“Speak to the children of Israel and tell them: If any man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful, yes, unfaithful to him,
“unfaithful, yes, unfaithful.” The Hebrew text contains the figure of speech polyptoton, doubling “unfaithful” for emphasis (cp. Num. 5:6). The woman’s sin is considered very serious in the sight of God in part because of the importance of keeping the lineages in Israel known. [For more on the figure polyptoton and the way it is translated here, see commentary on Genesis 2:16].
