Numbers XXV

1 Israel at Shittim commit whoredom and idolatry.

6 Phinehas killeth Zimri and Cozbi.
10 God therefore giveth him an everlasting priesthood.
16 God commandeth Moses to vex the Midianites.

Baal Worship at Peor

Numbers 25:1 And Israel abode in 1 Shittim, and 2 the people began to commit
whoredom with the daughters of Moab.

Numbers 25:2 And 3 they called the people unto 4 the sacrifices of their gods: and the
people did eat, and 5 bowed down to their gods.

Numbers 25:3 And Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor: and 6 the anger of the LORD
was kindled against Israel.

1Numbers 33:49 And they pitched by Jordan, from Beth-jesimoth even unto Abel-shittim in the plains of Moab.
Joshua 2:1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land,
even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
Micah 6:5 O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted, and what Balaam the son of
Beor answered him from Shittim unto Gilgal; that ye may know the righteousness of the LORD.

2 Numbers 31:16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass
against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the
LORD.
I Corinthians 10:8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and
twenty thousand.

3 Joshua 22:17 Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we are not cleansed until this day, although
there was a plague in the congregation of the LORD,
Psalm 106:28 They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead.
Hosea 9:10 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the firstripe in the fig tree at her
first time: but they went to Baal-peor, and separated themselves unto that shame; and their
abominations were according as they loved.

4 Exodus 34:15 Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their
gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;
Exodus 34:16 And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods,
and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.
I Corinthians 10:20 But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and
I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. devils.

5 Exodus 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of
them that hate me;

6Psalm 106:28 They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead.
Psalm 106:29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: and the plague brake in upon them.
Numbers 25:4 And the LORD said unto Moses, 7 Take all the heads of the people, and
hang them up before the LORD against the sun, 8 that the fierce anger
of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.

Numbers 25:5 And Moses said unto 9 the judges of Israel, 10 Slay ye every one his men
that were joined unto Baal-peor.

Numbers 25:6 ¶ And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his
brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of
all the congregation of the children of Israel, 11 who were weeping before
the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Numbers 25:7 And 12 when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest,
saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his
hand;

7 Deuteronomy 4:3 Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed
Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you.
Joshua 22:17 Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we are not cleansed until this day, although
there was a plague in the congregation of the LORD,

8 Numbers 25:11 Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned my wrath away from the
children of Israel, while he was zealous for my sake among them, that I consumed not the
children of Israel in my jealousy.
Deuteronomy 13:17 And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to thine hand: that the LORD may turn from the
fierceness of his anger, and shew thee mercy, and have compassion upon thee, and multiply
thee, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers;

9 Exodus 18:21 Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth,
hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of
hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:
Exodus 18:25 And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of
thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.

10 Exodus 32:27 And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side,
and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and
every man his companion, and every man his neighbour.
Deuteronomy 13:6 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy
friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods,
which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;
Deuteronomy 13:9 But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and
afterwards the hand of all the people.
Deuteronomy 13:13 Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the
inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known;
Deuteronomy 13:15 Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it
utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword.

11Joel 2:17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them
say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should
rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?

12Psalm 106:30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgement: and so the plague was stayed.
Ecclesiasticus 45:23 The third in glory is Phinehas the son of Eleazar, because he had zeal in the fear of the Lord,
and stood up with good courage of heart, when the people were turned back, and made
reconciliation for Israel.
I Maccabees 2:54 Phinehas our father in being zealous and fervent, obtained the covenant of an everlasting
priesthood.
Numbers 25:8 And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them
through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So 13 the
plague was stayed from the children of Israel.

Numbers 25:9 And 14 those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.

While Balak and his counselors were plotting to entice God’s people into sin and thus
secure their overthrow, the Israelites, all unconscious of their danger, were enjoying ease
and quiet in their tents among the acacia groves in the vale of Shittim. They had little to
occupy their minds or their time, and they felt little anxiety for the future. They had prevailed
against the warlike inhabitants of the surrounding country, and they felt that they had only to
cross the Jordan and the goodly land would be all their own. Their condition of ease and
inactivity was unfavorable to moral and physical vigor, as well as to purity of thought and life,
while a knowledge of the licentious character of the surrounding nations had to some extent
familiarized their minds with thoughts of vice and lessened their abhorrence of crime. {ST December 30,
1880, par. 1}

