I have a slightly different take on the
passage.
Numbers 25.9 is clear (in all the authorities
I own) that 24,000 died... not 23,000 as Judy supposes.
The deaths in Exodus 32 are completely
separate from this episode. Each verse in 1 Corinthians 10:7-10 are
separate episodes.
The verses in Numbers 25.1-9 tell us (a)
that the [Moavite?] leaders were slain in broad daylight, (b) Pinchas
killed Zimri and Kozbi with a spear, (c) 24,000 die from a
plague/slaughter (Strong's #H4046).
Perhaps what Shaul is telling in 1 Cor 10 is
this: The number of fornicators slaughtered is approximately 23,000
whereas Moshe is telling us in Numbers 25 that the TOTAL deaths is
approximately 24,000 (998 leaders, Zimri and Kozbi, and 23,000
fornicators).
Also, please understand that numbers in
the Hebraic mindset are approximate -- for the most part.
-- slade
Thanks to you also
Slade. I was not aware of the numbers thing that I underlined. I had
always assumed that the Biblical record was meticulously passed down
from generation to generation in minute detail.
