Numbers 25
Israel Worships Baal
1While Israel was staying in the Acacia Grove, the people began to prostitute themselves with the women of Moab.23The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods.45So Israel aligned itself with Baal of Peor, and the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.67The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord so that his burning anger may turn away from Israel.”89So Moses told Israel’s judges, “Kill each of the men who aligned themselves with Baal of Peor.”10
Phinehas Intervenes
11An Israelite man came bringing a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses and the whole Israelite community while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting.1213When Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw this, he got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand,1415followed the Israelite man into the tent, and drove it through both the Israelite man and the woman — through her belly. Then the plague on the Israelites was stopped,1617but those who died in the plague numbered twenty-four thousand.1819The Lord spoke to Moses,2021“Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the Israelites because he was zealous among them with my zeal, so that I did not destroy the Israelites in my zeal.2223Therefore declare: I grant him my covenant of peace.2425It will be a covenant of perpetual priesthood for him and his future descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”26
27The name of the slain Israelite man, who was struck dead with the Midianite woman, was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family.2829The name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal head of a family in Midian.30