At this time, Midianitish women were seen stealing into the camp, singly and in little
companies. Their appearance excited no alarm, and so quietly were their plans conducted,
that the attention of Moses was not called to the matter. It was the object of these women in
their association with the Hebrews to first draw their attention from the God of Israel to
heathen traditions, rites, and customs, and then to allure them into transgression of the
divine law. These motives were studiously concealed under the garb of friendship, so that
they were not suspected, even by the great leader. These heathen women feared to excite
the indignation of Moses, but they did not consider that no evil work could be concealed from
the all-seeing eye of God. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 2}

Their hellish plans were all too successful. It was not long before the poison of
licentiousness and idolatry had spread like a deadly infection through the congregation of
Israel. The people seemed to be infatuated. The rulers and leading men were among the first
to step over the line; and so general was the defection, that it is recorded in the Sacred
Word, that “Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor.” Alas that the people who had been so
signally protected from Satan’s power, should now deliberately walk into the net which he
had laid for them! {ST December 30, 1880, par. 3}

Suddenly Moses was aroused to perceive the mighty evil in the camp, and he was horrified
as he discovered its nature and extent. So successful had been the plots of these vile, artful
women, that his own people were participating in the abominable scenes enacted at the
worship of Baal, and the sacrifice and sacrilegious feasts were becoming established among
the Israelites. The aged leader was filled with indignation, and the wrath of God was kindled
against the people. By divine authority, Moses addressed to the rulers of Israel the
command: “Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baal-peor.” {ST December 30, 1880, par. 4}

This order was promptly obeyed. The people had already been awakened to the enormity
of their sin, by the swift judgments of God. A terrible pestilence had broken out in the camp,
and twenty-four thousand of the congregation fell a prey to its ravages. None knew where

13 Exodus 6:25 And Eleazar Aaron's son took him one of the daughters of Putiel to wife; and she bare him
Phinehas: these are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their families.

14 Psalm 106:30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: and so the plague was stayed.
this visitation would end, yet they felt that their punishment was just. Overwhelmed with
terror, they hastened to the tabernacle, and with tears and deep humiliation, confessed their
sin. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 5}

While the people were thus weeping before God, at the door of the tabernacle, while the
plague was still doing its work of death, and the magistrates executing their terrible
commission, one of the nobles of Israel came boldly into the camp, accompanied by a
Midianitish princess, whom he gallantly escorted to his tent. This daring outrage stirred the
indignation of all Israel, and swift retribution followed the offenders. Phinehas, the son of
Eleazar the high priest, rose up from among the congregation, and slew them both. This
prompt and determined act evinced a just abhorrence of the sins which had brought so great
calamities upon Israel. God approved the course of Phinehas, and the plague was stayed;
while the priest who had so zealously executed the divine judgment was honored before all
Israel, and the priesthood was confirmed to him and to his house forever. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 6}

As we read this history, it seems almost incredible that a man could be so blinded by the
bewitching power of woman as to indulge such stubborn and Heaven-daring rebellion, in face
of the most terrible visitations of divine wrath. But human nature is the same in every age.
The temptations of Satan are no less strong today than in the days of ancient Israel. {ST December 30,
1880, par. 7}

Satan has ever achieved his greatest successes through the neglect of God’s people to
maintain their separation from the world,—its customs, its practices, and principles. There
are but two great parties among men,—the servants of Christ, and the servants of Satan.
Their leaders are opposites in every particular. Our Lord Jesus Christ, who came to conquer
the prince of darkness, says, “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but
because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world
hateth you.” Here Christ makes a marked distinction between his followers and the world.
Those who are of the world are in direct opposition to those who love God and keep his
commandments. The heart must be kept with all diligence, that the human be not exalted
above the divine. If those who profess to love and serve God, follow blind impulse, rather
than reason and conscience, they will fall by the artifice of Satan. The affections should be
guarded and controlled, lest they be placed upon unworthy objects, that are forbidden in the
word of God. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 8}

The Zeal of Phinehas

Numbers 25:10 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Numbers 25:11 15Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath turned
my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was zealous † for my
sake among them, that I consumed not the children of Israel in 16 my
jealousy.

†= Hebrew, with my zeal

Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, hath
turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, while he was
zealous with my zeal among them, that I consumed not the children
of Israel in my jealousy.

