| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1While the Israelites were camped at Acacia Grove, some of the men defiled themselves by having sexual relations with local Moabite women. | 1While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with the daughters of Moab, |
| 2These women invited them to attend sacrifices to their gods, so the Israelites feasted with them and worshiped the gods of Moab. | 2who also invited them to the sacrifices for their gods. And the people ate and bowed down to these gods. |
| 3In this way, Israel joined in the worship of Baal of Peor, causing the LORD’s anger to blaze against his people. | 3So Israel joined in worshiping Baal of Peor, and the anger of the LORD burned against them. |
| 4The LORD issued the following command to Moses: “Seize all the ringleaders and execute them before the LORD in broad daylight, so his fierce anger will turn away from the people of Israel.” | 4Then the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that His fierce anger may turn away from Israel.” |
| 5So Moses ordered Israel’s judges, “Each of you must put to death the men under your authority who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.” | 5So Moses told the judges of Israel, “Each of you must kill all of his men who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.” |
| 6Just then one of the Israelite men brought a Midianite woman into his tent, right before the eyes of Moses and all the people, as everyone was weeping at the entrance of the Tabernacle. | 6Just then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and the whole congregation of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. |
| 7When Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest saw this, he jumped up and left the assembly. He took a spear | 7On seeing this, Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand, |
| 8and rushed after the man into his tent. Phinehas thrust the spear all the way through the man’s body and into the woman’s stomach. So the plague against the Israelites was stopped, | 8followed the Israelite into his tent, and drove the spear through both of them—through the Israelite and on through the belly of the woman. So the plague against the Israelites was halted, |
| 9but not before 24,000 people had died. | 9but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000. |
| 10Then the LORD said to Moses, | 10Then the LORD said to Moses, |
| 11“Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest has turned my anger away from the Israelites by being as zealous among them as I was. So I stopped destroying all Israel as I had intended to do in my zealous anger. | 11“Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the Israelites; for he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not consume the Israelites in My zeal. |
| 12Now tell him that I am making my special covenant of peace with him. | 12Declare, therefore, that I am granting him My covenant of peace. |
| 13In this covenant, I give him and his descendants a permanent right to the priesthood, for in his zeal for me, his God, he purified the people of Israel, making them right with me. ” | 13It will be a covenant of permanent priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites.” |
| 14The Israelite man killed with the Midianite woman was named Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a family from the tribe of Simeon. | 14The name of the Israelite who was slain with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family. |
| 15The woman’s name was Cozbi; she was the daughter of Zur, the leader of a Midianite clan. | 15And the name of the slain Midianite woman was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family. |
| 16Then the LORD said to Moses, | 16And the LORD said to Moses, |
| 17“Attack the Midianites and destroy them, | 17“Attack the Midianites and strike them dead. |
| 18because they assaulted you with deceit and tricked you into worshiping Baal of Peor, and because of Cozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader, who was killed at the time of the plague because of what happened at Peor.” | 18For they assailed you deceitfully when they seduced you in the matter of Peor and their sister Cozbi, the daughter of the Midianite leader, the woman who was killed on the day the plague came because of Peor.” |
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