המקנא לאשתו – even though that one suspects [one’s wife], which implies, post-facto, yes, and ab initio, no, the Halakha is that a man is obligated to be jealous over one’s wife if she is in need of this, and further on (Mishnah 2), it (i.e., the Mishnah) explains how one suspects [one’s wife].

מקנא לה על פי שנים – if he comes to cause her to drink the bitter waters, he must bring two witnesses, and to say to her in their presence, “do not hide yourself with a certain man,” but if he didn’t accuse her of unfaithfulness before two [witnesses], she is not prohibited to him through her retirement with this man under suspicious circumstances, and he doesn’t cause her to drink [the bitter waters].

על פי עד אחד או ע"פ עצמו – even if there aren’t other than one witness that she secluded herself, or he himself states: “I saw her that she secluded herself [with him] after I suspected her of being unfaithful, she is forbidden through this woman’s retirement with a man under suspicious circumstances, until she drinks [the bitter waters], for her suspected retirement with this man under suspicious circumstances prohibits her to him (i.e., her husband) from a doubt.

ר' יהושע אומר כו' – one needs two witnesses even for the woman’s retirement with a man under suspicious circumstances. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yehoshua and even though we state in the Gemara (Talmud Sotah 2b) that at this time, a man should not say to his wife, even between him an her [alone] that she should not seclude herself with that particular man, for one fears for the words of Rabbi Yose the son of Rabbi Yehuda who stated that a warning [is effective] if given by one witness or on [the husband’s personal testimony. If she then secluded herself with the man, since we do no have now he water for a suspected woman to test her, the husband forbids her to himself for all time.

כיצד הוא מקנא לה אמר לה בפני שנים אל תדברי עם איש פלוני כו' – In the Gemara (Talmud Sotah 5b): He said in the presence of two [witnesses], “do not speak [with him]” and she speaks [with him], or “do not speak with him” and she secludes herself [with him], and it is nothing, and she is not prohibited neither to husband nor to [partaking of] Priest’s due–Terumah (if her husband is a Kohen). If he said to her, “do not seclude yourself [with him] and she spoke with him, for she was not yet secluded, she is permitted to her husband and she is permitted to eat Terumah if she is the wife of a Kohen. If she went with him into the house of seclusion and stayed with him [long enough] that she is impure, she is forbidden to her husband and forbidden to consume Terumah. And the measurement [of time] to become ritually impure is [the time it takes] to roast the egg of a chicken and to quaff it.

אם מת חולצת ולא מתיבמת – but if her husband dies prior to causing her to drink [the bitter waters], she is released by Halitzah (i.e., she removes the shoe of her dead husband’s brother [and spits in his face]) and does not engage in a levirate marriage [with her dead husband’s brother], as it is written (Deuteronomy 24:2): “She leaves his household and becomes the wife of another man.” And they (i.e., the Rabbis) expound: “to another man” but not to the levir, and even though she is not permitted to a stranger without Halitzah, for just as if her husband were alive, she would not be permitted [to another man] without a Get–Jewish bill of divorce, so similarly, she is not permitted from the levir without Halizah.

היו מעלים אותה לב"ד הגדול – as it is written concerning the woman suspected by her husband of having been unfaithful (Numbers 5:30): “And the priest shall carry out all of this ritual (i.e., Torah) with her,” and it is written there (Deuteronomy 17:11): “You shall act in accordance with the instructions (i.e., Torah) given you.” Just as there it takes place in the High Jewish Court, so here too, in the High Jewish Court.

ומאיימין עליה – in order that she will confess.

הרבה ילדות עושה – and causes to give birth to moral corruption.

דברים שאינן כדאי לשומען – which is not appropriate to hear these things that they say in her presence from the deeds of the righteous people such as Judah who admitted and was not ashamed for the incident with Tamar. Reuven admitted and was not ashamed with the episode of Bilhah.

שוברת כתובתה – she writes a receipt on her Ketubah–marriage contract: “I have run about as a prostitute–been unfaithful and I have lost [the right to] my Ketubah in order that she would not be able to return and claim her Ketubah from him, but in a place where they do not write a Ketubah, but rather rely upon a condition of the Jewish court, is where she writes a receipt, but in a place where they write a Ketubah, she tears up her Ketubah and does not write a receipt.

