"The Holy War (Numbers 31)", Thad Yessa | 6/1/25

Numbers 31 | 6/1/25 | Thad Yessa

Theme: God's holiness demands justice, but His mercy provides salvation. 

Scripture Reading: Numbers 31:1-31

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Avenge the people of Israel on the Midianites. Afterward you shall be gathered to your people.” 3 So Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian to execute the Lord's vengeance on Midian. 4 You shall send a thousand from each of the tribes of Israel to the war.” 5 So there were provided, out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand from each tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. 6 And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand from each tribe, together with Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand. 7 They warred against Midian, as the Lord commanded Moses, and killed every male. 8 They killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their slain, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. And they also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword. 9 And the people of Israel took captive the women of Midian and their little ones, and they took as plunder all their cattle, their flocks, and all their goods. 10 All their cities in the places where they lived, and all their encampments, they burned with fire, 11 and took all the spoil and all the plunder, both of man and of beast. 12 Then they brought the captives and the plunder and the spoil to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of the people of Israel, at the camp on the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.

13 Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the chiefs of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp. 14 And Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, who had come from service in the war. 15 Moses said to them, “Have you let all the women live? 16 Behold, these, on Balaam's advice, caused the people of Israel to act treacherously against the Lord in the incident of Peor, and so the plague came among the congregation of the Lord. 17 Now therefore, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man by lying with him. 18 But all the young girls who have not known man by lying with him keep alive for yourselves. 19 Encamp outside the camp seven days. Whoever of you has killed any person and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves and your captives on the third day and on the seventh day. 20 You shall purify every garment, every article of skin, all work of goats' hair, and every article of wood.”

21 Then Eleazar the priest said to the men in the army who had gone to battle: “This is the statute of the law that the Lord has commanded Moses: 22 only the gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead, 23 everything that can stand the fire, you shall pass through the fire, and it shall be clean. Nevertheless, it shall also be purified with the water for impurity. And whatever cannot stand the fire, you shall pass through the water. 24 You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be clean. And afterward you may come into the camp.”

25 The Lord said to Moses, 26 “Take the count of the plunder that was taken, both of man and of beast, you and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the fathers' houses of the congregation, 27 and divide the plunder into two parts between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation. 28 And levy for the Lordtribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one out of five hundred, of the people and of the oxen and of the donkeys and of the flocks. 29 Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as a contribution to the Lord. 30 And from the people of Israel's half you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the people, of the oxen, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, of all the cattle, and give them to the Levites who keep guard over the tabernacle of the Lord.” 31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.

 This is the Word of the Lord…

Let’s be honest—Numbers 31 is a hard passage. When we read about God commanding war, destruction, and judgment, we may feel uncomfortable. Some critics even say, “This is why I can’t believe in the Bible—it’s primitive, violent, and morally backward.”

But that raises a crucial question: Do we judge God by our feelings, or do we let God’s Word reshape our understanding of what is truly just, holy, and good?

As Christians who believe the Bible is God’s inspired Word, we don’t skip these chapters. Because as 2 Timothy 3:16-17 reminds us, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God  may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 

We dig deeper—because these challenging texts, when rightly understood, don't undermine the Gospel; they illuminate it.

1. The Context of Holy War (vv. 1–6): Why Did God Command This?

“Avenge the people of Israel on the Midianites.” (v. 2)

This isn’t an ethnic war or personal vendetta—it’s a one-time act of divine judgment. The Midianites weren’t just political enemies—they were spiritual saboteurs. In Numbers 25, after failed attempts to curse the Israelites by the prophet for hire, Balaam, they seduced Israel into sexual immorality and idolatrous worship, leading to a plague that killed 24,000 Israelites.

This war is not about land or power. It’s about God’s holiness and His covenant people.

We affirm God’s absolute sovereignty and holiness. His justice isn’t reactive—it’s righteous. Sin is not neutral. It is rebellion against the Creator of the universe. And in redemptive history, God sometimes executes special judgment to protect His covenant promises and preserve His people.

