The ancient Rabbis grappled with this very human impulse, especially when it came to matters of infidelity and divine justice. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 9 that explores this idea.
The text begins by quoting (Jeremiah 23:24): "Can a man hide in concealed places and I will not see him, the utterance of the Lord?" The Rabbis interpret this verse as referring specifically to an adulterer hiding to commit his transgression. (Job 24:15) echoes this sentiment: "The eye of the adulterer awaits the night, saying: No eye will behold me; and he masks his face."
But can anyone truly hide from God? The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) answers with a powerful parable. Imagine a thief trying to steal from a house with two sets of guards, one inside and one outside. He manages to evade the inner guard, but the outer guard catches him. The outer guard scolds him, "You made a mockery of the inside one, but you are unable to make a mockery of me."
This, the Midrash suggests, is how God views the adulterer. You may deceive the woman’s husband, but you cannot deceive God. As (Psalms 2:4) reminds us, "He who resides in heaven will laugh; the Lord will ridicule them." God sees everything. (Zechariah 4:10) tells us "The eyes of the Lord rove throughout the earth," and (Proverbs 15:3) adds, "The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, observing the wicked and the good.”
And what happens then? God becomes a "swift witness," publicizing the adulterer’s sin. (Malachi 3:5) lists those against whom God will be a swift witness, including "adulterers." The text then cleverly connects this to the ritual of the sotah, the suspected adulteress.
The sotah ritual, described in Numbers 5, involves a woman suspected of adultery being brought before the priests. She drinks a special mixture of water and dust, and if she is guilty, she will suffer physical consequences. The Midrash interprets (Jeremiah 23:24) ("And I will not see him [erenu], the utterance of the Lord?") as "I will not display him [arenu]" – God will reveal the adulterer's actions through the ordeal of the sotah. In essence, God orchestrates events to expose the hidden sin. As the text states, "With your husband you commit a trespass and are deceitful; with Me, you are not able to be deceitful, as I will publicize your actions."
The passage concludes with a chilling story. Two sisters, identical in appearance, lived in different cities. One sister committed adultery, and when her husband became suspicious and planned to subject her to the sotah ritual, she traveled to her sister's city. The adulterous sister confessed her sin, and the innocent sister, in an act of misguided loyalty, offered to take her place. She drank the bitter water and was found innocent. However, when the two sisters embraced, the adulterous sister smelled the bitter water on her sister's breath and immediately died. This illustrates the verse from (Ecclesiastes 8:8): "There is no man who rules the spirit, to retain the spirit; and there is no rule over the day of death. There is no sending a proxy in war, and wickedness will not save the one who practices it."
Ultimately, this Midrash teaches us that no sin is truly hidden from God. While we may deceive others, we cannot deceive the Divine. The story of the sisters serves as a stark reminder that our actions have consequences, and that justice, in its own way, will always prevail. The sotah ritual, though seemingly archaic, becomes a powerful symbol of God's all-seeing eye and the inevitable exposure of hidden transgressions. So, what does this say to us? Perhaps that true freedom comes not from hiding our actions, but from living a life of integrity, knowing that we are always seen, always known.
Another matter: “And commit a trespass against him” – that is what is written: “Can a man hide in concealed places and I will not see him, the utterance of the Lord?” (Jeremiah 23:24). It is speaking of an adulterer who conceals himself in a hidden place to perform lewdness, just as it says: “The eye of the adulterer awaits the night, saying: No eye will behold me; and he masks his face” (Job 24:15). “And I will not see him, the utterance of the Lord”? A parable: to what is this matter analogous? It is to one who entered into two houses to steal; one was within the other, and there were two guards, one outside and one inside. When he came to exit the inner entrance, he emerged and the inside guard was unaware of him. When he came to emerge from the outer one, the outside guard noticed him and apprehended him. He said to him: You made a mockery of the inside one, but you are unable to make a mockery of me. So, the Holy One blessed be He said to the adulterer: You made a mockery of the woman’s husband, as he was unaware of you. But I sit and ridicule the wicked, just as it says: “He who resides in heaven will laugh; the Lord will ridicule them” (Psalms 2:4), because I see everything, just as it says: “The eyes of the Lord rove throughout the earth” (Zechariah 4:10), and it says: “The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, observing the wicked and the good.” (Proverbs 15:3). I will be a swift witness to publicize you in the world, just as it says: “I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against the takers of false oaths, against the exploiters of the hired worker in his wages, the widow, and the orphan, and the perverters of justice against the stranger; they do not fear Me, said the Lord of hosts” (Malachi 3:5). Here too it says: “And I will not see him [erenu], the utterance of the Lord?” Read it as, “I will not display him [arenu]” to the people and publicize his actions? How does He publicize his actions? The Holy One blessed be He directs the heart of the husband of the sota to warn his wife. He gives her to drink, and the water examines the sota and the adulterer. That is, “and I will not see him, the utterance of the Lord?” At that moment the adulterer is publicized, and everyone knows that he lay with her. Here, too, it says: “And commit a trespass against him.” The Holy One blessed be He said to the sota: ‘With your husband you commit a trespass and are deceitful; with Me, you are not able to be deceitful, as I will publicize your actions.’ He will cause a spirit of jealousy to pass over him, she will drink, and both of them will be judged. That is, “and commit a trespass against him.”19Against him, but not against the Holy One blessed be He. They said: There was an incident involving two sisters who resembled one another, and one was married in another city. The husband of one of them sought to warn her and have her drink the bitter water in Jerusalem. She went to that city that her sister was married there. Her sister said to her: ‘What led you to come here?’ She said to her: ‘My husband wants to have me drink the bitter water, and I am defiled.’ Her sister said to her: ‘I will go in your stead and drink.’ She said to her: ‘Go and do so.’ What did she do? She donned her sister’s garments, went, drank the water, and was found pure, She returned to her home. Her sister, who had committed the act of harlotry, went out to meet her. They hugged and kissed one another. When they kissed each other, she smelled the bitter water. She died immediately, to realize what is stated: “There is no man who rules the spirit, to retain the spirit; and there is no rule over the day of death. There is no sending a proxy in war, and wickedness will not save the one who practices it” (Ecclesiastes 8:8). That is, “I will not see him…?” (Jeremiah 23:24). That is why it is stated: “And commit a trespass against him.”
