1Mens israelitterne lå i lejr i Shittim,[1] syndede nogle af de unge mænd ved at ligge med moabitiske piger.2Det skete ved, at pigerne inviterede dem med til de fester, de holdt for deres afguder, og det førte til, at mændene ikke bare spiste afgudsofferkød, men deltog åbenlyst i afgudsdyrkelsen med dertil hørende utugt.3Inden længe begyndte mange af israelitterne at dyrke moabitternes gud, Ba’al-Peor. Da sendte Herren i sin vrede en plage over folket,4og han sagde til Moses: „Kald folkets ledere sammen og lad alle de ansvarlige blive henrettet og hængt op i solen foran mit telt, så min vrede ikke skal udslette hele folket.”5Så gav Moses folkets ledere følgende besked: „De af jeres folk, der er begyndt at dyrke Ba’al-Peor, skal I henrette.”6En af de israelitiske mænd var fræk nok til at tage en af de midjanitiske piger med ind i sit telt nær ved midten af lejren, hvor Moses og folket stod grædende og sørgede foran indgangen til åbenbaringsteltet.7En ung mand ved navn Pinehas, søn af ypperstepræsten Eleazar, opdagede det, sprang op, greb et spyd8og fulgte efter dem ind i teltet, hvor han jog spyddet gennem mandens krop og ind i pigens mave. Da standsede plagen,9som indtil da havde kostet 24.000 mennesker livet.10Herren sagde nu til Moses:11„Du kan takke Pinehas for at plagen standsede, for han forstod min harme og afværgede, at min vrede gjorde yderligere indhug iblandt jer.12-13Fordi han handlede i nidkærhed for Gud, og fordi han derved skaffede soning for Israels folk, lover jeg ham og hans efterkommere, at de altid skal være mine præster.”14Den mand, som blev dræbt sammen med den midjanitiske pige, hed Zimri. Han var søn af Salu, som var en af lederne i Simeons stamme.15Pigens navn var Kozbi. Hun var datter af en midjanitisk fyrste ved navn Zur.16-17„Du skal udrydde midjanitterne,” sagde Herren til Moses,18„for de forførte jer ved at lokke jer bort fra mig og få jer til at dyrke deres afguder i stedet. Det, der skete med Kozbi, som døde den dag, plagen brød løs på grund af Ba’al-Peor, er et eksempel på, hvad der vil ske med hele det midjanitiske folk.”
1While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. (4.Mos 31,16; 4.Mos 33,49; Josva 2,1; Josva 3,1; Mika 6,5)2These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. (2.Mos 34,15; Josva 22,17; Salm 106,28; Hos 9,10; 1.Kor 10,20)3So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel.4And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang[1] them in the sun before the Lord, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” (4.Mos 25,11; 5.Mos 4,3; 5.Mos 13,17; 5.Mos 21,23; 2.Sam 21,6; Gal 3,13)5And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.” (2.Mos 18,21; 2.Mos 18,25; 2.Mos 32,27; 4.Mos 11,16)6And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. (Joel 2,17)7When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand (2.Mos 6,25; Salm 106,30)8and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped.9Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand. (5.Mos 4,3; 1.Kor 10,8)
The Zeal of Phinehas
10And the Lord said to Moses,11“Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. (2.Mos 20,5; 5.Mos 32,16; 5.Mos 32,21; 1.Kong 14,22; Salm 78,58; Zef 1,18; Zef 3,8; 1.Kor 10,22; 2.Kor 11,2)12Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, (Mal 2,4)13and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’” (2.Mos 40,15; 1.Krøn 6,4)14The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father’s house belonging to the Simeonites.15And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father’s house in Midian. (4.Mos 31,8; Josva 13,21)16And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,17“Harass the Midianites and strike them down, (4.Mos 31,2; 4.Mos 31,7)18for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.” (4.Mos 23,28; 4.Mos 31,16; Åb 2,14)