25
1 Israel
stayed in Shittim;
and the people
began to play
the prostitute
with the daughters
of Moab;
2 for
they called the
people to the
sacrifices of
their gods. The
people ate and
bowed down to
their gods.
3 Israel
joined himself to
Baal Peor, and
the LORD’s anger
burned against
Israel.
4 The
LORD said to Moses,
“Take all the
chiefs of the
people, and hang
them up to
the LORD before
the sun, that
the fierce anger
of the LORD
may turn away
from Israel.”
5 Moses said
to the judges
of Israel, “Everyone
kill his men
who have
joined themselves to
Baal Peor.”
6 Behold,
one of the
children of Israel
came and brought
to his brothers
a Midianite woman
in the sight
of Moses, and
in the sight
of all the
congregation of
the children of
Israel, while they
were weeping at
the door of
the Tent of
Meeting.
7 When
Phinehas, the son
of Eleazar, the
son of Aaron the
priest, saw it,
he rose up
from the middle
of the
congregation, and
took a spear
in his hand.
8 He
went after the
man of Israel
into the pavilion,
and thrust both
of them through,
the man of
Israel, and
the woman through
her body. So the
plague was stopped
among the children
of Israel.
9 Those who
died by the
plague were
twenty-four thousand.
10 The
LORD spoke to
Moses, saying,
11 “Phinehas,
the son of Eleazar,
the son of Aaron
the priest, has
turned my wrath
away from the
children of Israel,
in that he
was jealous with
my jealousy among
them, so that
I didn’t consume
the children of
Israel in my
jealousy.
12 Therefore say, ‘Behold,
I give to
him my covenant
of peace.
13 It
shall be to
him, and to
his offspring
after him, the
covenant of an
everlasting priesthood,
because he was
jealous for
his God, and made
atonement for the
children of
Israel.’ ”
14 Now
the name of
the man of
Israel that was
slain, who was
slain with the
Midianite woman,
was Zimri, the
son of Salu,
a prince of
a fathers’ house
among the
Simeonites.
15 The
name of the
Midianite woman
who was slain
was Cozbi, the
daughter of Zur.
He was head
of the people
of a fathers’
house in Midian.
16 The
LORD spoke to
Moses, saying,
17 “Harass
the Midianites,
and strike them;
18 for
they harassed you
with their wiles,
wherein they have
deceived you in
the matter of
Peor, and in
the incident regarding
Cozbi, the
daughter of the
prince of Midian,
their sister, who
was slain on
the day of
the plague in
the matter of
Peor.”