Numbers 25
Living Bible
25 While Israel was camped at Acacia, some of the young men began going to wild parties with the local Moabite girls. 2 These girls also invited them to attend the sacrifices to their gods, and soon the men were not only attending the feasts, but also bowing down and worshiping the idols. 3 Before long all Israel was joining freely in the worship of Baal, the god of Moab; and the anger of the Lord was hot against his people.
4 He issued the following command to Moses:
“Execute all the tribal leaders of Israel. Hang them up before the Lord in broad daylight, so that his fierce anger will turn away from the people.”
5 So Moses ordered the judges to execute all who had worshiped Baal.
6 But one of the Israeli men insolently brought a Midianite girl into the camp, right before the eyes of Moses and all the people, as they were weeping at the door of the Tabernacle. 7 When Phinehas (son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest) saw this, he jumped up, grabbed a spear, 8 and rushed after the man into his tent, where he had taken the girl. He thrust the spear all the way through the man’s body and into her stomach. So the plague was stopped, 9 but only after 24,000 people had already died.
10-11 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Phinehas (son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest) has turned away my anger for he was angry with my anger, and would not tolerate the worship of any God but me. So I have stopped destroying all Israel as I had intended. 12-13 Now because of what he has done—because of his zeal for his God, and because he has made atonement for the people of Israel by what he did—I promise that he and his descendants shall be priests forever.”
14 The name of the man who was killed with the Midianite girl was Zimri, son of Salu, a leader of the tribe of Simeon. 15 The girl’s name was Cozbi, daughter of Zur, a Midianite prince.
16-17 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Destroy the Midianites, 18 for they are destroying you with their wiles. They are causing you to worship Baal, and they are leading you astray, as you have just seen by the death of Cozbi.”
Numbers 25
English Standard Version
Baal Worship at Peor
25 While Israel lived in (A)Shittim, (B)the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 (C)These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said to Moses, (D)“Take all the chiefs of the people and (E)hang[a] them in the sun before the Lord, (F)that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 And Moses said to (G)the judges of Israel, (H)“Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.”
6 And 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 (I)weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 7 (J)When Phinehas (K)the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand 8 and 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. 9 Nevertheless, (L)those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.
The Zeal of Phinehas
10 And 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 (M)was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in (N)my jealousy. 12 Therefore say, (O)‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, 13 and it shall be to him and to (P)his descendants after him the covenant of (Q)a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’”
14 The 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. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of (R)Zur, who was the tribal head of a father's house in Midian.
16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 (S)“Harass the Midianites and strike them down, 18 for they have harassed you with their (T)wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of (U)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.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 25:4 Or impale
Numeri 25
La Nuova Diodati
25 Mentre Israele si trovava a Scittim, il popolo cominciò a darsi alla fornicazione con le figlie di Moab.
2 Esse invitarono il popolo ai sacrifici dei loro dèi, e il popolo mangiò e si prostrò davanti ai loro dèi.
3 Così Israele si unì a Baal-Peor, e l'ira dell'Eterno si accese contro Israele.
4 L'Eterno quindi disse a Mosè: «Prendi tutti i capi del popolo e falli uccidere ed impiccare davanti all'Eterno all'aperto, in pieno sole, affinché l'ardente ira dell'Eterno si allontani da Israele».
5 Così Mosè disse ai giudici d'Israele: «Ciascuno di voi uccida dei suoi uomini coloro che si sono uniti a Baal-Peor».
6 Ed ecco uno dei figli d'Israele venne e presentò ai suoi fratelli una donna madianita, sotto gli occhi di Mosè e di tutta l'assemblea dei figli d'Israele, mentre essi stavano piangendo all'ingresso della tenda di convegno.
7 Al vedere questo, Finehas figlio di Eleazar, figlio del sacerdote Aaronne si alzò in mezzo all'assemblea e prese in mano una lancia,
8 seguì quindi l'uomo d'Israele nella sua alcova e li trafisse ambedue, l'uomo d'Israele e la donna, nel basso ventre. Così la calamità tra i figli d'Israele fu arrestata.
9 Di quella calamità morirono ventiquattromila persone.
10 Allora l'Eterno parlò a Mosè dicendo:
11 «Finehas figlio di Eleazar, figlio del sacerdote Aaronne, ha rimosso la mia ira dai figli d'Israele, perch'egli è stato animato della stessa mia gelosia in mezzo a loro; così nella mia gelosia non ho sterminato i figli d'Israele.
12 Perciò digli: "Ecco, io stabilisco con lui un'alleanza di pace,
13 che sarà per lui e per la sua progenie dopo di lui l'alleanza di un sacerdozio perpetuo, perché ha avuto zelo per il suo DIO e ha fatto l'espiazione per i figli d'Israele"».
14 Or l'uomo d'Israele, che fu ucciso con la donna madianita, si chiamava Zimri, figlio di Salu, capo di una casa patriarcale dei Simeoniti.
15 E la donna che fu uccisa, la Madianita, si chiamava Cozbi, figlia di Tsur, capo della gente di una casa patriarcale in Madian.
16 Poi l'Eterno parlò a Mosè dicendo:
17 «Molestate i Madianiti e attaccateli,
18 perché essi vi hanno molestato con i loro artifici mediante i quali vi hanno sedotti nel caso di Peor e nel caso di Cozbi, figlia di un principe di Madian, loro sorella, che fu uccisa il giorno della calamità per il caso di Peor».
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