9 myths
Balaam told Midian that Israel's God hates lewdness. Market booths pulled young men out, twenty-four thousand fell, then the sword found the counselor.
Midian had sent its women into the camp at Shittim. Moab only hired a prophet. Moses struck Midian first and sent Phinehas, whose spear was already bloody.
The greatest of Midian's five kings walked his own daughter into the trap at Shittim, and the roll of the slain quietly buried his name third.
Two tribes asked Moses for land east of the Jordan and listed sheepfolds before their children. Moses corrected the order without raising his voice.
One had a vow he could not undo. The other had the authority to undo it. Neither would take the first step toward the other, and a girl died for their dignity.
The elders who had thrown him out came back begging for a chief. He went. He died in pieces, a limb dropping as he walked, buried across the cities of Gilead.
Twelve thousand came home from Midian with no man dead and no man accused. Then they set gold in front of Moses, and he asked what it was for.
Soldiers drove their spears point-down into the sanctuary floor and sang like it was a feast day. No fire fell on them. Nothing came out of the smoke.
Nebuchadnezzar would not trust a king's soul, so he made Zedekiah swear on a scroll of the Law, and Judah's last king could hold neither vow he took.
