The following is a brief summary of some of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parsha this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand.
R' Frand began the vort by quoting Rashi who asked why Pinchas became a Kohain at this juncture? The Gemara in Zevachim teaches that Pinchas' father (Elazar) and his grandfather (Aharon) had been anointed Kohanim nearly 40 years earlier and his nephews similarly became Kohanim after they were born. But not Pinchas.
R' Frand then theorized that over the intervening years, Pinchas watched all of these people offer sacrifices as Kohanim, but he himself could not. He must have been disappointed and perhaps thought that this was not fair.
R' Frand quoted the Zohar which explains that a Kohain who killed another person may no longer serve as a Kohain. Had Pinchas been anointed Kohain before he killed Zimri and Kozbi, he would have lost the ability to serve as a Kohain. Because he did not join the ranks of the Kohanim when his brother and father did, he did not lose the ability to serve after he killed.
R' Frand next quoted the Sifri, which teaches that every single Kohain Gadol who served in the first Beis Hamikdash and the second as well, all descended from Pinchas.
R' Frand then explained that everything happens for a purpose and told a story about one of his students who was recently diagnosed with appendicitis. When the boy went in for surgery, they found that he had a restriction on his small intestines which was preventing him from being properly nourished. This syndrome occurs in less than 1% of the populace and can be fatal...and the only reason that it was diagnosed is that it was found when he was being treated for the non-fatal inflamed appendix.
R' Frand explained that Hashem works with Hashgacha Pratis to ensure that things happen for a reason and in the sequence they are supposed to occur. He made reference to the Gemara in Sanhedrin which teaches that one who is Boel Arami can be attacked by a Kana'i. But Moshe did not remember that halacha according to the Ramban. For this reason, Pinchas needed to act, and only then would he ascend to the ranks of Kohanim.
R' Frand told a second vort about the direction in Bamidbar 25:17 - "צָר֖וֹר אֶת־הַמִּדְיָנִ֑ים וְהִכִּיתֶ֖ם אוֹתָֽם." He quoted the Medrash Tanchuma which states that a person who is coming to you, you should rise up and kill him. But even worse than one who comes to kill, is one who comes to lead others to sin. Because the killer only kills in this world, but one who causes others to sin causes punishment in the world to come as well. The Medrash notes that two nations rose up against the Jews in battle - Egypt and Edom. Similarly, two nations rose up against the Jews and tried to lead them to sin - Ammon and Moab. Those who fought with the Jews on the battlefield are permitted to have their descendants convert to Judaism. But those who sought to lead us astray can never convert.
R' Frand next quoted a story from Sefer Shmuel where David attempted to show favor to the King of Ammon, despite the Torah's proscription on doing so. Hashem said to David - what are you doing? Dont be a tzaddik when you are directed not to show them favor. Soon thereafter, David's men met with the King and he had half their beards shaved off.
R' Frand closed the vort by quoting a story told about R' Moshe Feinstein in the sefer Otzros HaTorah. There was a Jew in Russia in the 1930s who used to report other Jews to the KGB. At the end of his life he wrote a command that he wished not to be properly buried and that this would serve as an atonement for him. The Chevra Kadisha came to R' Moshe and asked whether they should honor his wishes, and R' Moshe said no. But this was his attempt at atonement? R' Moshe responded that the Torah requires every Jew to have a proper burial, regardless of his acts in this world.
A short time after the man's death, the KGB approached the cemetery's director and requested to exhume the body. The director did not want to, but eventually agreed. When asked why, the KGB informed him that the man had left a note for the KGB that indicated that he expected that the Jews would not honor him with a proper burial as a way to "get even with him" for turning in Jews to the Stalin government. But because R' Moshe followed the letter of the law, the man had a proper burial and there was no venue for retribution against the Jews.
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