"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 action and reaction of Phinehas was very radical and extreme; and doubtless he would have his critics who would seriously question whether the sin merited such harsh and thorough treatment. But we should take note of the fact that God vindicated him in no uncertain fashion (1113). He, at least, was in no doubt as to the seriousness and heinousness of what Zimri had done; and this prompts the reflection that when men differ in their views from, and take issue with, God's estimate of a situation, it is they who are making the error of judgment, not God. It is very refreshing to have this divine testimony concerning what we might call a 'hard-line' attitude to sin. God is, apparently, not in the least afraid of being thought censorious, or of His servants and champions being thought censorious either. Rather, it is a question of calling some very ugly things by their proper names, and dealing with them accordingly. In this permissive and morally decadent age of ours we could certain- ly do with some of this spirit.