Commento su Sotah 3:1

היה נוטל – her husband [would take] her meal-offering, for the command of the priesthood regarding meal-offering is from taking a fistful of the meal-offering and onward (see also Talmud Menahot 9a) and bringing near [the meal-offering] is also the beginning of taking a fistful of the meal-offering but a foreigner (i.e., non-Kohen) does not make an offering on the altar but the sanctification of the utensils and the pouring of oil (on the flour – see Leviticus 2:1) and the mixing, as meal-offerings require oil are appropriate for non-Kohanim.

Introduction Numbers 5:25 reads, “Then the priest shall take from the woman’s hand the meal offering of jealousy, and wave the meal-offering before the Lord, and present it on the altar.” Our mishnah explains and paraphrases this verse. Interestingly, the Mishnah never describes the rubbing out of God’s name, although this is alluded to. Perhaps the activity was too frightful to even be described.

He takes her meal-offering out of the basket of palm-twigs and places it in a ministering vessel and sets it upon her hand. And the priest places his hand under hers and waves it. Above in mishnah one we learned that the meal offering was in the woman’s hands, in a basket of palm twigs. The priest now takes the offering and puts it in a ministering vessel, one of the normal vessels used in the Temple, as is customary for all meal offerings. The Torah does not state that the woman aids in the waving of the meal offering. However, the rabbis learned that all meal offerings are jointly waved by their owners and by the priest.

וכהן מניח ידו תחתיה – as it states regarding peace offerings (Leviticus 7:30): “his own hands shall present [the LORD’s offerings by fire],” and it is stated regarding the meal-offering of the woman suspected of unfaithfulness by her husband (Numbers 5:25): “Then the priest shall take from the woman’s hand [the meal-offering of jealousy,” just as with peace-offerings, the Kohen places his hand underneath the hand of the owners and waves it, so also in the meal-offering of the woman suspected of unfaithfulness by her husband, the Kohen places his hand underneath the hand of the woman and waves it.