Michael Ramel Poet Couplet

Notes About The Poem

_{Sotah (pronounced so-taa) (sounds like soda) is a Jewish ritual}

_{involving the giving of bitter drink to women who were suspected of adultery.}

_{Numbers 5:11-31 KJV gives the details of this ritual. Other details are found in the Talmud.}

_{"Mark 10:5 "And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he}

 _{[Moses] wrote you this precept." [The precept is divorce].}

 

 

If You Drink Sotah

Within the ancient tent of meeting shade
A woman stands where vows are made
The barley offering, silent, coarse, and dry
Is placed before the priest and searching eye
Her tresses loosed, she lifts a trembling hand
To swear she wasn’t with another man
The oath is written, then dissolved away
In bitter waters, a curse or hope’s mainstay
The waters heal and bless if innocent
If not, she bears the pain and embarrassment
In jealous ages, where doubt and faith collide
Her wantonness lingers if she has lied
From ancient scrolls and whispered fears
Sotah’s tale persists throughout the years
A ritual etched in Jewish writings and art
Recording the proceedings of justice, faith, and heart

P.S. If we draw on the Incarnadine Strain
We will not be drowned in the flood, but be blessed by rain

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