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is destroyed, and the cities were captured and the inhabitants perished. From there Moses leads the force across the great plain and encamps opposite Jericho. This is a prosperous city, bearing palm trees and possessing balsam. But Balak, the king of the Moabites, summons the seer Balaam, so that coming he might make curses for the destruction of the Israelites. And he went away, but on the road, when a divine angel met him, the donkey, on which Balaam was riding, understanding the divine spirit, did not go forward nor did it yield to the blows, and speaking with a human voice according to the divine will, it called its master unjust for inflicting blows upon it and not understanding that he was being hindered by God from the things he hastened to serve. And while he was troubled by the human voice, the angel himself appeared and said he was blocking the way for the beast; but when he wished to turn back, he urged him to proceed further, and to say whatever he might be inspired by God. And so he comes to Balak, and having been led to a mountain, and having offered as a whole burnt offering seven bulls and as many rams, when he saw a turn of events being signified, not only did he not curse the Hebrews, but invoking divine power, he blessed and praised both them and their entire race. And when Balak was displeased at this, Balaam said, "It is not up to us to be silent or to speak about such things, 1.58 O king, but when the spirit of God takes us, it sends forth through us whatever words it wishes. But for me, wishing to gratify you, an altar and sacrifices must be prepared again." He sacrifices, therefore, again, and falling on his face he foretold what sufferings would befall kings and what would befall cities. But Balak sends Balaam away in dishonor. Then he sends the virgins to the Israelites according to the counsel of Balaam, by whom the young men of the Hebrews were captivated and they came together with them, so that the transgression now spread through the entire army, with the young men, out of love for the Midianite women, sacrificing to their gods and tasting unaccustomed foods. But Moses, bringing the people into an assembly, said the young men were not doing things worthy of themselves or of their fathers, and he tried to correct them. But Zimri, being a chief of the tribe of Simeon, and cohabiting with a Midianite woman and being madly in love with her, acted shamelessly toward Moses, and swore that he would never leave the woman. But Phinehas, the son of the high priest Eleazar, being greatly distressed, did not cease striking the Midianite woman and Zimri with the sword until he had killed them both. And other young men, who cared for virtue, imitating