1While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women,2who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods.3So Israel yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor. And the Lord’s anger burned against them.4The Lord said to Moses, ‘Take all the leaders of these people, kill them and expose them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the Lord’s fierce anger may turn away from Israel.’5So Moses said to Israel’s judges, ‘Each of you must put to death those of your people who have yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor.’6Then an Israelite man brought into the camp a Midianite woman right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting.7When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand8and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach. Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped;9but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.10The Lord said to Moses,11‘Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites. Since he was as zealous for my honour among them as I am, I did not put an end to them in my zeal.12Therefore tell him I am making my covenant of peace with him.13He and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honour of his God and made atonement for the Israelites.’14The name of the Israelite who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family.15And the name of the Midianite woman who was put to death was Kozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.16The Lord said to Moses,17‘Treat the Midianites as enemies and kill them.18They treated you as enemies when they deceived you in the Peor incident involving their sister Kozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader, the woman who was killed when the plague came as a result of that incident.’
Numbers 25
English Standard Version
Baal Worship at Peor
1While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. (Nu 31:16; Nu 33:49; Jos 2:1; Jos 3:1; Mic 6:5)2These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. (Ex 34:15; Jos 22:17; Ps 106:28; Ho 9:10; 1Co 10:20)3So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel.4And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang[1] them in the sun before the Lord, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” (Nu 25:11; De 4:3; De 13:17; De 21:23; 2Sa 21:6; Ga 3:13)5And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.” (Ex 18:21; Ex 18:25; Ex 32:27; Nu 11:16)6And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. (Joe 2:17)7When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand (Ex 6:25; Ps 106:30)8and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped.9Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand. (De 4:3; 1Co 10:8)
The Zeal of Phinehas
10And the Lord said to Moses,11“Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. (Ex 20:5; De 32:16; De 32:21; 1Ki 14:22; Ps 78:58; Zep 1:18; Zep 3:8; 1Co 10:22; 2Co 11:2)12Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, (Mal 2:4)13and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’” (Ex 40:15; 1Ch 6:4)14The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father’s house belonging to the Simeonites.15And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father’s house in Midian. (Nu 31:8; Jos 13:21)16And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,17“Harass the Midianites and strike them down, (Nu 31:2; Nu 31:7)18for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.” (Nu 23:28; Nu 31:16; Re 2:14)