Moabites Using Ammonite Wine on Israelites

"They came and sat in Shittim," in the place of sitoth (straying). At that time, Ammonites and Moabites arose and built markets for themselves from Beth Hayeshimoth until Har Hashaleg, where they installed harlots, old ones outside and young ones within, who sold flaxen garments. And Israel ate and drank. And that time, a man would go out for leisure and seek to buy something from the old one, she would offer it to him at cost, whereupon the young one would call out to him from within, saying "Come and buy it for less," and he did so. The same, the next day and the day after. The third day she would say to him "Come inside and pick for yourself — you're like one of the family." He obliged. The pitcher near her was full of Ammonite wine, the wine of idolators having not yet been forbidden to Israelites. She would say to him: "Would you like to drink some wine?" He obliged, and when the wine burned in him, he said to her "Consent to me," at which she took an image of Peor from under her breast-band and said to him: "My master, if you want me to consent to you, bow down to this." He: "Can I bow down to idolatry?" She: "What difference does it make to you? I am only asking that you bare yourself before him." (The sages ruled that baring oneself to Peor is its mode of worship.) The wine burned in him and he said "Consent to me." She: "If you want me to consent to you, 'veer off' from the Torah of Moses." And he did so, as it is written (Hoshea 10:10) "They veered off to shame (i.e., to idolatry); and they became detestable (to Me) in loving (the daughters of Moav)." In the end, they reverted to (their practice of) making idolatrous banquets for them to which they invited them, as it is written (Bamidbar 25:2) "And they (the Moavite women) called the people to the sacrifices of their gods, etc."

R. Elazar b. Shamua says: Just as a nail cannot be removed from a door without wood (attached), so, an Israel cannot leave Peor without souls (i.e., without adhesions thereof).

Now what did the evil Balaam do [to warrant losing his portion in the world to come]?
It was because he gave advice to Balak son of Zippor on how to cause Israel’s downfall by the sword.
He said to him, “The God of this nation hates fornication. So put up your daughters for fornication, and you will rule over them.”
He said to him, “And will [the Moabites] listen to me [when I tell them to turn their daughters into whores]?”
He said to him, “Put up your own daughter first, and they will see and then accept what you say to them.”
That is in line with the following verse of Scripture: “[And the name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur,] who was the head of the people of a father’s house in Midian” (Num. 25:15).
What did they do? They built for themselves temples from Beth HaJeshimmon to the Snowy Mountain, and they set in them women selling various kinds of sweets. They put the old lady outside, and the young girl inside.
Now the Israelites would then eat and drink, and one of them would go out to walk in the marketplace, and he would buy something from a stall-keeper. The old lady then would sell him the thing for whatever it was worth, and the young girl would say, “Come on in and take it for still less.” So it was on the first day, the second day, and the third day. And then, she would say to him, “From now on, you belong here. Come on in and choose whatever you like.”
When he came in, [he found there] a flagon of wine, Ammonite wine, which is very strong. And it serves as an aphrodisiac to the body, and its scent was enticing. (Now up to this time the wine of gentiles had not been prohibited for Israelite use by reason of its being libation wine.)
Now the girl would say to him, “Do you want to drink a cup of wine,” and he would reply to her, “Yes.” So she gave him a cup of wine, and he drank it.
When he drank it, the wine would burn in him like the Venom of a snake. Then he would say to her, “Surrender yourself [sexually] to me.” She would say to him, “Do you want me to ‘surrender’ myself to you?” And he would say “Yes.” Then she took out an image of Peor from her bosom, and she said to him, “Bow down to this, and I’ll surrender myself to you.” And he would say to her, “Now am I going to bow down to an idol?” And she would say to him, “You don’t really bow down to it, but you expose yourself to it.”
This is in line with that which sages have said, “He who exposes himself to Baal Peor ― this is the appropriate manner of worshipping it; and he who tosses a stone at Merkolis this is the appropriate manner of worshipping it.”

[When he came in, he found] there a flagon full of wine, Ammonite wine, which is very strong. And it serves as an aphrodisiac to incite the body to passion, and its scent was enticing. (Now up to this time the wine of gentiles had not been prohibited for Israelite use by reason of its being libation wine.) Now the girl would say to him, “Do you want to drink a cup of wine,” and he would reply to her, “Yes.” So she gave him a cup of wine, and he drank it. When he drank it, the wine would burn in him like the venom of a snake. Then he would say to her, “Surrender yourself to me.”
And she would say to him, “Separate yourself from the Torah of Moses, and I shall ‘surrender’ myself to you.”
That is in line with the following verse of Scripture: “[Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruits on the fig tree, in its first season, I saw your fathers.] But they came to Baal Peor, and consecrated themselves to Baal, and became detestable like the thing they loved” (Hos. 9:10).
They became detested until they became detestable to their Father who is in Heaven.
Said R. Eleazar, “Just as this nail ― one cannot separate it from the door without a piece of wood, so it is not possible to separate from Peor without [the loss of] souls.”

§ Balaam said to Balak: “Behold, I go to my people; come therefore, and I shall advise you what this people shall do to your people” (Numbers 24:14).

