Numbers 5:14

5:14 and if jealous feelings ¹  come over him and he becomes suspicious ²  of his wife, when she is defiled; ³  or if jealous feelings come over him and he becomes suspicious of his wife, when she is not defiled –

Numbers 31:12

31:12 They brought the captives and the spoils and the plunder to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the Israelite community, to the camp on the plains ⁴  of Moab, along the Jordan River ⁵  across from Jericho. ⁶ 

[5:14]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text has the construct case, “spirit of jealousy.” The word “spirit” here has the sense of attitude, mood, feelings. The word קִנְאָה (qin’ah) is the genitive of attribute, modifying what kind of feelings they are. The word means either “zeal” or “jealousy,” depending on the context. It is a passionate feeling to guard or protect an institution or relationship. It can also express strong emotional possessiveness such as envy and coveting. Here there is a feeling of jealousy, but no proof of infidelity.

[5:14]  ² tn The word is now used in the Piel stem; the connotation is certainly “suspicious,” for his jealousy seems now to have some basis, even if it is merely suspicion.

[5:14]  ³ tn The noun clause begins with the conjunction and the pronoun; here it is forming a circumstantial clause, either temporal or causal.

[31:12]  ⁴ tn Or “steppes.”

[31:12]  ⁵ tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[31:12]  ⁶ tn Again this expression, “the Jordan of Jericho,” is used. It describes the intended location along the Jordan River, the Jordan next to or across from Jericho.