Numbers 31
31
Vengeance on the Midianites
1The Lord said to Moses, 2‘Take vengeance on the Midianites for the Israelites. After that, you will be gathered to your people.’
3So Moses said to the people, ‘Arm some of your men to go to war against the Midianites so that they may carry out the Lord’s vengeance on them. 4Send into battle a thousand men from each of the tribes of Israel.’ 5So twelve thousand men armed for battle, a thousand from each tribe, were supplied from the clans of Israel. 6Moses sent them into battle, a thousand from each tribe, along with Phinehas son of Eleazar, the priest, who took with him articles from the sanctuary and the trumpets for signalling.
7They fought against Midian, as the Lord commanded Moses, and killed every man. 8Among their victims were Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur and Reba – the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword. 9The Israelites captured the Midianite women and children and took all the Midianite herds, flocks and goods as plunder. 10They burned all the towns where the Midianites had settled, as well as all their camps. 11They took all the plunder and spoils, including the people and animals, 12and brought the captives, spoils and plunder to Moses and Eleazar the priest and the Israelite assembly at their camp on the plains of Moab, by the Jordan opposite Jericho.
13Moses, Eleazar the priest and all the leaders of the community went to meet them outside the camp. 14Moses was angry with the officers of the army – the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds – who returned from the battle.
15‘Have you allowed all the women to live?’ he asked them. 16‘They were the ones who followed Balaam’s advice and enticed the Israelites to be unfaithful to the Lord in the Peor incident, so that a plague struck the Lord’s people. 17Now kill all the boys. And kill every woman who has slept with a man, 18but save for yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man.
19‘Anyone who has killed someone or touched someone who was killed must stay outside the camp seven days. On the third and seventh days you must purify yourselves and your captives. 20Purify every garment as well as everything made of leather, goat hair or wood.’
21Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, ‘This is what is required by the law that the Lord gave Moses: 22gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, lead 23and anything else that can withstand fire must be put through the fire, and then it will be clean. But it must also be purified with the water of cleansing. And whatever cannot withstand fire must be put through that water. 24On the seventh day wash your clothes and you will be clean. Then you may come into the camp.’
Dividing the spoils
25The Lord said to Moses, 26‘You and Eleazar the priest and the family heads of the community are to count all the people and animals that were captured. 27Divide the spoils equally between the soldiers who took part in the battle and the rest of the community. 28From the soldiers who fought in the battle, set apart as tribute for the Lord one out of every five hundred, whether people, cattle, donkeys or sheep. 29Take this tribute from their half share and give it to Eleazar the priest as the Lord’s part. 30From the Israelites’ half, select one out of every fifty, whether people, cattle, donkeys, sheep or other animals. Give them to the Levites, who are responsible for the care of the Lord’s tabernacle.’ 31So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.
32The plunder remaining from the spoils that the soldiers took was 675,000 sheep, 3372,000 cattle, 3461,000 donkeys 35and 32,000 women who had never slept with a man.
36The half share of those who fought in the battle was:
337,500 sheep, 37of which the tribute for the Lord was 675;
3836,000 cattle, of which the tribute for the Lord was 72;
3930,500 donkeys, of which the tribute for the Lord was 61;
4016,000 people, of whom the tribute for the Lord was 32.
41Moses gave the tribute to Eleazar the priest as the Lord’s part, as the Lord commanded Moses.
42The half belonging to the Israelites, which Moses set apart from that of the fighting men – 43the community’s half – was 337,500 sheep, 4436,000 cattle, 4530,500 donkeys 46and 16,000 people. 47From the Israelites’ half, Moses selected one out of every fifty people and animals, as the Lord commanded him, and gave them to the Levites, who were responsible for the care of the Lord’s tabernacle.
48Then the officers who were over the units of the army – the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds – went to Moses 49and said to him, ‘Your servants have counted the soldiers under our command, and not one is missing. 50So we have brought as an offering to the Lord the gold articles each of us acquired – armlets, bracelets, signet rings, earrings and necklaces – to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord.’
51Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted from them the gold – all the handcrafted articles. 52All the gold from the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds that Moses and Eleazar presented as a gift to the Lord weighed 16,750 shekels.#31:52 That is, about 190 kilograms 53Each soldier had taken plunder for himself. 54Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted the gold from the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds and brought it into the tent of meeting as a memorial for the Israelites before the Lord.
Currently Selected:
Numbers 31: NIVUK
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
The Holy Bible, New International Version® (Anglicised), NIV®
Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission of Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.
Bemiḏbar (Numbers) 31
31
1And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
2Take vengeance for the children of Yisra’ĕl on the Miḏyanites. After that you are to be gathered to your people.
3And Mosheh spoke to the people, saying, “Arm some of yourselves for the campaign, and let them go against the Miḏyanites to take vengeance for יהוה on Miḏyan.
4Send a thousand from each tribe of all the tribes of Yisra’ĕl for the campaign.
5So there were supplied from the tribes of Yisra’ĕl one thousand from each tribe, twelve thousand armed ones for the campaign.