One objection to passages like this is that the Bible paints a picture of two different deities. When in reality it reveals one unchanging God, progressively unveiled throughout the story of Scripture. As God himself declares in Malachi 3:6, “I the Lord do not change.” Still, for many readers, God’s actions in the Old and New Testaments can feel worlds apart.

So what’s going on?

The answer isn’t that God changes. It’s that He reveals different aspects of his character at different moments in his redemptive plan. In the Old Testament, God establishes His holiness and justice through a covenant people. In the New Testament, he fulfills his mercy and redemption through the person of Christ. From Genesis to Revelation, we’re watching one unified story unfold—and through it all, we’re encountering the same God with the same heart.

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  God was forming a people to reflect his character in a violent and idolatrous world. Because God is perfectly holy, he did not—and could not—ignore evil. He confronts it with righteous judgment.

  That’s why we read of the flood (Gen. 6–9), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19), and two books later in the Bible of the fall of Jericho (Josh. 6). These aren’t examples of divine mood swings or arbitrary anger. They are expressions of God’s unwavering justice. Far from blemishes on the biblical narrative, they build the tension in a story that’s heading toward redemption. They reveal the devastating cost of sin—and why rescue is so desperately needed.

  When we turn to the New Testament, we meet Jesus, God in the flesh (John 1:14). Jesus is full of compassion. He welcomes the outcast, touches the unclean, feeds the hungry, heals the sick, and forgives the guilty. He moves toward sinners, not away from them.

  But that’s not the whole picture.

  This same Jesus also confronts sin. He rebukes the self-righteous (Matt. 23), clears the temple with righteous anger (John 2:13–17), and speaks often and plainly about judgment, hell, and the urgency of repentance (Luke 13:1–5; Matt. 10:28). He weeps over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) even as He warns of its coming judgment.

  Then we come to the cross—the place where God’s justice and mercy collide in harmony. At the cross, God does not overlook sin. He deals with it fully. But instead of placing judgment on us, he places it on Christ. Jesus absorbs the wrath we deserve so we can receive the mercy we don’t.

  The cross is not a divine overreaction. It is the only way a holy God can save sinful people without compromising who He is. It is the climax of the one story Scripture has always been telling.

  At every point in Scripture, we’re meeting the same God—uncompromising in holiness, unstoppable in love. The Bible is not the tale of two gods. It is the testimony of one consistent, covenant-keeping God whose justice and mercy are perfectly united.

  Numbers 31 must be read in the context of God’s holiness and justice. The Midianites had not only led Israel into idolatry and sexual sin (Numbers 25), but were actively working to destroy Israel’s covenant faithfulness. God’s justice isn’t like human vengeance—it’s perfect, holy, and measured. As the Judge of all the earth, He has the right to give and take life (Deut. 32:39). The severity of His judgment reflects the seriousness of sin.

  Numbers 31 is part of God’s redemptive history—not a universal prescription for violence, but a specific moment in the story of how God preserved the line through which Jesus, the Savior of the world, would come. Preserving Israel wasn’t about national pride; it was about preserving God’s promise to redeem the world through Abraham’s seed (Genesis 12, Galatians 3:16).

  This war was about protecting God’s covenant plan, not about endorsing violence as a virtue.

  The Bible Doesn't Sanitize Hard Truths

  God doesn't hide the hard parts of history. Instead, He invites us to wrestle with them, humbly and prayerfully, trusting that His character is good even when His ways are beyond our full understanding.

  For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth,   so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8–9).

  But God’s justice isn’t just external. It goes to the heart. What’s really at stake in this chapter is the seriousness of sin.

  2. The Weight of Judgment (vv. 7–18): Why Is the Judgment So Severe?

  “They killed all the males... and the women who had lain with a man.” (vv. 7, 17)

  This is the part that shocks us. Why would God command this? Let's not soften it. We should feel the weight of these verses, but we must also understand them in light of the whole Bible.

