MPV Commentary
Read the modernized Jamieson-Fausset-Brown commentary, aligned with each Bible book and chapter, in clear, updated English.
Currently viewing commentary for Numbers 25
Read the modernized Jamieson-Fausset-Brown commentary, aligned with each Bible book and chapter, in clear, updated English.
Currently viewing commentary for Numbers 25
1. The Israelites were camped in Shittim, a lush meadow on the eastern side of the Jordan River, named after the acacia trees that lined its banks (see Numbers 33:49).
3. In this location, the Israelites joined themselves to Baal-peor, a deity worshipped by the Moabites. The name "Baal" means "lord," and "Peor" refers to a mountain in Moab. However, the actual idol was Chemosh, whose worship involved obscene rituals. By participating in this festival, the Israelites committed two grave offenses: idolatry and licentiousness.
4. The Lord instructed Moses to take the leaders of the people and hang them up as a public display before the tabernacle, as a means of vindicating God's honor against the sun (i.e., publicly shaming them). They were to be executed by stoning or slaying, followed by gibbeting. The individuals ordered for execution were the principal offenders in the Baal-peor outrage – the subordinate officers and rulers.
5. Moses was also instructed to appoint judges from Israel to oversee the execution within their respective jurisdictions and inflict the punishment with their own hands (see 1 Samuel 15:33).
6-7. During this time, one of the Israelites brought a Midianitish woman into his camp, likely before the order for execution had been carried out.
8. As a result of this act, a plague broke out among the people, causing widespread mortality.
9. The number of those who died in the plague was twenty-three thousand (see 1 Corinthians 10:8), including those who were executed by the judges (Numbers 25:5).
11-13. Phinehas' actions turned God's wrath away from Israel, and he was rewarded with a signal mark of honor – his posterity would continue as long as the nation existed.
14. Zimri, a prince among the Simeonites, was killed by Phinehas, demonstrating the latter's undaunted zeal for God.
17. The Lord instructed Moses to attack the Midianites and punish them for their role in Israel's idolatry (compare Numbers 22:4 and 31:8).
18. The Midianites were plotting insidious ways to corrupt Israel through idolatry, rather than engaging in open warfare.