Numbers 25
1WHILE Israel abode at Sattin, the people profaned themselves to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab,
2who invited them to the sacrifices of their idols; and the people ate of their sacrifices, and worshipped their idols,
3and Israel consecrated himself to Belphegor. Whereupon the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel;
4and the Lord said to Moses, Take all those leaders of the people and make a public example of them for the Lord, in the face of the sun; so shall the wrath of the Lord be turned away from Israel.
5Then Moses said to the tribes of Israel, Kill ye, every one, him of his family, who hath consecrated himself to Belphegor.
6And behold there came a man of the children of Israel, who conducted his brother to a Madianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and before all the congregation of the sons of Israel, while they were weeping at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony.
7Upon seeing this, Phineas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, started up from among the congregation, and taking a javelin in his hand,
8went after the man—the Israelite, into the bedchamber, and ran them both through, the man, the Israelite, quite through, and the woman into her belly. Whereupon the plague stopped from the children of Israel.
9Now they who had died of the plague were twenty four thousand.
10And the Lord spoke to Moses saying,
11Phineas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, hath stayed my wrath from Israel, by shewing a zeal for me among them, so that in my jealousy I have not utterly consumed the children of Israel.
12Therefore say: Behold I give him the covenant of peace. It shall be to him,
13and to his seed after him, an everlasting covenant of the priests’ office, because he shewed a zeal for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.
14Now the name of the man—the Israelite, who was slain with the Madianitish woman, was Zambri, son of Salmon, the chief of the patriarchal house of the Symeonites;
15and the name of the Madianitish woman, who was slain, was Chasbi, a daughter of Sour, the chief of the clan of Ommath, which is the head family of Madiam.
16Moreover the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say,
17Treat as enemies the Madianites, and smite them, for they are acting as enemies against you, with craftiness, in all their attempts to beguile you by means of Phogor, and by means of Chasbi, the daughter of a prince of Madiam, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague, on account of Phogor.