Liber Numeri 25
1 Morabatur autem eo tempore Israël in Settim, et fornicatus est populus cum filiabus Moab,
When the Israelites were staying at Shittim the men started to have sex with Moabite women
2 quæ vocaverunt eos ad sacrificia sua. At ille comederunt et adoraverunt deos earum.
who invited them to the sacrifices made to their gods. The Israelites ate the pagan meals and bowed down before these gods.
3 Initiatusque est Israël Beelphegor: et iratus Dominus,
In this way the Israelites devoted themselves in worship to Baal of Peor, and the Lord was angry with them.
4 ait ad Moysen: Tolle cunctos principes populi, et suspende eos contra solem in patibulis, ut avertatur furor meus ab Israël.
The Lord told Moses, “Arrest all the Israelite leaders and kill them before the Lord where everyone can see in order to turn the Lord's furious anger away from the people.”
5 Dixitque Moyses ad judices Israël: Occidat unusquisque proximos suos, qui initiati sunt Beelphegor.
So Moses instructed Israel's judges, “Each of you has to kill all of your men who have devoted themselves to worshiping Baal of Peor.”
6 Et ecce unus de filiis Israël intravit coram fratribus suis ad scortum Madianitidem, vidente Moyse, et omni turba filiorum Israël, qui flebant ante fores tabernaculi.
Right then an Israelite man brought a Midianite woman to his family tent in full view of Moses and all the Israelites as they were crying at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
7 Quod cum vidisset Phinees filius Eleazari filii Aaron sacerdotis, surrexit de medio multitudinis, et arrepto pugione,
When he saw this, Phinehas, son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, left the assembly, grabbed a spear
8 ingressus est post virum Israëlitem in lupanar, et perfodit ambos simul, virum scilicet et mulierem in locis genitalibus. Cessavitque plaga a filiis Israël:
and followed the man into his tent. There Phinehas drove the spear through both of them, through the Israelite and on into the woman's stomach. This action stopped the plague that had started to kill the Israelites,
9 et occisi sunt viginti quatuor millia hominum.
but 24,000 had already died.
10 Dixitque Dominus ad Moysen:
The Lord told Moses,
11 Phinees filius Eleazari filii Aaron sacerdotis avertit iram meam a filiis Israël: quia zelo meo commotus est contra eos, ut non ipse delerem filios Israël in zelo meo.
“Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites, because out of all of them he was passionately dedicated to me, so I did not destroy the Israelites in my passionate anger.
12 Idcirco loquere ad eum: Ecce do ei pacem fœderis mei,
So make an announcement that I am granting him my peace agreement.
13 et erit tam ipsi quam semini ejus pactum sacerdotii sempiternum: quia zelatus est pro Deo suo, et expiavit scelus filiorum Israël.
It will be an agreement that ensures a permanent priesthood for him and his descendants, because he was passionately dedicated to his God and set the Israelites right.”
14 Erat autem nomen viri Israëlitæ, qui occisus est cum Madianitide, Zambri filius Salu, dux de cognatione et tribu Simeonis.
The name of the Israelite who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri, son of Salu, a family leader of the tribe of Simeon.
15 Porro mulier Madianitis, quæ pariter interfecta est, vocabatur Cozbi filia Sur principis nobilissimi Madianitarum.
The name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi, daughter of Zur, a family leader of a Midianite tribe.
16 Locutusque est Dominus ad Moysen, dicens:
The Lord told Moses,
17 Hostes vos sentiant Madianitæ, et percutite eos:
“Attack the Midianites and kill them,
18 quia et ipsi hostiliter egerunt contra vos, et decepere insidiis per idolum Phogor, et Cozbi filiam ducis Madian sororem suam, quæ percussa est in die plagæ pro sacrilegio Phogor.
because they attacked you deceptively, leading you astray by using Peor and their woman Cozbi, the daughter of the Midianite leader—the woman who was killed on the day the plague came because of their devotion to Peor.”
