Numbers
Summary
Numbers Chapter 25 describes a tragic and shameful episode where the men of Israel were lured into idolatry and immorality by the women of Moab and Midian. This spiritual unfaithfulness, masterminded by Balaam's lingering advice, led to a deadly plague in the camp. The judgement was only halted by the zealous action of Phinehas, Aaron's grandson, who defended God's holiness by executing a brazen rebel. For this, God granted Phinehas and his descendants a perpetual covenant of peace and priesthood. This event was a final reminder that spiritual compromise is more dangerous than any external army for the people of a holy God.
While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women,
who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods.
So Israel yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor. And the LORD’s anger burned against them.
The 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."
So 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."
Then 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.
When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand
and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear through both of them, through the Israelite man and into the woman’s body. Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped;
but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.
The LORD said to Moses,
"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.
Therefore tell him I am making my covenant of peace with him.
He 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."
The name of the Israelite who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family.
And the name of the Midianite woman who was put to death was Kozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.
The LORD said to Moses,
"Treat the Midianites as enemies and kill them.
They 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 the Peor incident."