Israel's Sin at Moab
Numbers 25, verse 1. Now Israel remained in Sattin, and the people were defiled by committing fornication with the daughters of Moab. Numbers 25, verse 2. They invited them to the sacrifices of their idols; and the people ate their sacrifices and worshiped their idols. Numbers 25, verse 3. So Israel consecrated themselves to Baal of Peor; and the Lord was very angry with Israel. Numbers 25, verse 4. Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the rulers of the people and make a public example of them for the Lord, that the anger of the Lord's wrath may be turned away from Israel.” Numbers 25, verse 5. So Moses said to the tribes of Israel, “Each one of you kill any member of his household who was consecrated to Baal of Peor.” Numbers 25, verse 6. Now behold, a man of the children of Israel came and brought his brother to a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and all the congregation of the children of Israel; and they were weeping at the door of the tabernacle of testimony. Numbers 25, verse 7. Now when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw this, he rose from among the congregation; and taking a spear in his hand, Numbers 25, verse 8. he went after the man of Israel into the chambers and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her womb. So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel. Numbers 25, verse 9. But those who died in the plague were twenty-four thousand. Numbers 25, verse 10. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Numbers 25, verse 11. “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, stopped My wrath from among the children of Israel when he was zealous with My zeal among them. So I did not utterly destroy the children of Israel in My zeal. Numbers 25, verse 12. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him My covenant of peace; Numbers 25, verse 13. and there shall be to him and his seed after him a covenant of an eternal priesthood; because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the children of Israel.’” Numbers 25, verse 14. Now the name of the man of Israel who was struck down together with the Midianite woman was Zimri the son of Salu, the ruler of a house of a Simeonite family. Numbers 25, verse 15. The name of the Midianite woman who was struck down was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, the ruler of the nation of Ommoth, of the house of a Midianite family. Numbers 25, verse 16. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Numbers 25, verse 17. “Be at enmity with the Midianites and strike them; Numbers 25, verse 18. for they themselves are at enmity with you in their deceit, inasmuch as they dealt treacherously with you in the matter of Peor and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of a ruler of Midian, their sister, who was struck down in the day of the plague because of Peor.”