriage.

3. A minor girl whose father married her off and she willingly fornicated, there are those who say she is prohibited. Therefore, they can profess jealousy over her, in order to cause her to lose her ketubah. And there are those who say that she is not prohibited to her husband unless he is a priest. Hagah: An adult who accidentally fornicated, thinking he was her husband but he was someone else, is permitted to her Israelite husband (Rambam, chapter 24, Hilkhot Ishut). But if she thought it was permitted to fornicate, this is like one who does so intentionally and she is forbidden to her husband (Maharik, root 167). A woman who was secluded with men on the road and she came back and said: "I was secluded and I was raped" there are those who say she is believed with a "since" argument, for [she could have said] I did not have relations. And there are those who said she loses the ability to make such an argument, since she was illicitly secluded (both opinions are found in the Mordecai, second chapter of Ketubot).

4. What is considered seclusion? When she is secluded in front of witnesses with the same man about whom the profession of jealousy was made, and she stayed there long enough to be defiled, which is long enough to roast an egg and quaff it.

5. If professed jealousy about two men, saying to her: Don't be secluded with so-and-so and so-and-so, and she was secluded with both of them at the same time, even if they are brothers [her brothers] or her father and her brother, she is prohibited.

6. If he said to her in front of two people: Do not speak with so-and-so, this is not a profession of jealousy. Even if she is secluded with him and stays long enough to be defiled, she is permitted. Similarly, if he says to her: Do not be secluded with so-and-so, and she speaks with him in front of witnesses, she is permitted. And similarly if she is secluded in front of witnesses and stays with him long enough to be defiled, and he didn't profess jealousy in front of witnesses, she is permitted. For they don't prohibit a man to his wife even if they were secluded with the intent of engaging in prohibited relations, unless he professed jealousy at the outset in front of two witnesses. But in any case, a woman should not be secluded with men, and was explained above in siman 22.

7. A man shouldn't say to his wife, even just between him and her: Don't be secluded with so-and-so, lest we hold like R. Yose b. Rabbi Yehudah who said: If he professed jealousy for her between him and her, it is a valid profession of jealousy. Hagah: And not that we don't have the sotah waters, if she is secluded after a profession of jealousy she is forbidden to him forever (Tur, in the name of the SMG). And if he forgot and professed jealousy, he should forgive her immediately for the jealousy, as will be explained below in this chapter, section 12.

8. If one witness comes and testifies that she was secluded with the one about whom the profession of jealousy was made, and she stayed with him long enough to be defiled, if he is trustworthy in his eyes, and he relies upon him, he should divorce her and give her the ketubah. And if not, she is permitted to him. And if he himself saw her secluded with him and she was with him long enough to be defiled, she is forbidden to him and he should divorce her and give her the ketubah. And there is no distinction for the matter of seclusion after profession of jealousy whether her husband is in the same city or the door is open to the public domain or not (see Maharai, siman 244). And see above, siman 22.

9. If the husband did not warn her, but one witness came and said that she did commit adultery, and she doesn't respond [to the accusation], if the witness is trusted by the husband, and he trusts the single witness as he would trust two [witnesses], the husband should divorce her and pay her the ketubah, if not, she is permitted to him. Hagah: This also applies if she herself said that she committed adultery as was explained earlier in chapter 115:6. There are some who say that nowadays when the ban of Rabeinu Gershom not to divorce one's wife without her consent is upheld, [the husband] can not believe her testimony or the witness's testimony [about her promiscuity], because we are concerned that [the husband] may have been keeping his eye on another woman [and that he is divorcing his wife only to marry another woman], without actually believing the wife or the witness.(Hagaot Maymoni Chapter 24 and the Maharik rule 110 in the name of 'those who say'). We ostracize the husband [in such a case] because he tried to break the ban of Rabeinu Gershom by saying that he trusted her (i.e his wife's testimony). This rule also applies to all places where the husband is not allowed to divorce [his wife] without her consent. Some [authorities] say that they force him to have relations with her [in such a case].