See:
II Corinthians 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly
jealousy: for I have espoused you to one
husband, that I may present you as a chaste
virgin to Christ.

Numbers 25:12 Wherefore say, 17 Behold, I give unto him my covenant of peace:

15 Deuteronomy 4:3 Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baal-peor: for all the men that followed
Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you.
I Corinthians 10:8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and
twenty thousand.

16
Psalm 106:30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: and so the plague was stayed.
Ecclesiasticus 45:23 The third in glory is Phinehas the son of Eleazar, because he had zeal in the fear of the Lord,
and stood up with good courage of heart, when the people were turned back, and made
reconciliation for Israel.

17 Exodus 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of
them that hate me;
Deuteronomy 32:16 They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to
anger.
Deuteronomy 32:21 They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger
with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will
provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
I Kings 14:22 And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins
which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
Psalm 78:58 For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their
graven images.
Ezekiel 16:38 And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give
thee blood in fury and jealousy.
Zephaniah 1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but
the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy
riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
&
Zephaniah 3:8 Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my
determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them
mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my
jealousy.
Numbers 25:13 And he shall have it, and 18 his seed after him, even the covenant of 19
an everlasting priesthood; because he was 20 zealous for his God, and 21
made an atonement for the children of Israel.

The cases mentioned are sufficient to show the danger of corrupting the soul by mingling
with God’s enemies. These examples are placed on record for the benefit of those who live
amid the perils of the last days. The devices of Satan are no less now than in ancient times.
Indeed, as we near the period of Christ’s second coming, Satan redoubles his efforts to work
with all deceivableness of unrighteousness. The youth especially are in constant and fearful
danger of being overcome by his temptations. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 12}

18 Malachi 2:4 And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with
Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.
Malachi 2:5 My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he
feared me, and was afraid before my name.
&
Malachi 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom
ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye
delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Ecclesiasticus 45:24 Therefore was there a covenant of peace made with him, that he should be the chief of the
sanctuary, and of his people, and that he, and his posterity should have the dignity of the
Priesthood for ever.
I Maccabees 2:54 Phinehas our father in being zealous and fervent, obtained the covenant of an everlasting
priesthood.

19 See
I Chronicles 6:4 Eleazar begat Phinehas, Phinehas begat Abishua,
I Chronicles 6:5 And Abishua begat Bukki, and Bukki begat Uzzi,
I Chronicles 6:6 And Uzzi begat Zerahiah, and Zerahiah begat Meraioth,
I Chronicles 6:7 Meraioth begat Amariah, and Amariah begat Ahitub,
I Chronicles 6:8 And Ahitub begat Zadok, and Zadok begat Ahimaaz,
I Chronicles 6:9 And Ahimaaz begat Azariah, and Azariah begat Johanan,
I Chronicles 6:10 And Johanan begat Azariah, (he it is that executed the priest's office in the temple that Solomon
built in Jerusalem:)
I Chronicles 6:11 And Azariah begat Amariah, and Amariah begat Ahitub,
I Chronicles 6:12 And Ahitub begat Zadok, and Zadok begat Shallum,
I Chronicles 6:13 And Shallum begat Hilkiah, and Hilkiah begat Azariah,
I Chronicles 6:14 And Azariah begat Seraiah, and Seraiah begat Jehozadak,
I Chronicles 6:15 And Jehozadak went into captivity, when the LORD carried away Judah and Jerusalem by the
hand of Nebuchadnezzar.

20 Exodus 40:15 And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in
the priest's office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their
generations.
Ecclesiasticus 45:24 Therefore was there a covenant of peace made with him, that he should be the chief of the
sanctuary, and of his people, and that he, and his posterity should have the dignity of the
Priesthood for ever.

21Acts 22:3 I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at
the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and
was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.
Romans 10:2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.