him, killed those of the young men who had transgressed with foreign women. Therefore no fewer than fourteen thousand men perish. Then Moses, being provoked, sent out an army against the Midianites, appointing Phinehas as its commander. And when the battle was joined, their kings fall, being five in number, and a very great multitude. And the Hebrews plundered their country, and having destroyed the inhabitants along with their women, they left only the virgins, numbering thirty-two 1.59 thousand, whom Moses distributed among the priests and Levites and the people. And being old, he appointed Joshua the son of Nun as his successor, at the command of God. And the tribes of Gad and Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh asked Moses to allot to them the land of the Amorites. But he called them cowards and unwilling to share in the battle against the Canaanites with their kinsmen. But they defended themselves, saying that this was not the case, but that, abounding in a multitude of cattle, they wished to leave them in the land, which was good for feeding four-footed animals, so that they themselves, lightly equipped, might set out for the conflicts with their kinsmen. Moses approved of this and allotted the Amorite land to them on these conditions. And when a certain man from the tribe of Manasseh died leaving only daughters, Moses, when asked whose inheritance his would be, answered, "If the virgins marry any of their tribesmen, let them go to them with the inheritance; but if they should be betrothed to any from another

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διαφθείρεται, καὶ αἱ πόλεις ἑάλωσαν καὶ οἱ ἐνοικοῦντες ἀπώλοντο. ̓Εκεῖθεν δὲ Μωυσῆς τὴν δύναμιν κατὰ τὸ μέγα πεδίον αγει καὶ στρατοπεδεύει ̔Ιεριχοῦντος εναντι. πόλις δ' ἐστὶν εὐδαίμων αυτη, φοίνικάς τε φέρουσα καὶ βάλσαμον νεμομένη. Βαλὰκ δὲ ὁ τῶν Μωαβιτῶν βασιλεὺς μετακαλεῖται τὸν μάντεα Βαλαάμ, οπως ἐπ' ὀλέθρῳ τῶν ̓Ισραηλιτῶν ἀρὰς ποιήσῃ παραγενόμενος. καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀπῄει, κατὰ δὲ τὴν ὁδὸν ἀγγέλου θείου προσβαλόντος αὐτῷ ἡ ονος, ῃ ὁ Βαλαὰμ ἐπωχεῖτο, συνεῖσα τοῦ θείου πνεύματος οὐ προέβαινεν οὐδὲ ταῖς πληγαῖς ἐνεδίδου, φωνήσασα δ' ἀνθρωπίνως κατὰ θείαν βούλησιν, αδικον ἐκάλει τὸν δεσπότην πληγὰς αὐτῇ ἐπιφέροντα καὶ μὴ συνιέντα οτι ἐκ θεοῦ οις εσπευσεν ὑπηρετεῖν ειργεται. ταραττομένου δ' αὐτοῦ διὰ τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην φωνήν, ἐπιφανεὶς ὁ αγγελος αὐτὸς τὴν ὁδὸν ελεγε κωλύειν τῷ κτήνει· βουλόμενον δ' ἀναστρέφειν χωρεῖν προσωτέρω παρώρμησεν, καὶ ο αν ἐκ θεοῦ ἐμπνευσθείη, τοῦτο λέγειν. καὶ ὁ μὲν ηκει πρὸς τὸν Βαλάκ, καὶ εἰς ορος ἀχθείς, ἑπτά τε ταύρους ὁλοκαυτώσας καὶ τοσούτους κριούς, ὡς ειδε τροπὴν σημαινομένην, οὐ μόνον οὐ κατηύξατο τῶν ̔Εβραίων, ἀλλ' ἐπιθειάσας αὐτούς