Chapter 25
1 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit
harlotry with the daughters of Moab.
2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their
gods; and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
3 And Israel joined himself unto the Baal of Peor; and the
anger of HaShem was kindled against Israel.
4 And HaShem said unto Moses: 'Take all the chiefs of the
people, and hang them up unto HaShem in face of the sun, that the fierce anger
of HaShem may turn away from Israel.'
5 And Moses said unto the judges of Israel: 'Slay ye every
one his men that have joined themselves unto the Baal of Peor.'
6 And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought
unto his brethren a Midianitish 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 And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the
priest, saw it, he rose up from the midst of the congregation, and took a spear
in his hand.
8 And he went after the man of Israel into the chamber, and
thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly.
So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel.
9 And those that died by the plague were twenty and four
thousand.
10 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
11 'Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the
priest, hath turned My wrath away from the children of Israel, in that he was
very jealous for My sake among them, so that I consumed not the children of
Israel in My jealousy.
12 Wherefore say: Behold, I give unto him My covenant of
peace;
13 and it shall be unto him, and to his seed after him, the
covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was jealous for his G-d, 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 Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a
fathers' house among the Simeonites.
15 And the name of the Midianitish woman that was slain was
Cozbi, the daughter of Zur; he was head of the people of a fathers' house in
Midian.
16 And HaShem spoke unto Moses, saying:
17 'Harass the Midianites, and smite them;
18 for they harass you, by their wiles wherewith they have
beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of
the prince of Midian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague in
the matter of Peor.'
19 And it came to pass after the plague,
Sources: Portions copyright © 1997 by Benyamin Pilant, All Rights Reserved
JPS Electronic Edition, based on the 1917 JPS translation, Copyright © 1998 by Larry Nelson, All Rights Reserved
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