Numbers 25: What Happened to the People Who Yoked Themselves to Baal of Peor?

Numbers 25 records how Israel committed sexual immorality with Moabite women, bowed down to their gods, and yoked themselves to Baal of Peor. This provoked the LORD’s anger, and twenty-four thousand people died in a plague. The plague ended when Phinehas saw the sin continuing before the whole assembly, rose, and killed Zimri and Cozbi.

The People Did Not Become Yoked to Baal of Peor All at Once

While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began committing sexual immorality with Moabite women. The women invited them to sacrifices offered to their gods. There, the people ate the sacrificial food and bowed down to those gods.

After recounting these actions in sequence, the passage says that Israel yoked themselves to Baal of Peor. What began with sexual immorality progressed to taking part in sacrifices and bowing down to another god. Before they became “yoked” to Baal of Peor, the people had made concrete choices to eat and bow down.

The LORD’s anger burned against Israel. After hearing the LORD’s command, Moses instructed the judges to put to death those under their authority who had yoked themselves to Baal of Peor. The people’s conduct did not remain the hidden wrongdoing of a few individuals. It became a matter that Israel’s leaders and judges had to address, and a plague even broke out among the people.

The Sin Continued Even as the Assembly Wept

The whole assembly of Israel was weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting. Yet at that very moment, an Israelite man brought a Midianite woman to his family in full view of Moses and the entire assembly. The man was later identified as Zimri son of Salu, a leader from a Simeonite family. The woman was Cozbi daughter of Zur, the head of a Midianite clan.

The weeping of the assembly stands in stark contrast to Zimri’s actions. Even while the LORD’s anger and judgment were unfolding, Zimri openly continued in sin. His position did not make his conduct any less serious. The passage records the names and families of both people, making clear exactly who committed this act before the assembly.

When Phinehas Rose, the Plague Ended

Phinehas, son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron, saw what Zimri had done. He left the assembly, took a spear, and followed the two of them into the tent. When Phinehas killed Zimri and Cozbi, the plague among the Israelites stopped.

The LORD said that Phinehas had turned His anger away from the Israelites by being as zealous among them as He was. He also said that Phinehas was zealous for his God and made atonement for the Israelites. Within the passage, the end of the plague is directly connected to Phinehas’s action.

The LORD gave Phinehas a covenant of peace. It was a covenant of a lasting priesthood for him and his descendants. The people’s actions—yoking themselves to Baal of Peor and provoking the LORD’s anger—are set against Phinehas’s zeal for God, which turned that anger away.

Finally, the LORD revealed that the Midianites had enticed Israel through the incident at Peor and through Cozbi, and He commanded Israel to strike them. Numbers 25 does more than record how the sin began. It presents each event in order: the people taking part in sacrifices to another god and bowing down, the sin continuing even amid judgment, Phinehas rising in response, and the plague coming to an end.

One Thing to Notice in Today’s Passage

As you reread Numbers 25 today, mark the words “ate,” “bowed down,” and “yoked themselves.” You will be able to trace the specific actions that led the people to become yoked to Baal of Peor.