Zimri

1Israel camped at a place called Shittim. The men there began sleeping with women from Moab.

And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.

NoteShittim was a camping place near the Jordan River. Israel had been traveling a long time and stopped there. Moab was a land close by, with its own people and its own kings.

2Those women asked the men to come to feasts for their gods. The men ate the food and bowed down to those gods.

And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.

NoteA feast for a god meant food was given to that god first. Then everyone ate the food together. Bowing down to a god meant showing you belonged to him.

3So Israel began worshiping a god called Baal of Peor. This made the LORD very angry with Israel.

And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.

NoteBaal was the name of a god that other peoples worshiped. Peor was a hill where people came to worship him. So this god was called Baal of Peor.

4The LORD said to Moses, "Take all the leaders of the people. Put them to death out in the open, in daylight, before me. Then my burning anger will turn away from Israel."

And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.

Note"Out in the open, in daylight" means where everyone could watch. Punishments were done that way so all the people would see.

5So Moses told the judges of Israel, "Each of you must put to death your own men who worshiped Baal of Peor."

And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor.

NoteJudges were men chosen to decide what was right and fair. They settled arguments and handed out punishments.

6Then an Israelite man brought a woman from Midian home to his family. He did it right in front of Moses and all the people. They were crying at the door of the Tent of Meeting, where God met with them.

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, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

NoteMidian was a land in the desert, south and east of where Israel camped. Its people were called Midianites. The people were crying at God's tent because so many had died.

7Phinehas saw this. He was the son of Eleazar and the grandson of Aaron the priest. He got up from the crowd and took a spear in his hand.

And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand;

NoteA priest was a man whose job was serving God at the tent. He helped the people bring their gifts and prayers. Aaron was the first priest, and his sons and grandsons became priests too.

8He followed the Israelite man into the tent. He drove the spear through them both, through the man and through the woman's stomach. Then the sickness that was killing the people stopped.

And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, 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.

NoteIsrael had no houses yet. They were still traveling, so every family lived in a tent.

9But twenty-four thousand people had already died from that sickness.

And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.

NoteTwenty-four thousand is a huge number of people. That is more than fit in most towns today.

10Then the LORD spoke to Moses. He said,

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

11"Phinehas, son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest, has turned my anger away from Israel. He stood up for me among the people. So I did not destroy the people of Israel in my anger.

Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in my jealousy.

NoteThe old words say Phinehas was "zealous" for God. That means he cared very strongly and acted right away.

12So tell him this: I am making a promise of peace with him.

Wherefore say, Behold, I give unto him my covenant of peace:

NoteA promise like this was called a covenant. It was a serious promise that was meant to last forever.

13This promise is for him and for his children after him. It says his family will always be priests, the men who serve God for the people. I give it because he stood up for his God. He made things right again between the people and me."

And he shall have it, and his seed after him, even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood; because he was zealous for his God, and made an atonement for the children of Israel.

Note"He made things right again" means the trouble between God and the people was mended. The old word for this is atonement.

14The Israelite man who was killed was named Zimri, the son of Salu. He was a leader of one of the main families in the tribe of Simeon.

Now the name of the Israelite that was slain, even that was slain with the Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a chief house among the Simeonites.

NoteIsrael was made of twelve big family groups called tribes. Each tribe came from one of Jacob's sons. Simeon was one of those sons, and his family became the tribe of Simeon.

15The Midianite woman who was killed was named Cozbi. Her father was Zur, who led a people and a main family in Midian.

And the name of the Midianitish woman that was slain was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur; he was head over a people, and of a chief house in Midian.

16Then the LORD spoke to Moses again. He said,

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

17"Treat the Midianites as your enemies. Attack them.

Vex the Midianites, and smite them:

NoteThe Midianites were the people from Midian. That was the land the woman Cozbi came from.

18They treated you as enemies first. They tricked you with what happened at Peor. They also tricked you through Cozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader. She was one of their own people, and she was killed on the day the sickness came because of Peor."

For they vex you with their wiles, wherewith they have beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of a prince of Midian, their sister, which was slain in the day of the plague for Peor’s sake.

Note"What happened at Peor" means the worship at that hill. It is the same trouble told about at the start of this chapter.