Hebrews 2:17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a
merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of
the people.
 The crime that brought the judgments of God upon Israel was that of licentiousness. The
forwardness of women to entrap souls did not end at Baal-peor. Notwithstanding the
punishment that followed the sinners in Israel, the same crime was repeated many times.
Satan was most active in seeking to make Israel’s overthrow complete. Balak by the advice
of Balaam laid the snare. Israel would have bravely met their enemies in battle, and resisted
them, and come off conquerors; but when women invited their attention and sought their
company and beguiled them by their charms, they did not resist temptations. They were
invited to idolatrous feasts, and their indulgence in wine further beclouded their dazed minds.
The power of self control, their allegiance to God’s law, was not preserved. Their senses
were so beclouded with wine, and their unholy passions had such full sway, overpowering
every barrier, that they invited temptation even to the attending of these idolatrous feasts.
Those who had never flinched in battle, who were brave men, did not barricade their souls to
resist temptation to indulge their basest passions. Idolatry and licentiousness went together.
They first defiled their conscience by lewdness, and then departed from God still farther by
idolatry, thus showing contempt for the God of Israel. {RH May 17, 1887, par. 7}

Near the close of this earth’s history Satan will work with all his powers in the same manner
and with the same temptations wherewith he tempted ancient Israel just before their entering
the land of promise. He will lay snares for those who claim to keep the commandments of
God, and who are almost on the borders of the heavenly Canaan. He will use his powers to
their utmost in order to entrap souls, and to take God’s professed people upon their weakest
points. Those who have not brought the lower passions into subjection to the higher powers
of their being, those who have allowed their minds to flow in a channel of carnal indulgence
of the baser passions, Satan is determined to destroy with his temptations,—to pollute their
souls with licentiousness. He is not aiming especially at the lower and less important marks,
but he makes use of his snares through those whom he can enlist as his agents to allure or
attract men to take liberties which are condemned in the law of God. And men in responsible
positions, teaching the claims of God’s law, whose mouths are filled with arguments in
vindication of his law, against which Satan has made such a raid,—over such he sets his
hellish powers and his agencies at work, and overthrows them upon the weak points in their
character, knowing that he who offends on one point is guilty of all, thus obtaining complete
mastery over the entire man. Mind, soul, body, and conscience are involved in the ruin. If he
be a messenger of righteousness, and has had great light, or if the Lord has used him as his
special worker in the cause of truth, then how great is the triumph of Satan! How he exults!
How God is dishonored! {RH May 17, 1887, par. 8}

The licentious practice of the Hebrews accomplished for them that which all the warfare of
nations and the enchantments of Balaam could not do. They became separated from their
God. Their covering and protection were removed from them. God turned to be their enemy.
So many of the princes and people were guilty of licentiousness, that it became a national
sin; for God was wroth with the whole congregation. The very same Satan is now working to
the very same end, to weaken and destroy the people who claim to be keeping the
commandments of God, as they are just on the borders of the heavenly Canaan. Satan
knows it is his time. He has but little time left now in which to work, and he will work with
tremendous power to ensnare the people of God upon their weak points of character. There
will be women who will become tempters, and who will do their best to attract and win the
attention of men to themselves. First, they will seek to win their sympathy, next their
affection, and then to induce them to break God’s holy law. Those who have dishonored their
minds and affections by placing them where God’s word forbids, will not scruple to dishonor
God by various species of idolatry. God will leave them to their vile affections. It is necessary
to guard the thoughts; to fence the soul about with the injunctions of God’s word; and to be
very careful in every thought, word, and action not to be betrayed into sin. It is necessary to
guard against the cultivation of the indulgence of the lower passions. This is not the fruit of
sanctified thoughts or hearts. {RH May 17, 1887, par. 9}

It is now the duty of God’s commandment-keeping people to watch and pray, to search the
Scriptures diligently, to hide the word of God in the heart, lest they sin against him in
idolatrous thoughts and debasing practices, and thus the church of God become demoralized
like the fallen churches whom prophecy represents as being filled with every unclean and
hateful bird. With the Hebrews, God’s judgment fell upon them at once. A plague immediately
broke out. The anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and the plague visited those who
were most guilty. But “the wages of sin is death,” and for their hidden licentious indulgences
God poured upon them his wrath. “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God
destroy.” The ringleaders in this demoralizing work, which was so debasing, so corrupting to
Israel, so insulting to God, were ordered to be put to death by the hand of public justice,
which was the only way to turn the wrath of God from the congregation of Israel. The
command came from the Lord, to take the heads of the people who went out of the camp to
associate with Moab, and hang them up before the sun as sacrifices to God’s justice, and as
a terror to the rest of the people. The command was executed. They were first slain, then
their bodies were hung up in sight of all Israel for a terror to the congregation of Israel, that
they seeing their leaders and their princes so severely punished for their licentiousness and
idolatry, without regard to wealth, or station, or what they had been, might have a deep
sense of the abhorrence of God for sin, and a terror of God’s wrath against them. And the
men who have great light, and to whom one would look for an example, are in the sight of
God very great sinners, if they transgress his law or deliberately lower the standard of his law
to minister unto lust.
{RH May 17, 1887, par. 10}

