Israel Worships Baal Peor

1 But Israel stayed in Shittim; and the people began to have illicit sexual relations with the daughters of Moab; 2 and they invited the people to the sacrifices of their idols, and the people ate and bowed down to their idols. 3 And Israel was joined to Baal-peor, and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said to Moses: Take all the chiefs of the people, and judge, and put to death anyone who deserves death before the Lord,⁠a in broad daylight, so that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel. 5 And Moses said to the judges of Israel: Each of you shall put to death the men under his authority who have joined themselves to Baal-peor.

Phinehas and the Covenant of Priesthood

6 And, look, a man of the sons of Israel came and brought to his brothers a Midianite woman, in the eyes of Moses, and in the eyes of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping at the door of the Tent of Meeting. 7 And Phinehas son of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest saw, and arose from the middle of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand; 8 and he went in after the man, the son of Israel, into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man, the son of Israel, and the woman, through her belly; and the plague among the children of Israel was stopped. 9 But those who had died by the plague were 24,000. 10 And the Lord spoke with Moses, saying: 11 Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned away My anger from the children of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal among them; and I have not destroyed the children of Israel in My jealousy. 12 Therefore say to him: Look, I grant him My covenant of peace; 13 and he and his descendants after him shall have it; a covenant of priesthood forever, because he has been zealous before his God, and has made atonement for the children of Israel. 14 And the name of the man of Israel who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, a chief of the ancestral household of the house of Simeon; 15 and the name of the woman, the Midianite woman, was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, who was chief of the people of his father's house in Midian.

Judgment on Midian

16 And the Lord spoke with Moses, saying: 17 Punish the Midianites and kill them, 18 for they afflict you with their snares, with which they ensnare you; as in the incident at Peor and the incident with Cozbi, daughter of a leader of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague in the incident at Peor.