וְהַדָּוָה֙ בְּנִדָּתָ֔הּ וְהַזָּב֙ אֶת־זוֹב֔וֹ לַזָּכָ֖ר וְלַנְּקֵבָ֑ה וּלְאִ֕ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִשְׁכַּ֖ב עִם־טְמֵאָֽה׃

and concerning her whose condition is that of menstrual separation; and concerning anyone, male or female, who has a discharge; and concerning a man who lies with an impure woman.

(The above rendering comes from the RJPS translation, an adaptation of the NJPS translation.)


The terms in question are דָּוָה (an adjective used as a substantive) and נִדָּה. I discussed a verbal form of דָּוָה at 12:2 and נִדָּה at 15:19; see my comments there. The first of those notes explains my disinclination to construe דָּוָה in terms of infirmity, and my preference for seeing it as indicating a condition more neutrally.

The sense of the compound term הַדָּוָה בְּנִדָּתָהּ is not clear. Because either element alone would have seemed sufficient to name the intended class reference in this summary statement, I take the compound as an intensification.


As for translation into English, the NJPS rendering her who is in menstrual infirmity seems to follow a view that is difficult to defend. In English, the perceived intensification can be expressed by wording that is more formal than usual. The revised rendering is based on a suggestion by Adele Berlin.