John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 4. And the Lord said unto Moses , etc.] Being provoked with the sins of the people, he called to him out of the tabernacle, or out of the cloud: take all the heads of the people , the princes of the tribes, not to hang them, but to judge those that worshipped Peor, as Jarchi interprets it; though some think that these having sinned, were ordered to be taken and hanged, and made public examples of; but it can hardly be thought, though there were some that might be guilty of the above sins, as Zimri, yet not all of them: hang them up before the Lord against the sun ; that is, those that were guilty of idolatry: the meaning is, and which all the Targums give into, that these heads of the people were to assemble at some proper place, the court of judicature, and order the delinquents to be brought before them, and try, judge, and condemn those they found guilty, and cause them to be hanged somewhere near the tabernacle, and before it, having neglected the worship of God there, and served an idol; and this was to be done openly in the daytime, that all might see and fear; and if it was the sun that was worshipped in this idol, as some think, they were hanged against the sun, to show that the idol they worshipped was not able to deliver them; but, in the face of it, and as it were in defiance of it, they were ordered to be hanged up; and this, according to the Targum of Jonathan, was in the morning against the rising sun, and where they hung all day, and were taken down at sun setting: that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel ; when justice had taken place, and proper punishment was inflicted upon the criminals, whereby a just resentment was made against sin, and God glorified.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-5 - The friendship of the wicked is more dangerous than their enmity; for none can prevail against God's people if they are not overcome by their inbred lusts; nor can any enchantment hurt them, but the enticements of worldly interests and pleasures. Here is the sin of Israel, to whic they are enticed by the daughters of Moab and Midian. Those are ou worst enemies who draw us to sin, for that is the greatest mischief an man can do us. Israel's sin did that which all Balaam's enchantment could not do; it set God against them. Diseases are the fruits of God' anger, and the just punishments of prevailing sins; one infectio follows the other. Ringleaders in sin ought to be made examples of justice.
Original Hebrew ויאמר559 יהוה3068 אל413 משׁה4872 קח3947 את853 כל3605 ראשׁי7218 העם5971 והוקע3363 אותם853 ליהוה3068 נגד5048 השׁמשׁ8121 וישׁב7725 חרון2740 אף639 יהוה3068 מישׂראל׃3478
