1 Now when Israel was living in Shittim the people became false to the Lord, doing evil with the daughters of Moab:
2 For they sent for the people to be present at the offerings made to their gods; and the people took part in their feasts and gave honour to their gods.
3 So Israel had relations with the women of Moab in honour of the Baal of Peor: and the Lord was moved to wrath against Israel.
4 Then the Lord said to Moses, Take all the chiefs of the people, hanging them up in the sun before the Lord, so that the wrath of the Lord may be turned from Israel.
5 So Moses said to the judges of Israel, Let everyone put to death those of his men who have had relations with the women of Moab in honour of the Baal of Peor.
6 Then one of the children of Israel came to his brothers, taking with him a woman of Midian, before the eyes of Moses and all the meeting of the people, while they were weeping at the door of the Tent of meeting.
7 And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, seeing it, got up from among the people and took a spear in his hand,
8 And went after the man of Israel into the tent, driving the spear through the two of them, through the man of Israel and through the stomach of the woman. So the disease was stopped among the children of Israel.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Numbers 25
Commentary on Numbers 25 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 25
Israel, having escaped the curse of Balaam, here sustains a great deal of damage and reproach by the counsel of Balaam, who, it seems, before he left Balak, put him into a more effectual way than that which Balak thought of to separate between the Israelites and their God. "The Lord will not be prevailed with by Balaam's charms to ruin them; try if they will not be prevailed with by the charms of the daughters of Moab to ruin themselves.' None are more fatally bewitched than those that are bewitched by their own lusts. Here is,
Num 25:1-5
Here is,
Num 25:6-15
Here is a remarkable contest between wickedness and righteousness, which shall be most bold and resolute; and righteousness carries the day, as no doubt it will at last.
Num 25:16-18
God had punished the Israelites for their sin with a plague; as a Father he corrected his own children with a rod. But we read not that any of the Midianites died of the plague; God took another course with them, and punished them with the sword of an enemy, not with the rod of a father.