What was Baal Peor in the Bible?

It was to Peor that Balaam was called to curse Israel, and where the people were ensnared to sacrifice to the gods of Moab, to eat of things sacrificed to their idols, and commit fornication. Thus Israel joined himself unto Baal-peor — had full fellowship with its demon worship and its attendant uncleanness. Num. 23:28; Num. 25:1-5, 18; Deut. 4:3; Ps. 106:28; Hosea 9:10: cf. 1 Cor. 10:8; Rev. 2:14.

A contraction of BAAL-PEOR: it refers to the fornication and idolatry of the Israelites in connection with the Midianites. Num. 25:18; Num. 31:16; Joshua 22:17.

As we commence reading Numbers 25, we descend from Israel, viewed according to God's purpose, to Israel, as they actually were at that time in carnality and unbelief. Balaam is not mentioned in the chapter but, as we have noted, he was at the bottom of the evil, instigating Balak to promote it. In result, "Israel joined himself to Baal-peor." The "whoredom" involved in this was doubtless committed in honour of Baal, and so its wickedness disguised in their minds. Not all the people were involved, but enough to make it an act of apostasy that deserved and got severe and immediate judgment.

At the outset of his prophecy Balaam had declared the separation of Israel from all nations. Now comes the diabolical effort of this evil man to defeat his own words by seducing them into alliance with Moab. He did not succeed of course in defeating God's purpose, but he did seduce many, and so brought condign punishment upon them. There was a display of grief on the part of those not involved in the sin, as we see in verse 6, and of zeal for the glory of God, as displayed by Phineas. Not only did twenty-four thousand of the people die, but it brought a sentence of death on the Midianites at the hand of Israel.

What had happened? "And Israel abode in Shittim; and the people began to commit fornication with the daughters of Moab. And they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods; and the people ate, and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself to Baal-Peor" (vv. 1-3). A first key may be found in the term "abode." It suggests a settled disposition, as opposed to a temporary state. Further, the sins of fornication (the spiritual coun­terpart is idolatry) and idolatry have become common practice. Here, a different degree of sin is reached: a state of established idolatry, resulting in Israel joining himself to Baal-Peor.

As a result, "the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel" (v. 3). This time, God's anger is turned away by judgment, not by intercession (vv. 4, 8b). A total of 24,000 people died.

Ba al pe’or - Lord of the opening

Pe’or - The opening

It is important that truth should be well balanced in our minds. One-sided teaching cannot be expected to yield good results. There are two lines of truth which should be held with equal firmness amongst us — the grace of God, and the government of God. These two lines of truth are found in both Old and New Testaments, in connection with God's earthly people, and also in connection with His heavenly saints. The grace of God towards Israel shines out brightly in all Balaam's parables, and especially in the words, "He has not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither has He seen perverseness in Israel" (Num. 23:21). Nothing could be allowed to affect this. Jehovah's marvellous grace to Israel was founded upon the blood of the Paschal lamb, and also upon the blood of atonement which was always present on the Mercy-seat. All this spoke to God of Christ. But how great the contrast between Num. 23:21 and Num. 25:4: "Jehovah said to Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before Jehovah against the sun that the fierce anger of Jehovah may be turned away from Israel! In this terrible passage we have not the grace of God, but the government of God — always righteous, always holy. The people were behaving very wickedly. Israel, which was to stand above and not be reckoned among the nations, had abandoned their position of separation to God, and had quite forgotten their special relationship to Him. They had come down to the level of the heathen Moabites. They were committing fornication with the women of Moab and Midian, and were worshipping their gods. True, they were not behaving worse than the people around them and their doings were not scandalous in the eyes of Balak and his princes; but God's people must "not walk as other Gentiles walk" (Eph. 4:17). This is true in all dispensations. Israel being in direct and special relationship with Jehovah, came under His heavy hand in discipline. We hear Him saying at a much later date in the history of the nation: "Hear this word that Jehovah has spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying, You only have I known of all the families of the earth, therefore will I punish you for all your iniquities" (Amos 3:1-2).

Like a wayfaring man who finds grapes and figs in the desert and delights in them, so the Lord found Israel in the desert and they were His pleasure when He led them out of Egypt. But they requited His love by going after Baal-peor, one of the filthiest gods of heathendom. To this they consecrated themselves and practiced their vile abominations. Therefore the glory which He had given to His people will fly away like a bird and their licentious worship of unnatural vices would avenge itself so that there would be no pregnancy and no birth, the promised increase would stop. It seems verses 14-17 are an outburst of the prophet. How literally the sentence has been fulfilled. "They will be wanderers."

In Hosea 9 we have here that touching mixture of affection and judgment which we find again and again in this prophet. Ephraim should not remain in the land which was Jehovah's, for God would not abandon His rights; whatever might be the iniquity of the people. They should go into captivity, and come no more into the house of Jehovah. The prophet and the spiritual man should no longer be a link between them and Jehovah. God would confound them by means of that which should have enlightened and guided them. The prophet should even be a snare to their soul, although formerly a watchman from God. The corruption of Ephraim was as deep as in the days of Gibeah, the history of which is related at the end of the book of Judges; and they should be visited. God had chosen Israel from among the nations to be His delight, and they had gone after Baal-peor, even before they came into the land. If God is longsuffering, He yet takes knowledge of everything. Ephraim should now be a wanderer among the nations.

A most terrible and frightful character is that of Balaam. The question had been already raised on the ground of Israel's failure, whether God would bring them into the land - whether Satan, through his instruments, Balak and Balaam, could hinder Israel's entrance into Canaan. The effort was to get Jehovah to curse Israel, but they could not. For, as between Him and the accuser, "God saw no perverseness in Israel," neither was there any possibility of using Satan's power against the people of God, as Balaam said, "There is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel." God held Balaam's lips and forced him to speak blessings instead of cursings, in spite of himself. "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." When the devil comes as an adversary, he has no power; the secret of his power lies in coming in as a tempter and seducer. When Satan could not prevail in getting Jehovah to curse Israel, he seduced them into wickedness, leading them "to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication"; and then how could the holy God bring them in? (See Numbers 25.)