  • Cultural distance: We are 3,000 years removed from a very different context—ancient Near Eastern warfare under divine theocracy.

  • Divine prerogative: As Creator, God has the right to give and take life (Job 1:21). His judgments are just even when we don’t fully comprehend them.

  • Redemptive history: This is not a pattern for Christians to follow. It is a moment in a larger story that ultimately leads to the cross.

  Moses, Eleazar, and the other Israelite leaders went outside the camp to meet the returning soldiers (Num. 31:13), since the soldiers' ritual impurity (killing and being around the dead) prevented them from reentering the camp immediately. Upon seeing them, Moses became furious that they had spared the very women who, following Balaam’s counsel, had led Israel into grievous unfaithfulness against the Lord—an act of treachery that resulted in the death of 24,000 Israelites (31:14–16; cf. 25:9).

  In response, Moses commanded that all the male children and every woman who had slept with a man be put to death, sparing only the virgins (31:17–18). This was not Israel’s standard wartime practice. Deuteronomy 20:14 makes clear that, in general, women and children were to be spared when Israel waged war against nations outside the land of promise.

  However, Midian was a unique case. Midian had deliberately sought to destroy Israel through spiritual seduction and covenant betrayal. The Lord’s command was, therefore, a punishment proportionate to the gravity of that offense. Importantly, the Lord is consistent in executing judgment, even against His own people when they rebel (Num. 14:35–37; 16:46–49; 25:9); His justice is impartial and holy.

  “In the ancient world, identity and inheritance were passed down through male descendants and the wives who bore them. Among the Israelites, if a man died childless, his widow could remarry, and the firstborn of that union would carry on the name of the deceased (Deut. 25:5–6). Thus, to prevent the continuation of the Midianite line—those who had acted as a spiritual cancer among God’s people—both the boys and sexually active women were to be executed. The virgins, however, posed no such threat and could be incorporated into Israel through marriage, thereby becoming part of God’s covenant community rather than perpetuating a hostile one (Num. 31:18).” – Ian Duguid

  The response is to the seriousness of the sin. Moses' command is to remove all opportunity and potential for sin. 

  Jesus takes sin very seriously because He knows its destructive power. That’s why He gives such graphic instructions on how to deal with sin. 

  And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire. (Matthew 18:8-9)

  Now, to be clear, Jesus isn’t telling us to cut off our hands and tear out our eyes literally. Nowhere in the Bible does God call us to self-harm as a way to worship Him. Instead, He is using metaphorical language, and it’s intentionally gruesome. The point is that we must go to whatever extreme is necessary (within the bounds of Scripture) to overcome sin.

  For example, if pornography is your vice, then perhaps you need to smash your computer. Or, maybe you need to throw away your smartphone and get a flip phone instead. If shopping and overspending are your problems, cut up your credit cards. Allow someone else to hold you accountable to not have cash unless you need it. Maybe you overeat or drink too much. Have a friend require that you call them at the end of every night to give an account of your actions so that you won’t be tempted to binge. If television or social media have become idolatrous for you, it might be time to get rid of your TV or delete the apps. Whatever your sin might be, go to any length necessary to kill it. That’s Jesus’ point in this teaching. Cut out sin before it cuts you to pieces. 

  I can hear it now, “This is too extreme. Who could do these things?” That’s the point! Cut off your hand. Tear out your eye. Do whatever it takes to kill sin in your life. As John Owen said, “Be killing sin or sin will be killing you.” 

  Jesus’ commands are metaphorical in this passage, but His threats are not. The consequence for not putting sin to death is Hell. Our Lord is not saying that a believer can lose his or her salvation. But Jesus is saying that if you live a life mastered by sin and you never try to fight it, then you prove that you are an unbeliever. Believers wage war against their sin because they hate it, and they love Christ. Their strongest desire is to please their Master. The unbeliever lives in his sin because he has no real love for Christ or desire to please Him. 

