1. The Lord said to Moses,
2. “Before you die, make sure that the Midianites are punished for what they did to Israel.”
3. Then Moses told the people, “The Lord wants to punish the Midianites. So tell our men to prepare for battle.
4. Each tribe will send a thousand men to fight.”
5. Twelve thousand men were picked from the tribes of Israel, and after they were prepared for battle,
6. Moses sent them off to war. Phinehas the son of Eleazar went with them and took along some things from the sacred tent and the trumpets for sounding the battle signal.
7. The Israelites fought against the Midianites, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. They killed all the men,
8. including Balaam son of Beor and the five Midianite kings, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba.
9. The Israelites captured every woman and child, then led away the Midianites' cattle and sheep, and took everything else that belonged to them.
10. They also burnt down the Midianite towns and villages.
11. Israel's soldiers gathered together everything they had taken from the Midianites, including the captives and the animals.