Never was vice more bold, stubborn, or daring than it was in Zimri, a prince of the chief
house in the tribe of Simeon. Such an exhibition of effrontery toward God was almost too
great for belief. He publicly appeared before the people leading a Midianitish harlot, one of
high standing, a daughter of a chief house in Midian, in the sight of Moses and the
congregation. He thus showed open contempt of God. He gloried in his shame; for wine had
perverted his senses. He openly declared his sin as that of Sodom. The position he had
occupied had been one of influence. Moses and the people who had taken no part in this
great departure from God’s law, were weeping and lamenting at the door of the tabernacle
for the sins of the people, and the plague that had begun. But amid all this demonstration of
sorrow, this prince defied the judges to molest him if they dared. The priests were weeping
between the porch and the altar, crying, “Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine
heritage to reproach.” Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, and
rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin, and went after the man of Israel
into the tent, and killed them both. This staid the plague. {RH May 17, 1887, par. 11}

With this history before the peculiar people of God in these last days, there is no excuse for
any one who will follow the example of ancient Israel in sin. But Satan will work in this special
temptation to make void the law of God, and make light of God’s special injunctions and
warnings. The point to be marked is, that Moses’ prayers were not heard, neither his
weeping nor the sorrow and prayers of those who had maintained their integrity, until justice
was executed upon that demoralized God-defying prince. God says of Phinehas, He “hath
turned away my wrath from the children of Israel.” It was the greatest mercy that Phinehas
could do to Israel, to deal promptly and decidedly with the guilty, and thus be instrumental in
turning the wrath of God from the congregation of Israel. Something besides prayers and
tears are needed in a time when reproach and peril are hanging over God’s people. The
wicked works must be brought to an end. The very work of justice done by Phinehas was an
atonement for Israel. {RH May 17, 1887, par. 12}
Numbers 25:14 Now the name of the Israelite that was slain, even that was slain with the
Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a † chief
house among the Simeonites.

†= Hebrew, house of a father

Now the name of the Israelite that was slain, even that was slain
with the Midianitish woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of
a house of a father among the Simeonites.

Numbers 25:15 And the name of the Midianitish woman that was slain was Cozbi, the
daughter of 22 Zur; he was head over a people, and of a chief house in
Midian.

The Bible affords many striking illustrations of the strong influence of evil-minded women.
When Balaam was called upon to curse Israel, he was not permitted to do so; for “the Lord
had not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither had he seen perverseness in Israel.” But Balaam,
who had yielded to one temptation, now became fully the agent of Satan; and he determined
to accomplish that which God had not permitted him to do directly. He at once laid a snare
whereby Israel should be enchanted with the beautiful Moabitish women, who would lead
them to transgress God’s law. Thus iniquity would be found in them, and God’s blessing
would not rest upon them. Their forces would be greatly weakened, and their enemies would
no longer fear their power, because the presence of the Lord of hosts was not in their
armies. {RH November 10, 1885, par. 20}

This is intended as a warning to the people of God living in the last days. If they follow after
righteousness and true holiness, if they keep all of God’s commandments, Satan and his
agents will not be permitted to overcome them. All the opposition of their bitterest foes will
prove powerless to destroy or uproot the vine of God’s own planting. But Satan understands
what Balaam learned by sad experience, that there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither
divination against Israel while iniquity is not cherished among them; and his power and
influence will ever be employed to mar their unity and defile the purity of their characters. His
snares are laid in a thousand ways to weaken their power for good. God has blessed his
commandment-keeping people, and all the opposition and falsehoods that may be brought
against them will only strengthen those who stand firmly in defense of the faith once
delivered to the saints. But if those who profess to be the depositaries of God’s law become
transgressors of that law, his protecting care will be withdrawn, and many will fall through
perverseness and licentiousness. Then we shall indeed be unable to stand before our
enemies. But if his people remain separate and distinct from the world, as a nation who do
righteousness, God will be their defense, and no weapons formed against them shall
prosper. {RH November 10, 1885, par. 21}