  What sin is dominating your life right now? Are you fighting it, or does it have you mastered? Go to any lengths necessary to kill your sin. Nothing is too extreme when it comes to matters of eternal life and death. Maybe this morning it looks like dying a little bit to yourself to come forward after the services and ask for prayer from one of the elders or one of the prayer team members to begin your journey in fighting sin. 

  Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. (James 5:16)

  Even in the judgment, God is working toward the purification and restoration of His people.

  3. The Mercy Within the Justice (vv. 19–54): What Does God Require of His People?

  “You shall purify every garment... pass it through the fire, and it shall be clean.” (v. 23)

  After the war, there’s cleansing. The soldiers, the spoils, the people—they all undergo purification. This shows us something critical: God’s people are not above judgment—they must be made holy too.

  God cleanses His people, not just externally but internally. The people give back to God from what they’ve received. This isn’t begrudging—it’s grateful.

  Stringent purification was required for the returning soldiers and their plunder. Though they had fought in a divinely sanctioned war, contact with death rendered them ritually unclean. According to the Lord’s instructions in Numbers 19, both the warriors and their spoil had to be cleansed with the water of purification before reentering the camp (Num. 31:19–24). Only through this cleansing could they be restored to fellowship within the camp of the living God.

  Moreover, because the Lord had both commanded the war and granted the victory, he also directed how the spoils were to be divided. The spoils of Midian were distributed among the people. Of the total, 49.8% went to the soldiers who fought, 48% to those who stayed behind, and 2.2% was set aside as tribute to the Lord, given to the Levites (Num. 31:27–30). This ensured that all shared in the victory, while still honoring those who physically fought. Strikingly, the Lord’s portion was minimal—a small token, yet a reminder that the victory belonged to him.

  Even more remarkably, the commanders freely gave above and beyond what was required. Upon counting their troops, they discovered that not a single man had been lost in battle. Moved by gratitude for such grace, they voluntarily offered gold from the spoils as a gift to the Lord—the best of what they had taken (v. 50).

  They described this offering as “to make atonement for ourselves before the LORD” (v. 50). In doing so, they acknowledged that their lives were not their own but belonged to God. Having witnessed the destruction of a sinful people, they may have recognized that they too were deserving of wrath. Like their forefathers who died in the wilderness, they were sinners by nature. Their outward cleansing reminded them of their deeper need for inner purification. If God had judged them as he did the Midianites, they too would have perished. But in his mercy, not one had fallen. The Lord’s justice had been poured out on his enemies, and by sheer grace, Israel still stood.

  Ian Duguid points out that two key lessons emerge from the dividing of the spoils in Numbers 31. “First, all the people shared in the victory, whether or not they fought in battle (Num 31:27).” While soldiers received a greater portion, the whole community benefited, reflecting a strong sense of unity. This same spirit is seen in the early church, where believers shared their possessions (Acts 2:44–45) and Paul urged mutual generosity among churches for the sake of equality (2 Cor 8:14).

  “Second, a portion of the spoils was set aside to support the priests and Levites (Num 31:28–30), who were essential for teaching God’s Word and leading worship.” Supporting them demonstrated that worship and learning God's truth were central priorities.

  This principle continues in the New Testament, where believers are called to provide for church leaders (1 Cor 9:14; Gal 6:6), recognizing that spiritual shepherds need care in order to care for others.

  In response, Christians today should ask: How can I use my abundance to serve others in need? And how can I give in ways that support faithful gospel ministry? Doing so displays the love of Christ and our devotion to God’s Word and worship.

  Everything in this chapter points forward to a greater holy war and a greater warrior.

