God knew all along what Balak and Balaam would try to do to the Israelites and how Israelites would break His covenant. Nothing came as a surprise to God. He cannot be fooled. He also cannot go back on His word once declared. God brought punishment upon Israel by telling Moses to hang all of the leaders (heads) of the tribes publicly so that all of the Israelites would see how YHWH punished them for not leading a resistance to the advances of the Moabites and/or participated in the sexual immorality and idolatry with the Moabite women. Also, Moses instructed the judges of Israel to slay every man that participated in these incidents, having joined themselves to Baal through their acts of worship which included sexual forms of worship.
Israel was to be joined to YHWH, as a woman is joined to her husband. Just as fidelity in marriage is expected, so did YHWH expect Israel to refuse to worship any idol/false god. They were not to be joined to YHWH in covenant and also joined to any idol/false god through worshipping these, especially in sexual ways. Baal was the god of fertility, so this immorality was to entice Baal to bring fruitfulness of the womb and fields for the people. These feasts/sacrifices/orgies were celebrated out in the open before the idol set up in the groves of trees or on the mountain tops. 24,000 Israelite men were slain that day, either by the Moses, judges, or the plague that God sent into the camp.
Many Israelites seemed to be remorseful and came before the door of the tent of meeting weeping before the LORD.
One Israelite rashly brought a Midianite woman (apparently the Midianites were traveling among the Moabites at the time, since they were nomadic) before these people, flaunting her before the tent of meeting in the site of Moses and Phineas, son of Eleazar..
Phineas went after the two and thrust a spear through the man and woman in one thrust, killing them both. ...cont.
God knew all along what Balak and Balaam would try to do to the Israelites and how Israelites would break His covenant. Nothing came as a surprise to God. He cannot be fooled. He also cannot go back on His word once declared. God brought punishment upon Israel by telling Moses to hang all of the leaders (heads) of the tribes publicly so that all of the Israelites would see how YHWH punished them for not leading a resistance to the advances of the Moabites and/or participated in the sexual immorality and idolatry with the Moabite women. Also, Moses instructed the judges of Israel to slay every man that participated in these incidents, having joined themselves to Baal through their acts of worship which included sexual forms of worship.
Israel was to be joined to YHWH, as a woman is joined to her husband. Just as fidelity in marriage is expected, so did YHWH expect Israel to refuse to worship any idol/false god. They were not to be joined to YHWH in covenant and also joined to any idol/false god through worshipping these, especially in sexual ways. Baal was the god of fertility, so this immorality was to entice Baal to bring fruitfulness of the womb and fields for the people. These feasts/sacrifices/orgies were celebrated out in the open before the idol set up in the groves of trees or on the mountain tops. 24,000 Israelite men were slain that day, either by the Moses, judges, or the plague that God sent into the camp.
Many Israelites seemed to be remorseful and came before the door of the tent of meeting weeping before the LORD.
One Israelite rashly brought a Midianite woman (apparently the Midianites were traveling among the Moabites at the time, since they were nomadic) before these people, flaunting her before the tent of meeting in the site of Moses and Phineas, son of Eleazar..
Phineas went after the two and thrust a spear through the man and woman in one thrust, killing them both. ...cont.
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