22 Numbers 31:8 And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and
Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew
with the sword.
Joshua 13:21 And all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, which reigned in
Heshbon, whom Moses smote with the princes of Midian, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur,
and Reba, which were dukes of Sihon, dwelling in the country.
 In view of the dangers of this time, shall not we, as God’s commandment-keeping people,
put away from among us all sin, all iniquity, all perverseness? Shall not the women
professing the truth keep strict guard over themselves lest the least encouragement be given
to unwarrantable familiarity? They may close many a door of temptation if they will observe
at all times strict reserve and propriety of deportment. Let men find an example in the life of
Joseph, and stand firm to principle, however strongly tempted. We want to be strong men
and women for the right. There are those around us who are weak in moral power. They
need to be in the company of those who are firm, and whose hearts are closely knit with the
heart of Christ. Every one’s principles will be put to the test. But there are those who go into
temptation like a fool to the correction of stocks. They invite the Devil to tempt them. They
unnerve themselves, are weakened in moral power, and shame and confusion are the
result. {RH November 10, 1885, par. 22}

How contemptible in the sight of a holy God are those who profess to stand in vindication of
his law and yet violate it! They bring reproach upon the precious cause, and give the
oppressors of truth occasion to triumph. Never should the mark of distinction between the
followers of Jesus and the followers of Satan be obliterated. There is a distinct line drawn by
God himself between the world and the Church, between commandment-keepers and
commandment-breakers. These do not blend together. They are as far separated, as much
different, as midday and midnight,—different in their tastes, their aims, their pursuits, their
characters. If we cultivate the love and fear of God, we shall loathe the least approach to
impurity. {RH November 10, 1885, par. 23}

Numbers 25:16 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Numbers 25:17 23 Vex the Midianites, and smite them:

Numbers 25:18 For they vex you with their 24 wiles, wherewith they have beguiled you in
the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of a prince
of Midian, their sister, which was slain in the day of the plague for Peor's
sake.

If those who now depart from the straight line of virtue and integrity were as promptly
rebuked by the swift judgments of God as were the offenders in Israel’s day, crime of this
character would be less prevalent. When assailed by temptation, many have not moral
strength to say, as did Joseph, “How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”
They do not give a decided refusal to the first invitation to transgress the law of God; and
soon unlawful indulgence becomes habitual, and they are ready to deny that it is a sin. {ST December
30, 1880, par. 16}

Unwise marriages are the curse of this age. Such an alliance can but be disastrous to both
parties. That love which has no better foundation than mere sensual gratification will be
headstrong, blind, and uncontrollable. Honor, truth, and every noble, elevated power of the

23Numbers 31:2 Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people.

24 Numbers 31:16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass
against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the
LORD.
Revelation 2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of
Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things
sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.
mind, is brought under the slavery of passions. The man who is bound in the chains of this
infatuation is too often deaf to the voice of reason and conscience; neither argument nor
entreaty can lead him to see the folly of his course. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 17}

Men and women professing godliness should tremble at the thought of entering into a
marriage covenant with those who do not respect and obey the commandments of God. It
was this that opened the flood-gates of sin to the antediluvians. Such a connection with the
world is a direct departure from God’s express requirements,—“Be ye not unequally yoked
together with unbelievers.” {ST December 30, 1880, par. 18}

In these alliances the creature receives the love which should be given to the Creator.
There is danger in entering into any intimate relation with those who have no connection with
Heaven. This is the friendship which Inspiration calls enmity with God. We cannot be too
jealous of ourselves, lest by associating with worldlings we fall into the same habits. It was
for this reason that the Israelites were commanded to dwell alone, as a people separate from
all other nations. The friendship of the Lord’s enemies is more to be dreaded than their
enmity; for Satan is constantly working through pleasing, intelligent unbelievers, to tempt the
people of God to sin. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 19}

When one commandment of the decalogue is broken, the downward steps are almost
certain. When once the barriers of female modesty are removed, the basest licentiousness
does not appear exceeding sinful. Alas, what terrible results of woman’s influence for evil
may be witnessed in the world today! Through the allurements of “strange women,”
thousands are incarcerated in prison cells, many take their own lives, and many cut short the
lives of others. How true the words of Inspiration, “Her feet go down to death, her steps take
hold on hell.”{ST December 30, 1880, par. 20}