  4. Jesus the Greater Warrior: Where Is Jesus in Numbers 31?

  What do we do with a passage like this? Numbers 31 acts as a double foretelling of things to come. The first being that this was to act as a sign of what God had promised the Israelites, victory over their enemies as they enter into the Promised Land, “Your servants have counted... and not one of us is missing.” (v. 49) Pointing them to the future hope that God would continue to give them victory in bringing them fully and finally into the promised land. And secondly, the foretelling of where this passage intersects with our lives. The chapter vividly reveals God's wrath against sin—a wrath that leads to certain judgment. God not only judges those who sin but also those who lead others into sin. By that standard, we all stand guilty. We have broken God’s law and encouraged others to do the same.

  Jesus is not absent from this story—He is its fulfillment.

  Phinehas fought to preserve Israel’s holiness in Numbers 25, is again present:

  6 And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand from each tribe, together with Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand. (Numbers 31:6)

  Phinehas is a type of Christ, and the vessels represent God’s presence, His accompanying the Israelites into battle.  Jesus fights for His bride, the Church, not with swords, but with sacrifice.

  On the cross, Jesus faced the wrath of God, not for His sin, but for ours. He endured the holy war so we could enjoy eternal peace. No defense could acquit us before the holy Judge. Though God's judgment has not yet fallen, we must not mistake his patience for pardon. As with Midian, judgment delayed is not judgment canceled. The day of the Lord is coming—a final reckoning when he will wage holy war against all evil. It is more certain than death or taxes, for while some may escape the IRS or live until Christ’s return, none will escape God's courtroom.

  As sinners under wrath, our lives are forfeit unless atonement is made. But in mercy, God has graciously provided that atonement—not in silver or gold, but in the precious blood of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. At the cross, God unleashed his full judgment against sin—not on us, but on his Son, who stood in our place. Christ bore the penalty of our rebellion so that we could be spared.

  Through Jesus’s offering, he also became the water of cleansing that removes our defilement. According to Numbers 19, making that water rendered the priest unclean so others could be made clean. In the same way, Jesus took on our uncleanness at the cross so that we could be washed and made holy in God’s sight.

  Now, when we stand in God’s courtroom and the accuser reads the charges against us, the Father declares: “Paid in full by the blood of my Son.” The cross stands as our memorial before God; a permanent testimony that our sins are forgiven, our guilt removed, and our place in God’s presence secured through Christ.

  “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him.” (Colossians 2:15)

  Unlike every earthly war, the cross is a battle where the King lays down His life. No other religion tells this story: a God who judges sin and then bears that judgment Himself out of love for sinners.

  In the Bible’s grand narrative, we see Jesus portrayed not only as a humble servant but also as the conquering King, the Great Warrior who will return in power to defeat all His enemies and establish His eternal Kingdom. The culmination of the story of Scripture finds its climax in Revelation 19, where Jesus appears as the King of kings and Lord of lords, bringing final victory over sin, death, and the powers of evil.

  
  "Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness, he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh, he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords." Revelation 19:11-16

  Jesus is not just the Lamb who was slain (Revelation 5:6); He is the mighty warrior, wielding the sword of His Word to defeat His enemies. The victory He secures is final, once and for all.

  Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and Satan is not just a future hope but a present reality. His resurrection is the first victory in a series that will culminate in His return, where all things will be made new.

  As believers, we are not just spectators of this victory; we are participants in it. Jesus, the Great Warrior, has already secured our victory, and we are called to live in light of that truth. We face battles in our lives, but because of Christ’s triumph on the cross and His coming return, we know that the ultimate victory is already ours. We find our comfort not in our own efforts but in the grace that He has poured out on us, and we eagerly await the day when we see the full of effect of His forever reign.

  Conclusion: 

  Yes, Numbers 31 is difficult—but it’s honest. It doesn’t hide the cost of sin or the depth of judgment. But even more, it reveals a God who provides a substitute, who fights for His people, and who wins the ultimate battle at the cross.

  This is not a God to run from.This is a God to run to.