^5 (A) sent a message to Balaam son of Beor who lived among his relatives in the town of Pethor near the Euphrates River. It said:

I need your help. A large group of people has come here from Egypt and settled near my territory.

⁷ The leaders of Moab and Midian left and took along money to pay Balaam. When they got to his house, they gave him Balak's message.

^16 (A) They are the ones who followed Balaam's advice and invited our people to worship the god Baal Peor. That's why the Lord punished us by killing so many of our people.

^4 (A) This is because when you came out of Egypt, they refused to provide you with food and water. And besides, they hired Balaam^[a] to put a curse on you.

The Israelites Worship Baal

25 While the Israelites were camped at Acacia, some of the men had sex with Moabite women. ² These women then invited the men to ceremonies where sacrifices were offered to their gods. The men ate the meat from the sacrifices and worshiped the Moabite gods.

³ The Lord was angry with Israel because they had worshiped the god Baal Peor.