Numbers 31:16

16 "Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam's advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord's community.^[a]

Numbers 31:16 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 31:16

Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the
counsel of Balaam
Who advised the Midianites to send their women into the camp of Israel, and allure them to uncleanness, and so draw them into idolatry, which counsel they followed and it succeeded; for, by this means, they were brought

to commit trespass against the Lord in the matter of Peor;
by worshipping Baalpeor, the god of the Moabites and Midianites; whereby they transgressed the commandment of God, which forbid them having and worshipping any other gods besides him, and is a sin highly offensive to him, being greatly derogatory to his honour and glory:

and there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord;
for that sin; and in that plague died 24,000 persons, ( Numbers 25:9 ) .

Numbers 31:16 In-Context

14 But Moses became furious with the officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, who were returning from the military campaign.

15 "Have you let every female live?" he asked them.

16 "Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam's advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord's community.

17 So now, kill all the male children and kill every woman who has had sexual relations with a man,

18 but keep alive for yourselves all the young females who have not had sexual relations.

Footnotes

• [a]. Nm 25; Dt 20:18