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Balaam said to them: The God of these Jewish people despises lewdness, and they desire linen garments, as they have no new garments; come, and I will give you advice. Make for them enclosures using wall hangings and seat prostitutes in them, with an old woman outside the enclosure and a young woman inside, and have the women sell them linen garments. Balak made for them enclosures using wall hangings from the snow mountain, the Ḥermon, until Beit HaYeshimot, and he sat prostitutes in them, with an old woman outside and a young woman on the inside. And at the time when Jewish people were eating and drinking and were glad and going out to stroll in the marketplace, the old woman would say to a Jew: Aren’t you seeking linen garments? He would enter the enclosure and ask the price, the old woman would quote him a price equal to its value, and the young woman would quote him a price less than its value. That scenario would repeat itself two or three times. And thereafter she would say to him: You are like a member of our household, sit and choose for yourself the merchandise that you want. And a jug of Ammonite wine was placed near her, and neither Ammonite wine nor gentile wine had been prohibited yet for Jews. She said to him: Is it your wish to drink a cup of wine? Once he drank the wine, his evil inclination burned within him. He then said to her: Submit to me and engage in intercourse with me. She then removed the idol that she worshipped from her lap and said to him: Worship this. He said to her: Am I not Jewish? I am therefore forbidden from engaging in idol worship. She said to him: And what is your concern? We are asking you to do nothing more than defecate in its presence. But he does not know that its worship is conducted in that manner. Once he did so, she said to him: Moreover, I will not leave you until you deny the Torah of Moses your teacher, as it is stated: “But when they came to Ba’al-Peor they separated themselves to the shameful item; and they became detestable like that which they loved” (Hosea 9:10).

The one who had begun with the whoredom at first, finished with it in the end. Their matriarchs (i.e., the matriarchs of Ammon and Moab) began with whoredom (according to Gen. 19:31-34), “And the first-born said to the younger, ‘Let us give our father to drink […].’ So it came to pass on the next day that the first-born said unto the younger […].” She (the first-born) had instructed her in whoredom, and for that reason the Holy One, blessed be He, had pity on the younger and did not expose her. Rather (according to vs. 35), “and she slept with him”; but with reference to the elder, it is written (in vs. 33), “and slept with her father.”⁷⁰Thus in the case of the elder, her incest was specifically mentioned. In the case of the one who began in whoredom at first, her daughters (i.e., the daughters of Moab) went after her to finish [it, as stated (in Numb. 25:1), “the people began] to go whoring unto the daughters of Moab.” (Numb. 25:2) “And they invited the people to the sacrifices for their gods”: Thus they (i.e., daughters of Moab) were going by the counsel of Balaam, as stated (in Numb. 31:16), “Here these women at the bidding of Balaam made the Children of Israel.”

They made themselves curtained stalls and installed harlots in them with every object of delight in their hands. Now a girl would have an old woman as an agent, for an old woman would be in front of the shop. During the time that Israel was passing by on the way to the marketplace, the woman would say to him, “Young man, surely you want objects of linen which have come from Beth-Shean!” Then she would show them to him and say to him, “Come inside and you will see fine things”; and when the old woman would tell him a high price, the girl would [give him] a lower one. From then on the girl would tell him, “You are like one of the family. Sit down and choose for yourself.” Now a jug of wine was placed by her, since the wine of gentiles had not yet been forbidden. Then out comes the girl, perfumed and adorned, and seduces him and says to him, “Why do you hate us, when we love you? Take for yourself this article gratis. We all are children of a single man, children of Terah, the father of Abraham. So do you not want to eat from our sacrifices and from our cooking? Here are calves and cocks for you; slaughter them according to your own precepts, and eat.” Immediately she has him drink the wine, and then the Satan burned within him, so that he became a fool for her, as stated (in Hos. 4:11), “Harlotry, wine and young wine sway the heart.” There are also those who say [that] Balaam commanded them not to have them drink the wine, so that they would not be judged as those who are drunk, but as willful sinners. When he sought her out, she said to him, “I am not listening to you until you slaughter it [as a sacrifice] to Peor and bow down to it.” But he would say, “I am not bowing down to idolatry.” And she would say to him, “You only need to reveal yourself to it.” And [since] he had become a fool for her, he would do so. This is what the masters said, “One who reveals himself (to defecate) to Baal Peor – this is its worship” (Sanh. 64a). It is so stated (Numb. 25:2), “and they bowed down to their gods.” (Numb. 25:3) “Thus Israel was joined (rt.: tsmd) to Baal Peor”: At the beginning, they went in chastely, but at the end they went as many teams of pairs, like a pair (tsemed) of oxen. Another explanation: Like a man tied to his work; joined (rt.: tsmd) [to Baal Peor] like bracelets (rt.: tsmd). R. Levi said, “This was more serious than the [sin of the golden] calf, for while in reference to the calf, it is written (in Exod. 32:2), ‘Take off the gold rings,’ here [it is written] (in Numb. 25:3), ‘was joined (rt.: tsmd) [to Baal Peor,]’ like bracelets (rt.: tsmd)]. Because of the calf about three thousand fell, but here (according to Numb. 25:9) [the number fallen is] twenty-four thousand.” (Numb. 25:4)