February 12 - Numbers 25:1-18, 31:1-54

Ok, apparently Balaam's plan is to have the Moabite women seduce God's people (or, at least the men).  Maybe Balaam realizes that the only way his people will defeat God's chosen people is to separate them from their God and sexual immorality would do this.  Balaam wasn't counting on forgiveness.  God won't turn his back on His people.  He will forgive but His forgiveness comes at an extremely high price (as forgiveness always does).  It requires blood.  Another plague will visit Israel and 24,000 die.  Such a waste of life.

Great, your name gets in the Holy Bible.  That would normally be a really, really cool thing.  Unless your name is Zimri and Cozbi.  Zimri is from the family of Simeon.  Apparently Zimri wasn't familiar with the family history.  Simeon had a problem with foreign men marrying his sister.  Now, one of his descendants is punished for a relationship with a foreign woman.

Now Israel fights and kills the five kings of Midian and all the men.  But they spare women and children.  Eleazar will correct this.  Note that 24,000 die due sexual immorality but not one man dies during the battle.

Time and time again, Israel will be directed to utterly destroy every one and every thing in a land that they're conquerer.  Why such senseless killing of innocents at the urging of a loving God?  We'll discover in a few readings from now that it's not because of Israel's righteousness that they win against nations like Moab.  Israel is the instrument for punishing the other nations.  The Moabites must have been responsible for something exceedingly wicked.

And so we're left to trust that God is God and He knows what He's doing.