 While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 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, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang them in the sun before the Lord, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “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 weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 7 When Phinehas 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, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand. The Zeal of Phinehas10 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 was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. 12 Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, 13 and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of 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 Zur, who was the tribal head of a father's house in Midian. 16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, 18 for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of 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.” Meditation The brazen sin of humanity is the backdrop to God’s brazen grace. The bold and shameless sin of Israel serves to magnify the unmerited grace of God. The sorcery Balak hoped to leverage to curse Israel failed to cause Israel to stumble (Numbers 22-24) but the sexual temptations worked. Israel turns from personal relationship with the Lord, who had protected them, to yoke with the false gods of Moab who enticed them (1-3). Rebellious hearts reject God’s grace and seek gods of the places they are put (Romans 3:1-20). God’s anger against sin is justified. God is holy and just and His wrath is aroused by Israel’s rebellion. The brazen sin is highlighted by Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, twice repeated to highlight the rebellion. The wage of sin is death and the zeal of Phinehas abated God’s wrath. The killing of the culprits put an end to the idolatry and apostasy and the sacrifice stopped the spread of the curse. The actions of Phinehas are not what we expect from Aaron’s grandson but they are affirmed by the Lord. The zeal for atonement reveals God’s heart as the sacrifice served to satisfy God’s wrath (10-13). The difficult narrative points to the delight of the cross where Christ took the wrath of God for our sin, stopping the spread of the curse, so that the love and grace of God can bless all who trust in Him. Jesus became sin so we can become righteous, the gift of eternal life offered through His atoning death. Richly Dwelling -What stands out to you in regards to the brazen sin revealed in the passage? -Where do you see God’s mercy and grace? Is the window into God’s need for an atoning sacrifice unsettling? How does this magnify God’s mercy through the work of Jesus? -Our sin is not the end of the story. God’s love is long suffering and His covenant faithfulness compels us to return to Him. Where do you need to respond to God’s grace by returning to God’s loving invitation for relationship, necessarily turning from the gods of this world? Key Verses 11 “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Comments are closed.
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