Israel Worships Baal

25 While Israel was staying in the Acacia Grove,[a](A) the people began to prostitute themselves with the women of Moab. The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods.(B) So Israel aligned itself with Baal of Peor,(C) and the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.(D) The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute[b] them in broad daylight before the Lord so that his burning anger may turn away from Israel.”

So Moses told Israel’s judges, “Kill each of the men who aligned themselves with Baal of Peor.”

Phinehas Intervenes

An Israelite man came bringing a Midianite woman to his relatives in the sight of Moses and the whole Israelite community while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting. When Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw this, he got up from the assembly, took a spear in his hand, followed the Israelite man into the tent,[c] and drove it through both the Israelite man and the woman—through her belly. Then the plague on the Israelites was stopped, but those who died in the plague numbered twenty-four thousand.(E)

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Footnotes

  1. 25:1 Or in Shittim
  2. 25:4 Or impale, or hang, or expose; Hb obscure
  3. 25:8 Perhaps a tent shrine or bridal tent

15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the appointed time, and from Dan to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men died. 16 Then the angel extended his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it,(A) but the Lord relented concerning the destruction(B) and said to the angel who was destroying(C) the people, “Enough, withdraw your hand now!” The angel of the Lord was then at the threshing floor of Araunah[a] the Jebusite.(D)

17 When David saw the angel striking the people, he said to the Lord, “Look, I am the one who has sinned; I am the one[b] who has done wrong. But these sheep, what have they done? Please, let your hand be against me and my father’s family.”

David’s Altar

18 Gad came to David that day and said to him, “Go up and set up an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19 David went up in obedience to Gad’s command, just as the Lord had commanded. 20 Araunah looked down and saw the king and his servants coming toward him, so he went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground.

21 Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”

David replied, “To buy the threshing floor from you in order to build an altar to the Lord, so the plague on the people may be halted.”(E)

22 Araunah said to David, “My lord the king may take whatever he wants[c] and offer it. Here are the oxen for a burnt offering and the threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood.(F) 23 Your Majesty, Araunah gives everything here to the king.” Then he said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept you.”

24 The king answered Araunah, “No, I insist on buying it from you for a price, for I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for twenty ounces[d] of silver. 25 He built an altar to the Lord there and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then the Lord was receptive to prayer for the land,(G) and the plague on Israel ended.

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Footnotes

  1. 24:16 = Ornan in 1Ch 21:15–28; 2Ch 3:1
  2. 24:17 LXX reads shepherd
  3. 24:22 Lit take what is good in his eyes
  4. 24:24 Lit 50 shekels

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