28. They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peorand ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods;
29. they aroused the Lord’s anger by their wicked deeds,and a plague broke out among them.
30. But Phinehas stood up and intervened,and the plague was checked.
31. This was credited to him as righteousnessfor endless generations to come.
32. By the waters of Meribah they angered the Lord,and trouble came to Moses because of them;
33. for they rebelled against the Spirit of God,and rash words came from Moses’ lips.
34. They did not destroy the peoplesas the Lord had commanded them,
35. but they mingled with the nationsand adopted their customs.
36. They worshipped their idols,which became a snare to them.
37. They sacrificed their sonsand their daughters to false gods.
38. They shed innocent blood,the blood of their sons and daughters,whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,and the land was desecrated by their blood.
39. They defiled themselves by what they did;by their deeds they prostituted themselves.
40. Therefore the Lord was angry with his peopleand abhorred his inheritance.
41. He gave them into the hands of the nations,and their foes ruled over them.
42. Their enemies oppressed themand subjected them to their power.
43. Many times he delivered them,but they were bent on rebellionand they wasted away in their sin.
44. Yet he took note of their distresswhen he heard their cry;
45. for their sake he remembered his covenantand out of his great love he relented.
46. He caused all who held them captiveto show them mercy.