the reward of the innocent sota

 Brachos 31b (see also Sota 26)

 נקתה ונזרעה זרע מלמד שאם היתה עקרה נפקדת דברי ר' ישמעאל א"ל רבי עקיבא אם כן ילכו כל העקרות כולן ויסתתרו וזו שלא קלקלה נפקדת אלא מלמד שאם היתה יולדת בצער יולדת בריוח קצרים יולדת ארוכים שחורים יולדת לבנים אחד יולדת שנים

 

The Tur takes R' Yishmael's view a step further.  The pasuk that follows וְאִם־לֹ֤א נִטְמְאָה֙ הָֽאִשָּׁ֔ה וּטְהֹרָ֖ה הִ֑וא וְנִקְּתָ֖ה וְנִזְרְעָ֥ה זָֽרַע׃ is זֹ֥את תּוֹרַ֖ת הַקְּנָאֹ֑ת...  Commenting on the smichus, he writes: לומר שאם טהורה היא יהיו לה בנים צדיקים בעלי תורה.  Not only will the sota have children, but they will be big talmidei chachamim.

 

What does R' Yishmael do with the argument that אם כן ילכו כל העקרות כולן ויסתתרו?  R' Nosson Gestetner in his sefer on chumash suggests that the machlokes here in l'shitasam.  

 

Rashi comments on לֹֽא־תַעֲשׂ֣וּן כֵּ֔ן לַה׳ אֱלֹקיכֶֽם (Devarim 12:4):

 

דבר אחר: ונתצתם את מזבחותם ואבדתם את שמם, לא תעשון כן – אזהרה למוחק את השם, ולנותץ אבן מן המזבח או מן העזרה.

אמר ר׳ ישמעאל: וכי תעלה על דעתך שישראל נותצין למזבחות? אלא: שלא תעשו כמעשיהם ויגרמו עוונותיכם למקדש אבותיכם שיחרב

 

Achronim (e.g. Chasam Sofer) point out that the difference between Tana Kamma and R' Yishmael is whether there is an issur of geram mechikas HaShem.  According to the Tana Kamma, it is only actively erasing the shem Hashem which is prohibited, but according to R"Y, even causing the shem Hashem or the makom mikdash to be obliterated is assur. 

 

R' Yishmael was perhaps not persuaded by R' Akiva's argument because l'shitaso, an innocent woman  would not pretend to be a sotah because in doing so she would be causing shem Hashem to be erased, violating the issur mechikas Hashem through gerama. 

 

Why is it that the sota who is innocent deserves any reward?  Isn't this a case of chotei nischar, one who gains from wrongdoing?  After all, it's not like the sota is completely innocent.  There was kinuy, there was stirah; it is as close to a red line as you can get.  Ibn Ezra, interestingly, addresses this question. Most of the meforshei pshat learn that ונזרעה זרע just means she now has a heter to resume living with her husband.  Ibn Ezra, who so often rejects derash in favor of pshat, here chooses to defend the derash that it is a reward:  ונזרעה זרע – שיתן לה הבורא זרע בשכר הקלון שאירע לה.  The public embarrassment of the sota process is so devastating that despite the fact that she is not completely innocent, Hashem promises s reward to make up for what she underwent. 

 

R' Shimon Sofer has a different hesber that helps answer the question of אם כן ילכו כל העקרות כולן ויסתתרו.  The sota was warned, but could not resist trouble and violated the issur yichud.  However, despite the temptation to do more than that, the sota caught herself and pulled back from that red line.  When push came to shove, she resisted!  Chazal tell us that someone who overcomes the temptation for aveira is worthy of having a miracle performed.  That's why the sota deserves a reward.  

The same logic does not hold true for a woman who is wholly innocent and just wants to have children.  She really has no temptation to do wrong, and therefore, will earn no credit for overcoming a desire that does not exist.

 

The juxtaposition of sota and nazir takes on even more interesting color given this interpretation.  The nazir climbs to the greatest heights and is called kadosh.  The sota has sunken to dangerous depths of misbehavior.  Nonetheless, Hashem does not reserve reward only for the nazir.  L'fum tzaara agra.  For someone in the shoes of the sota, pulling back in the face of the temptation after one has already gone so far is a mighty achievement and garners tremendous reward as well.