Numbers 1

ENGWEBEnglish54 verses

1Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,

2“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, every male, one by one;

3from twenty years old and upward, all who are able to go out to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their divisions.

4With you there shall be a man of every tribe; everyone head of his fathers’ house.

5These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: Of Reuben: Elizur the son of Shedeur.

6Of Simeon: Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

7Of Judah: Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

8Of Issachar: Nethanel the son of Zuar.

9Of Zebulun: Eliab the son of Helon.

10Of the children of Joseph: Of Ephraim: Elishama the son of Ammihud. Of Manasseh: Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

11Of Benjamin: Abidan the son of Gideoni.

12Of Dan: Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

13Of Asher: Pagiel the son of Ochran.

14Of Gad: Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

15Of Naphtali: Ahira the son of Enan.”

16These are those who were called of the congregation, the princes of the tribes of their fathers; they were the heads of the thousands of Israel.

17Moses and Aaron took these men who are mentioned by name.

18They assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they declared their ancestry by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, one by one.

19As Yahweh commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.

20The children of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, one by one, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

21those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Reuben, were forty-six thousand five hundred.

22Of the children of Simeon, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, those who were numbered of it, according to the number of the names, one by one, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

23those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Simeon, were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

24Of the children of Gad, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

25those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Gad, were forty-five thousand six hundred fifty.

26Of the children of Judah, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

27those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Judah, were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

28Of the children of Issachar, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

29those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Issachar, were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

30Of the children of Zebulun, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

31those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Zebulun, were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

32Of the children of Joseph, of the children of Ephraim, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

33those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Ephraim, were forty thousand five hundred.

34Of the children of Manasseh, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

35those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Manasseh, were thirty-two thousand two hundred.

36Of the children of Benjamin, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

37those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Benjamin, were thirty-five thousand four hundred.

38Of the children of Dan, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

39those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Dan, were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

40Of the children of Asher, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

41those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Asher, were forty-one thousand five hundred.

42Of the children of Naphtali, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war;

43those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Naphtali, were fifty-three thousand four hundred.

44These are those who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, and the princes of Israel, being twelve men: they were each one for his fathers’ house.

45So all those who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war in Israel;

46even all those who were numbered were six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty.

47But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.

48For Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

49“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, neither shall you take a census of them among the children of Israel;

50but appoint the Levites over the Tabernacle of the Testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They shall carry the tabernacle, and all its furnishings; and they shall take care of it, and shall encamp around it.

51When the tabernacle is to move, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.

52The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, every man by his own camp, and every man by his own standard, according to their divisions.

53But the Levites shall encamp around the Tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel: and the Levites shall be responsible for the Tabernacle of the Testimony.”

54Thus the children of Israel did. According to all that Yahweh commanded Moses, so they did.

Commentary

1:1-43 The people were numbered to show God's faithfulness in thus increasing the seed of Jacob, that they might be the better trained for the wars and conquest of Canaan, and to ascertain their families in order to the division of the land. It is said of each tribe, that those were numbered who were able to go forth to war; they had wars before them, though now they met with no opposition. Let the believer be prepared to withstand the enemies of his soul, though all may appear to be peace.

