⁸ Among their victims were Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba^(A)—the five kings of Midian.^(B) They also killed Balaam son of Beor^(C) with the sword.^(D)

¹⁶ “They were the ones who followed Balaam’s advice^(A) and enticed the Israelites to be unfaithful to the Lord in the Peor incident,^(B) so that a plague^(C) struck the Lord’s people.

⁴ For they did not come to meet you with bread and water^(A) on your way when you came out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam^(B) son of Beor from Pethor in Aram Naharaim^[a](C) to pronounce a curse on you.^(D)

⁹ When Balak son of Zippor,^(A) the king of Moab, prepared to fight against Israel, he sent for Balaam son of Beor^(B) to put a curse on you.^(C)

Nehemiah’s Final Reforms

13 On that day the Book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing of the people and there it was found written that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever be admitted into the assembly of God,^(A)

² because they had not met the Israelites with food and water but had hired Balaam^(A) to call a curse down on them.^(B) (Our God, however, turned the curse into a blessing.)^(C)

¹⁵ They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam^(A) son of Bezer,^[a] who loved the wages of wickedness.