τε καὶ τὸ γένος απαν αὐτῶν εὐλόγησε καὶ ἐξύμνησε. τοῦ δὲ Βαλὰκ δυσχεράναντος ἐπὶ τούτοις εφη ὁ Βαλαὰμ "οὐκ ἐφ' ἡμῖν περὶ τῶν τοιούτων σιγᾶν η λέγειν 1.58 ἐστίν, ω βασιλεῦ, ἀλλ' οτε ἡμᾶς τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ λάβῃ πνεῦμα, ας ἐκεῖνο βούλεται φωνὰς ἀφίησι δι' ἡμῶν. ἐμοὶ δὲ χαρίζεσθαι βουλομένῳ σοι βωμὸν αυθις ἑτοιμαστέον καὶ θύματα." θύει τοίνυν καὶ πάλιν, καὶ πεσὼν ἐπὶ στόμα προύλεγεν οσα τε βασιλεῦσιν εσται πάθη καὶ οσα ταῖς πόλεσι. Βαλὰκ δὲ ἀτίμως ἀποπέμπει τὸν Βαλαάμ. ειτα τὰς παρθένους ἐπιπέμπει τοῖς ̓Ισραηλίταις κατὰ τὴν συμβουλὴν Βαλαάμ, αις οἱ τῶν ̔Εβραίων νέοι ἡλίσκοντο καὶ ταύταις συνῄεσαν, ὡς διὰ παντὸς ηδη τοῦ στρατοῦ τὴν παρανομίαν χωρεῖν, ερωτι τῶν Μαδιανιτίδων γυναικῶν θεοῖς αὐτῶν τῶν νέων θυόντων καὶ ἀσυνήθων γευομένων τροφῶν. Μωυσῆς δὲ εἰς ἐκκλησίαν ἀγαγὼν τὸν λαόν, οὐκ αξια δρᾶν ἑαυτῶν οὐδὲ τῶν πατέρων τοὺς νέους ελεγε, καὶ ἐπειρᾶτο τούτους ἐπανορθοῦν. Ζαμβρὴς δὲ φύλαρχος ων φυλῆς τῆς Συμεωνίτιδος, καὶ Μαδιανίτιδι συνοικῶν καὶ περιμανῶς ἐκείνης ἐρῶν, Μωυσέως κατηναιδεύσατο, καὶ μὴ αν ποτε τὴν γυναῖκα καταλιπεῖν διωμόσατο. ὁ Φινεὲς δὲ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως ων παῖς ̓Ελεάζαρ περιαλγήσας οὐκ ἀνῆκε παίων τῇ ῥομφαίᾳ τὴν Μαδιανῖτιν καὶ τὸν Ζαμβρὴν εως καὶ αμφω ἀπέκτεινεν. ον καὶ αλλοι νέοι, οις ἀρετῆς εμελε, μιμησάμενοι ἀνῄρουν τῶν νέων τοὺς ἐπὶ γυναιξὶν ἀλλοφύλοις παρανομήσαντας. ἀπόλλυνται ουν ανδρες οὐκ ἐλάττους μυρίων καὶ τετρακισχιλίων. ἐντεῦθεν παροξυνθεὶς Μωυσῆς κατὰ τῶν Μαδιανιτῶν ἐξέπεμψε στρατιάν, στρατάρχην αὐτῆς ἀποδείξας τὸν Φινεές. καὶ μάχης συστάσης οι τε βασιλεῖς αὐτῶν πίπτουσιν, οντες πέντε, καὶ πλῆθος αγαν πολύ. οἱ δὲ ̔Εβραῖοι τὴν χώραν αὐτῶν διηρπάκασι, καὶ τοὺς οἰκήτορας σὺν γυναιξὶ διαφθείραντες μόνας τὰς παρθένους κατέλιπον εἰς τρισμυ1.59 ρίας καὶ δισχιλίας ἀριθμουμένας, ας τοῖς ἱερεῦσί τε καὶ Λευίταις καὶ τῷ λαῷ διένειμε Μωυσῆς. γηραιὸς δὲ τυγχάνων διάδοχον ἑαυτοῦ κατέστησε τὸν τοῦ Ναυῆ ̓Ιησοῦν, κελεύσαντος τοῦ θεοῦ. Αἱ φυλαὶ δὲ Γάδ τε καὶ ̔Ρουβὶμ καὶ τῆς τοῦ Μανασσῆ ἡ ἡμίσεια ἐδέοντο Μωυσέως τὴν τῶν ̓Αμορραίων γῆν προσκληρῶσαι αὐτοῖς. ὁ δὲ δειλοὺς αὐτοὺς ἀπεκάλει καὶ μὴ θέλοντας τῆς πρὸς Χαναναίους μάχης κοινωνῆσαι τοῖς ὁμοφύλοις. ἀπελογοῦντο δ' ἐκεῖνοι μὴ τοῦτο ειναι, ἀλλὰ πλήθει βοσκημάτων εὐθηνουμένους βούλεσθαι ταῦτα παρὰ τῇ χώρᾳ καταλιπεῖν, ἀγαθῇ τυγχανούσῃ πρὸς τετραπόδων τροφήν, ιν' ειεν αὐτοὶ πρὸς τοὺς ἀγῶνας τοῖς ὁμογενέσι συναπαίροντες ευζωνοι. ἐπῄνεσε ταῦτα Μωυσῆς καὶ τὴν ̓Αμορῖτιν αὐτοῖς προσεκλήρωσεν ἐπὶ τοιαύταις συνθήκαις. Τεθνηκότος δέ τινος ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Μανασσῆ φυλῆς ἐπὶ θυγατράσι μόναις, ἐρωτηθεὶς Μωυσῆς τίνος ὁ ἐκείνου κλῆρος εσοιτο, ἀπεκρίνατο "εἰ μέν τισι τῶν φυλετῶν συνοικήσουσιν αἱ παρθένοι, μετὰ τοῦ κλήρου πρὸς ἐκείνους χωρείτωσαν· εἰ δὲ μνηστεύοιντό τισιν ἐξ ἑτέρας