The Sin of Peor

25 While Israel remained at ^(A)Shittim, the people began ^(B)to commit infidelity with the daughters of Moab. ² For ^(C)they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. ³ So ^(D)Israel ^[a]became followers of ^[b]Baal of Peor, and the Lord was angry with Israel. ⁴ And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and ^[c]execute them ^[d]in broad daylight before the Lord, ^(E)so that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” ⁵ So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you ^(F)kill his men who have ^[e]become followers of ^[f]Baal of Peor.”

⁶ Then behold, one of the sons of Israel came and brought to his relatives a ^(G)Midianite woman, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, ^(H)while they were weeping at the entrance of the tent of meeting. ^7 (I)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 inner room of the tent and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman, through the abdomen. ^(J)So the plague on the sons of Israel was brought to a halt. ^9 (K)But those who died from the plague were twenty-four thousand in number.

The Zeal of Phinehas

¹⁰ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹¹ “^(L)Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has averted My wrath from the sons of Israel in that he was ^[g]jealous with My ^[h]jealousy among them, so that I did not destroy the sons of Israel ^(M)in My ^[i]jealousy. ¹² Therefore say, ‘^(N)Behold, I am giving him My ^(O)covenant of peace; ¹³ and it shall be for him and for his ^[j]descendants after him, a covenant of a ^(P)permanent priesthood, because he was ^[k]jealous for his God and ^(Q)made atonement for the sons of Israel.’”

¹⁴ Now the name of the ^[l]dead man of Israel who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader of a father’s household among the Simeonites. ¹⁵ And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was ^(R)Cozbi the daughter of ^(S)Zur, ^[m]who was head of the people of a father’s household in Midian.

¹⁶ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁷ “^(T)Be hostile to the Midianites and attack them; ¹⁸ for they have been hostile to you with their tricks, with which they have deceived you in the matter of Peor and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the leader of Midian, their sister who was killed on the day of the plague because of Peor.”

A Law of Inheritance

27 Then ^(A)the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph, came forward; and these are ^(B)the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ² They stood before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, before the leaders, and all the congregation at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying, ³ “Our father ^(C)died in the wilderness, yet he was not among the group of those who gathered together against the Lord, in the group of Korah; but he died in his own sin, and ^(D)he had no sons. ⁴ Why should the name of our father be withdrawn from among his family simply because he had no son? Give us property among our father’s brothers.” ^5 (E)So Moses brought their case before the Lord.

⁶ Then the Lord said to ^[a]Moses, ⁷ “^(F)The daughters of Zelophehad are right about their statements. You shall certainly give them hereditary property among their father’s brothers, and you shall transfer the inheritance of their father to them. ⁸ Further, you shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter. ⁹ And if he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. ¹⁰ If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. ¹¹ And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his nearest relative in his own family, and he shall take possession of it; and it shall be a ^(G)statutory ordinance to the sons of Israel, just as the Lord has commanded Moses.’”

^12 (H)Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go up to this ^(I)mountain of Abarim, and see the land which I have given to the sons of Israel. ¹³ When you have seen it, you too ^(J)will be gathered to your people, ^(K)just as Aaron your brother ^[b]was; ¹⁴ for in the wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, ^(L)you rebelled against My ^[c]command to treat Me as holy before their eyes at the water.” (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.)

Joshua to Succeed Moses

¹⁵ Then Moses spoke to the Lord, saying, ¹⁶ “^(M)May the Lord, the God of the spirits of ^[d]humanity, appoint a man over the congregation, ¹⁷ who ^(N)will go out ^[e]and come in before them, and lead them out and ^[f]bring them in, so that the congregation of the Lord will not be ^(O)like sheep that have no shepherd.” ¹⁸ So the Lord said to Moses, “^[g]Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man ^(P)in whom is the Spirit, and ^(Q)lay your hand on him; ¹⁹ and have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation, and ^(R)commission him in their sight. ²⁰ And you shall put some of your ^[h]authority on him, so that all the congregation of the sons of Israel will obey him. ²¹ Moreover, he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him ^(S)by the judgment of the Urim before the Lord. At his ^[i]command they shall go out, and at his ^[j]command they shall come in, both he and all the sons of Israel with him, all the congregation.” ²² Then Moses did just as the Lord commanded him; he took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation. ²³ Then he laid his hands on him and ^(T)commissioned him, just as the Lord had spoken ^[k]through Moses.