"6 And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting. 7 When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand 8 and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped. 9 Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.
10 And the Lord said to Moses, 11 “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. 12 Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, 13 and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’”
14 The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father's house belonging to the Simeonites. 15 And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father's house in Midian.
16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, 18 for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor."
Numbers 25:6-18
The extent of the corruption that afflicted Israel is well demonstrated in these verses. From 8 we may gather that a plague had been sent on them as a judgment on their evil ways, and this had produced at least some semblance of contrition (6b). But not enough, as the ugly incident recorded in 6a makes clear. It is the brazenness of Zimri's action that is so sinister and an indication of just how far the poison had spread in the nation. It is generally in the later and more advanced stages of the corruption of society that sin becomes blatant and open. For long enough, it is concealed and covered in the murky and hidden corners of society; but when it parades itself arrogantly and shamelessly in its contempt for accepted convention and for the standards of God, then it is revealed for what it really is, the rejection of God and rebellion against Him. That Zimri was the son of a noble house (14) serves to com- pound the sin, for he was one who by his status must surely have been in a position to exercise an influence on many in Israel. Those in prominent positions in society need to recognise that privilege involves responsibility. They are not in any sense free to live 'as they like'. They are accountable to the God who gave them their privileges. They would do well to remember this.