ZEALOUS FOR GOD’S HONOR

Numbers 25:1-18 / Keywords 25:13

He and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honor of his God and made atonement for the Israelites."

 

25:1 While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, 2 who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods. 3 So Israel yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor. And the Lord’s anger burned against them.

4 The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of these people, kill them and expose them in broad daylight before the Lord, so that the Lord’s fierce anger may turn away from Israel.”

5 So Moses said to Israel’s judges, “Each of you must put to death those of your people who have yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor.”

6 Then an Israelite man brought into the camp a Midianite woman right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 7 When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand 8 and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach. Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped; 9 but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.

10 The Lord said to Moses, 11 “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites. Since he was as zealous for my honor among them as I am, I did not put an end to them in my zeal. 12 Therefore tell him I am making my covenant of peace with him. 13 He and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honor of his God and made atonement for the Israelites.”

14 The name of the Israelite who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was put to death was Kozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.

16 The Lord said to Moses, 17 “Treat the Midianites as enemies and kill them. 18 They treated you as enemies when they deceived you in the Peor incident involving their sister Kozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader, the woman who was killed when the plague came as a result of that incident.”

1. Balaam came up with another ploy to defeat Israel (Num 31:8,16). He sent the Moabite women to seduce the men of Israel to join Baal worship in which the sexual rites took place. Israel fell not by black magic, but by their own fleshly desires. Then God sent a plague and 24,000 Israelites died. While the plague was ravaging them, an Israelite brought a Midianite woman into his tent. It shows how far Israel fell. They brought the idolatry back into Israel’s camp. They sinned openly without guilt and shame. Phinehas, in his jealousy for God’s honor, grabbed a spear and killed both of them. Phinehas’ zeal turned God’s anger away from Israel. God stopped the plague and made a covenant with Phinehas and his descendants.

 

2. Sin dishonors God and calls for his wrath. Phinehas diverted God’s wrath away by punishing sin. He made atonement for his people (13b). Jesus was zealous for God’s honor and diverted God’s wrath from us. He did not use the spear to kill sinners but took the punishment on himself on the cross. Thank you Jesus. The devil knows that he cannot turn God’s heart away from his people. So he tries to tempt his people through the weakness of their flesh and to turn their hearts away from God. Spiritual leaders are to be zealous for God’s honor and so put sin to death and protect his people.

 

Prayer Lord, clothe me with zeal for your honor and keep God’s people from Satan’s attack.

One Word Zeal for the Lord