An Exposition, With Practical Observations, of The Fourth Book of Moses, Called Numbers The titles of the five books of Moses, which we use in our Bibles, are all borrowed from the Greek translation of the Seventy, the most ancient version of the Old Testament that we know of. But the title of this book only we turn into English; in all the rest we retain the Greek word itself, for which difference I know no reason but that the Latin translators have generally done the same. Otherwise this book might as well have been called Arithmoi, the Greek title, as the first Genesis, and the second Exodus; or these might as well have been translated, and called, the first the Generation, or Original, the second the Out-let, or Escape, as this Numbers.—This book was thus entitled because of the numbers of the children of Israel, so often mentioned in this book, and so well worthy to give a title to it, because it was the remarkable accomplishment of God’s promise to Abraham that his seed should be as the stars of heaven for multitude. It also relates to two numberings of them, one at mount Sinai (ch. 1), the other in the plains of Moab, thirty-nine years after (ch. 26). And not three men the same in the last account that were in the first. The book is almost equally divided between histories and laws, intermixed.We have here, I. The histories of the numbering and marshalling of the tribes (ch. 1-4), the dedication of the altar and Levites (ch. 7, 8), their march (ch. 9, 10), their murmuring and unbelief, for which they were sentenced to wander forty years in the wilderness (ch. 11–14), the rebellion of Korah (ch. 16, 17), the history of the last year of the forty (ch. 20–26), the conquest of Midian, and the settlement of the two tribes (ch. 31, 32), with an account of their journeys (ch. 33), II. Divers laws about the Nazarites, etc. (ch. 5, 6); and again about the priests’ charge, etc. (ch. 18, 19), feasts (ch. 28, 29), and vows (ch. 30), and relating to their settlement in Canaan (ch. 27, 34, 35, 36). An abstract of much of this book we have in a few words in Ps. 95:10, Forty years long was I grieved with this generation; and an application of it to ourselves in Heb. 4:1, Let us fear lest we seem to come short. Many considerable nations there were now in being, that dwelt in cities and fortified towns, of which no notice is taken, no account kept, by the sacred history: but very exact records are kept of the affairs of a handful of people, that dwelt in tents, and wandered strangely in a wilderness, because they were the children of the covenant. For the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.Chapter 1 Israel was now to be formed into a commonwealth, or rather a kingdom; for "the Lord was their King" (1 Sa. 12:12), their government a theocracy, and Moses under him was king in Jeshurun, Deu. 33:5. Now, for the right settlement of this holy state, next to the institution of good laws was necessary the institution of good order; and account therefore must be taken of the subjects of this kingdom, which is done in this chapter, where we have, I. Orders given to Moses to number the people (v. 1-4). II. Persons nominated to assist him herein (v. 5–16). III. The particular number of each tribe, as it was given in to Moses (v. 17–43). IV. The sum total of all together (v. 44–46). V. An exception of the Levites (v. 47, etc.).Verses 1-16 I. We have here a commission issued out for the numbering of the people of Israel; and David, long after, paid dearly for doing it without a commission. Here is,1. The date of this commission, v. 1. (1.) The place: it is given at God’s court in the wilderness of Sinai, from his royal palace, the tabernacle of the congregation. (2.) The time: In the second year after they came up out of Egypt; we may call it the second year of that reign. The laws in Leviticus were given in the first month of that year; these orders were given in the beginning of the second month.2. The directions given for the execution of it, v. 2, 3. (1.) None were to be numbered but the males, and those only such as were fit for war. None under twenty years old; for, though some such might have bulk and strength enough for military service, yet, in compassion to their tender years, God would not have them put upon it to bear arms. (2.) Nor were any to be numbered who through age, or bodily infirmity, blindness, lameness, or chronical diseases, were unfit for war. The church being militant, those only are reputed the true members of it that have enlisted themselves soldiers of Jesus Christ; for our life, our Christian life, is a warfare. (3.) The account was to be taken according to their families, that it might not only be known how many they were, and what were their names, but of what tribe and family, or clan, nay, of what particular house every person was; or, reckoning it the muster of an army, to what regiment every man belonged, that he might know his place himself and the government might know where to find him. They were numbered a little before this, when their poll-money was paid for the service of the tabernacle, Ex. 38:25, 26. But it should seem they were not then registered by the house of their fathers, as now they were. Their number was the same then that it was now: 603,550 men; for as many as had died since then, and were lost in the account, so many had arrived to be twenty years old, and were added to the account.

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Translations8 · 5

AMHEVG እግዚአብሔርም ሙሴን በሲና ምድረ በዳ በመገናኛው ድንኳን ውስጥ፥ በሁለተኛው ወር በመጀመሪያው ቀን፥ ከግብፅ ምድር ከወጡ በኋላ በሁለተኛው ዓመት እንዲህ ብሎ ተናገረው፦ አማርኛ ENGNIV The Lord spoke to Moses in the Tent of Meeting in the Desert of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the secon… English BCV ደቂ እስራኤል ካብ ግብፂ ኻብ ዝወፁ ኣብ ካልአይቲ ዓመት፥ በታ ቐዳመይቲ መዓልቲ ናይታ ኻልአይቲ ወርሒ፥ እግዚኣብሄር ኣብ ምድረ በዳ ሲና፥ ኣብ ውሽጢ እቲ መራኸቢ ድንኳን ንሙሴ ኸምዙይ ኢሉ… ትግርኛ GAZBIB Namoonni Israa'el biyya Gibxii ba'anii waggaa lammaffaatti, waggicha keessaa ji'a lammaffaatti, ji'icha keessaa guyyaa … Afaan Oromoo BCV GIZ ወነበቦ እግዚአብሔር ለሙሴ በገዳም ዘሲና በውስተ ደብተራ ዘመርጡል አመ ርእሰ ሠርቀ ካልእ ወርኅ በካልእት ዓመት ዘወፅኡ እምድረ ግብፅ ወይቤሎ፦ giz GAZGAZ Namoonni Israa'el biyya Gibxii ba'anii waggaa lammaffaatti, waggicha keessaa ji'a lammaffaatti, ji'icha keessaa guyyaa … Afaan Oromoo BCV aksum ደቂ እስራኤል ካብ ግብፂ ኻብ ዝወፁ ኣብ ካልአይቲ ዓመት፥ በታ ቐዳመይቲ መዓልቲ ናይታ ኻልአይቲ ወርሒ፥ እግዚኣብሄር ኣብ ምድረ በዳ ሲና፥ ኣብ ውሽጢ እቲ መራኸቢ ድንኳን ንሙሴ ኸምዙይ ኢሉ… ትግርኛ AMHNIV እስራኤላውያን ከግብፅ በወጡ በሁለተኛው ዓመት፣ በሁለተኛው ወር፣ በመጀመሪያው ቀን በሲና ምድረ በዳ ሳሉ እግዚአብሔር (ያህዌ) ሙሴን በመገናኛው ድንኳን ውስጥ ተናገረው፤ እንዲህም አለው፤ አማርኛ