Numbers 25:1–13

The Sin of Peor

¹While Israel remained at ^aShittim, the people began ^bto play the harlot with the daughters of Moab.

²For ^athey invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.

³So ^aIsrael joined themselves to ¹Baal of Peor, and the Lord was angry against Israel.

⁴The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them ¹in broad daylight before the Lord, ^aso that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.”

⁵So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you ^aslay his men who have joined themselves to ¹Baal of Peor.”

⁶Then behold, one of the sons of Israel came and brought to his ¹relatives a ^aMidianite woman, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, ^bwhile they were weeping at the doorway of the tent of meeting.

^7aWhen Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he arose from the midst of the congregation and took a spear in his hand,

⁸and he went after the man of Israel into the ¹tent and pierced both of them through, the man of Israel and the woman, through the ²body. ^aSo the plague on the sons of Israel was checked.

^9aThose who died by the plague were 24,000.

The Zeal of Phinehas

¹⁰Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

¹¹“^aPhinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away My wrath from the sons of Israel in that he was jealous with My jealousy among them, so that I did not destroy the sons of Israel ^bin My jealousy.

¹²“Therefore say, ‘^aBehold, I give him My ^bcovenant of peace;

¹³and it shall be for him and his ¹descendants after him, a covenant of a ^aperpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and ^bmade atonement for the sons of Israel.’ ”