10. If one started a rumor about his wife that she committed adultery and said said that he was certain, and afterwards he admits that this is not true and it was only because he was angry that he accused her; if he gives proof for his statement, she is permitted to him, and if not, she is not [permitted to him]

11. You could hear the people being joyful after the purchase, and they hid the two witnesses until the women left and gave the first woman what she had gotten from the person that she had gotten it from, and it was forbidden to him, and they took it out and gave her what she was due.

12. If there is a husband that relinquishes what he owes, if it is before it is neutralized, it is considered relinquished and as such is no longer owed to her. If it is after it is neutralized, however, it is not considered a relinquished debt. If she gets divorced, it is as if she relinquishes it, and if she gives it back, he must return it at a different time.

13. If there is a woman whose husband has gone deaf, or gone insane, or is in a different country, or he is imprisoned in prison, and the Beit Din hears rumors about her, they will call and say to her: do not hide from such-and-such man. And if witnesses come after they hid her, and they delay her in order to make her impure, they can forbid her from her husband forever, and they can write her a divorce document. And when her husband comes back, or recovers from his illness, or is freed from prison, he must give her a document of divorce.

14. If one witness comes, and swears that she was impure when she got her property, she must leave without her money that she is owed for her divorce. Even if the witness that swore that she was impure was also one of the witnesses that hid her, and even if they are a slave or a maidservant or a woman or a relative, they are still allowed to be witnesses.

15. If there are five woman who hate her, and they agree with each other to say that she was impure after she receives her stuff owed to her in order to make her forbidden to her husband, but not to nullify her Ketuvah.

16. If it is found by way of impure witnesses, even if if they didn't see so much as a paint brush in a tube of paint, after they see them stuck one on top of the other, and they follow the ways of the adulterous ones.

17. All women that are married by the husband through money and [there is a] neutralization [of the money's value], she is forbidden to him [but] it is an engagement to him. And if afterwards she is married, she is divorced from him with a get, even if they have many children. But if not [they were not married] with money, and came witnesses that married [them] with this man [the husband], and it was found out a [physical feature that is] ugly, this is explained in Siman 11

18. For every woman for whom comes two witnesses that swear that she was adulterous while still married to her husband, they should separate from each other, even if she has many children.

19. There are authorities who hold that a married woman who commits adultery with a gentile and divorces her husband, and the gentile converts to Judaism, she is permitted to this convert, as it is not relevant to say "one who has relations" in regard to the relations with a gentile. REMA: nevertheless one who commits adultery with the sister of his wife [who is a non-jew], and she divorces from her husband [and converts to Judaism], its forbidden to have relations with her until after the death of his wife. Even though it is doubtful if it is forbidden for her to have relations with him.

20. A married woman that makes a claim on a man [her husband] that he is a pursuer of another [woman], and he denies the claim, she is not believed [when she intends] to torment him; but they [the sages] decree that he is excommunicated, and he will not speak with her [the other woman] at all, and not live in the same area as each other. and if he strengthens the rumor that they [the husband and the other woman] are having forbidden relations, its proper to rebuke him reprimand and make him weary that if he does not conduct himself properly he will have to separate from their [the husband's and wife's] children [due to] abuse and we suspend him [from his family] with two hands, like our rabbis [chazal?] Z"L: we beat him on no-good we hear, similar to whats written in Rambam, Perek 24 from [hilachos] sanhedrin.

21. The Sages commanded that the people of Israel to be zealous for their wives. and everyone who are not meticulous with his wife, with his children and children of his house and do not order their ways always to the point that they are full of wrongdoing and sin, indeed its like he is a sinner. As the verse says "and thou shalt visit thy habitation, and find nothing desirable" (Job 5:24). And in regard to everyone who takes a his wife, she comes to him [for relations/marriage?] in a spirit of purity. and he will not marry her from midst the market place, and not from the midst [inappropriate] conversation, and not in the midst of levity, and not in the midst of a quarrel, and impose fear on her. and if her transgresses any of these [but] he marries her before two witnesses, indeed this is a marriage.

22. Its improper to be anxious and be jealous before witnesses come. Even between them he will not say to her "don't be alone with this man", as it will be explained. Rather it cause animosity between them, [it should be done] in a way of gentleness, purity and cautiousness, in order to remove the obstacle [in the relationship] and guide it straight on.