מעלין אותה לשער המזרח – they bring her up and take her down in order to tire her so that perhaps her mind will become insane and she will confess.

שעל פתח שער נקנור – a man whose name is Nicanor who brought doors to that opening from Alexandria of Egypt and miracles occurred for him and it is called the Gate of Nicanor in his name as we state in [Tractate] Yoma [38a].

ששם משקין את הסוטות – since we require “before God.”

ומטהרין את היולדות – in order that they will stand on top of their sacrifices and the same law applies regarding men and women with a flux which require a sacrifice.

ומטהרין את המצורע – as it is written (Leviticus 14:11): “These shall be presented before the LORD [with the man to be cleansed at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting] by the priest who performs the cleansing.”

אוחז בבגדיה – at their front of the neck.

אם נקרעו – he does not suspect and if they were torn, he does not suspect for the rending of garments is greater than rending, which was rent into many torn pieces. Another language: tearing from the sides is tearing by length.

עד שמגלה את לבה – as it is written (Numbers 5:18): “[the priest] shall bare the woman’s head.” I don’t know anything other than her head; her body – from where? The inference teaches us: “the woman.” If so, what is the inference concerning “her head?” It teaches that he cuts her hair.

רבי יהודה אומר כו' – perhaps she goes out innocent and the young priests become jealous of her for they saw that her heart was pleasant and her beautiful hair, but the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda.

היתה מכוסה בלבנים מכסה בשחורים – if they were black [clothing] that were nice for her, cover her with ugly black clothing.

קטליות – large that they place around the neck and because the woman chokes herself with them in order that she would appear to have a lot of skin, they are called קטליות –chains–necklaces.

נזמים וטבעות מעבירים ממנה – The Gemara (Talmud Sotah 8b) explains that you would not say that she should leave the earrings and rings after her clothes had been torn and revealed her heart–bosom that this is more of a disgrace to her just as it is a greater disgrace for a naked man that he should walk with shoes on his feet than walk barefoot. It comes to teach us that this is not the case.

חבל מצרי – It explains in the Jerusalem Talmud that because she acted in the ways of Egypt, but if there is no “common rope”–Egyptian rope, bring other ropes.

קושרו למעלה מדדיה – so that her clothing doesn’t fall and she would remain naked.

וכל הרוצה לראות יבא ויראה – and specifically, with men, it is optional and not obligatory, but with women, it is obligatory upon all the women that are found there to come and look as it is written (Ezekiel 23:48): “and all the women shall take warning [not to imitate your wantonness].”

וכל הנשים מותרות לראותה. חייבין לראות – But women are permitted to look at her and obligated to look at her. This is explained in the Gemara (Talmud Sotah 8b).

המקום ניולה – that a Kohen reveals her head and unravels her hair and rends her clothing.

היא גלתה את עצמה – she sat at the crossroads and revealed herself to an adulterer.

המקום גלה עליה – that a Kohen places her at the Nicanor Gate and shows her disgrace to everyone.

בירך התחילה בעבירה תחילה – on the way to sexual intercourse, the thigh benefits first through the closeness of the flesh.

ושאר כל הגוף לא פלט the other limbs of her body are not spared from the illness, even though they are not mentioned in the Bible other than the stomach and the thigh.

לונביאות – spears.

לב אביו – Absalom said to his father (i.e., King David): “Write for me that two people that I will choose from all of Israel will go with me.” He wrote for him. He would show his father’s signature to two [people] and they follow him. [He then shows it to] two others and they follow him until he gathered two hundred men. All of them are heads of the Sanhedrins. For he stole the heart of his father, the heart of the Jewish court and the heart of all Israel, as it is written (II Samuel 15:6): “Thus Absalom won away the hearts of the men of Israel.”

וכן לענין הטובה – we give a man a reward of the nature of the good that he did. But, however, more than what he did he is recompensed, for a good measure is greater in payments than the measure of retribution.