Beacons of warning are placed on every side in the pathway of life, to prevent men from
approaching the dangerous, forbidden ground; but notwithstanding this, multitudes choose
the fatal path, contrary to the dictates of reason, regardless of God’s law, and in defiance of
his vengeance. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 21}

Those who would preserve physical health, a vigorous intellect, and sound morals must
“flee youthful lusts.” Those who will put forth zealous and decided efforts to check the
wickedness that lifts its bold, presumptuous head in our midst, are hated and maligned by all
wrong-doers, but they will honored and recompensed of God. {ST December 30, 1880, par. 22}

The judgments visited upon Israel for their sin at Shittim, destroyed the survivors of that
vast company, who, nearly forty years before, had provoked the Lord to swear in his wrath
that they should not enter Canaan. When, at the command of God, the people were
numbered just prior to the death of Moses, it was found that “there was not left a man of
them, save Caleb, the son of Nun, the son of Jephunneh.” Thus had the word of God been
strictly fulfilled.
{ST December 30, 1880, par. 23}

We are now coming down to the last days, and the devil wants to shake and confuse the
confidence of his people in these various institutions. He wants to bring persons where they
will have a bad influence, where they have no love for the truth and things which we believe
to be of God. And those that are doing that wonderful missionary work had better find out
from whom they get their orders; they had better find out who has commissioned them to do
this wonderful missionary work. We want to see that they are sailing under the proper colors.
We want to see that they are laboring in harmony with the influence of the Spirit of God.
Brethren and Sisters, we want to see you come to your senses. {Ms 1, 1890, par. 28}

God says that the health reform in our midst is not what it ought to be. There is backsliding
on this point. God has given us light in regard to how we should live. But these physicians
say, “Why, you are living altogether different from what you ought to live. You ought not to be
on this ground. You must live differently and eat differently.” And so they are leading right
away from the path that God has been leading His people in all the way through. Brethren,
how can the Lord let His blessing rest upon us when we are going right upon the enemy’s
ground? Think of the case of Ahaziah’s making inquiry of the god of Ekron, and the results
that followed, and you can but see how God regarded such things. {Ms 1, 1890, par. 29}

We want to stand as a unit, and those who stand ready to quibble over little points of
doctrine to maintain their ideas are not really converted. Just as soon as you are truly
converted, this quibbling will cease. You need to go to God with your Bible, with fasting and
prayer. God wants us to be united in bringing this people up to a right standard here in Battle
Creek, for Satan is playing a deep game for their souls and many will be ensnared. The Lord
wants every father and mother to work for their own household. He wants the converting
power of God to be in your own families. He does not want you to let Satan plant his hellish
banner right in your family, and you bow to that banner. He wants you to take your place as
fathers and mothers. He wants you to teach your children concerning the way of the Lord, to
do justice and judgment and walk humbly with God. Teach your families that the angels of
God are coming in and going out of your house and guarding and watching over the children
of men. He wants you to tell them how they appeared to Peter, how they appeared to John,
how they appeared to those who suffered in prison for the truth’s sake, how the Lord wrought
in behalf of John, how He wrought in behalf of Paul, and of Peter, how the angels of God
from heaven came right into the prison house and took their prey out of the hands of the
enemy. God is constantly working in behalf of His people, and what credit do you give Him
for it?
{Ms 1, 1890, par. 30}

Angels of God are all around us. You do not discern them with your human vision. Satan
and his angels are here in this house today. Oh, we want to know these things, and fear and
tremble, and to think much more of the power of the angels of God that are watching over
and guarding us than we have done hitherto. We want to place ourselves under the
bloodstained banner of Prince Emmanuel. We do not want to be serving Baal. We do not
want to be giving ourselves up to the powers of darkness. Angels of God are commissioned
from heaven to guard the children of men, and yet they draw away from their restraining
influences and go where they can have communication with the evil angels; and then the evil
angels fasten impressions in their minds that they will never get rid of so long as they live,
just as going to the theater, billiard hall, and all such places lead them from the path of God
to stand under the black banner of the prince of darkness. Oh, that we might all obey the
injunction of the apostle read 2 Corinthians 6:17, 18.{Ms 1, 1890, par. 31}

†= Hebrew,
‖= Or,