6And Mosheh sent them on the campaign, one thousand from each tribe, them and Pineḥas son of El‛azar the priest on the campaign, with the set-apart utensils and the trumpets for sounding in his hand.
7And they fought against the Miḏyanites, as יהוה commanded Mosheh, and killed all the males.
8And they killed the sovereigns of Miḏyan with the rest of those who were pierced: Ewi, and Reqem, and Tsur, and Ḥur, and Reḇa, the five sovereigns of Miḏyan. And they killed Bil‛am son of Be‛or with the sword.
9And the sons of Yisra’ĕl took all the women of Miḏyan captive, with their little ones, and took as spoil all their livestock, and all their possessions.
10And they burned with fire all the cities where they dwelt, and all their settlements.
11And they took all the spoil and all the booty, both of man and beast.
12And they brought the captives, and the booty, and the spoil to Mosheh, and to El‛azar the priest, and to the congregation of the children of Yisra’ĕl, to the camp in the desert plains of Mo’aḇ by the Yardĕn of Yeriḥo.
13And Mosheh, and El‛azar the priest, and all the leaders of the congregation, went to meet them outside the camp.
14But Mosheh was wroth with the officers of the army, with the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, who had come from the campaign.
15And Mosheh said to them, “Have you kept all the women alive?
16“Look, they are the ones who caused the children of Yisra’ĕl, through the word of Bil‛am, to trespass against יהוה in the matter of Pe‛or, and there was a plague among the congregation of יהוה.
17“And now, kill every male among the little ones. And every woman who has known a man by lying with a man you shall kill.
18“But keep alive for yourselves all the female children who have not known a man by lying with a man.
19“And you, camp outside the camp seven days. Whoever has killed any being, and whoever has touched any slain, cleanse yourselves and your captives on the third day and on the seventh day.
20And cleanse every garment, and every object of leather and all the work of goats’ hair, and every object of wood.”
21And El‛azar the priest said to the men of the campaign who went to the battle, “This is the law of the Torah which יהוה commanded Mosheh:
22“Only the gold, and the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead,
23every object that passes through fire, you put through the fire, and it shall be clean; only, let it be cleansed with the water for uncleanness. And whatever does not pass through fire you pass through water.
24“And you shall wash your garments on the seventh day and be clean, and afterwards come into the camp.”
25And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
26“Count up the plunder that was taken, of man and of beast, you and El‛azar the priest and the heads of the fathers of the congregation.
27“And you shall divide the plunder into two parts, between those who took part in the battle, who went out on the campaign, and all the congregation.
28“And set aside a levy for יהוה on the men of battle who went out on the campaign: one out of every five hundred, of man, and of the cattle, and of the donkeys, and of the sheep.
29“Take it from their half, and give it to El‛azar the priest as a contribution to יהוה.
30And from the children of Yisra’ĕl’s half you shall take one of every fifty, of man, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the sheep, of all the livestock, and give them to the Lĕwites guarding the duty of the Dwelling Place of יהוה.
31And Mosheh and El‛azar the priest did as יהוה commanded Mosheh.
32And the booty remaining from the plunder, which the people of the campaign had taken, was six hundred and seventy-five thousand sheep,
33and seventy-two thousand cattle,
34and sixty-one thousand donkeys,
35and thirty-two thousand human beings in all, of women who had not known a man by lying with a man.
36And the half, the portion for those who went out on the campaign, was in number three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,
37and the levy unto יהוה of the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five.
38And the cattle were thirty-six thousand, of which the levy unto יהוה was seventy-two.
39And the donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the levy unto יהוה was sixty-one.
40And the human beings were sixteen thousand, of which the levy unto יהוה was thirty-two beings.
41So Mosheh gave the levy which was the contribution unto יהוה to El‛azar the priest, as יהוה commanded Mosheh.
42And from the children of Yisra’ĕl’s half, which Mosheh divided from the men who campaigned:
43now the half belonging to the congregation was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,
44and thirty-six thousand cattle,
45and thirty thousand five hundred donkeys,
46and sixteen thousand human beings.
47Then Mosheh took from the children of Yisra’ĕl’s half: one out of every fifty, drawn from man and beast, and gave them to the Lĕwites, who guarded the duty of the Dwelling Place of יהוה, as יהוה commanded Mosheh.
48And the officers who were over thousands of the campaign, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, came near to Mosheh,
49and they said to Mosheh, “Your servants have taken a count of the fighting men under our command, and not a man of us is missing.
50So we have brought an offering for יהוה, what every man found of ornaments of gold: armlets and bracelets and signet rings and earrings and necklaces, to make atonement for ourselves before יהוה.
51And Mosheh and El‛azar the priest received the gold from them, all the fashioned ornaments.
52And all the gold of the offering that they presented to יהוה, from the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty sheqels.
53The men of the campaign had taken spoil, every man for himself.
54And Mosheh and El‛azar the priest received the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the Tent of Appointment as a remembrance for the children of Yisra’ĕl before יהוה.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Copyright© 1993 – 2015 by the Institute for Scripture Research (ISR). All rights reserved.