Numbers 31

1 And the LORD said to Moses,

And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

2 “Take vengeance on the Midianites for the Israelites. After that, you will be gathered to your people.”

Execute the vengeance of the children of Israel on the Midianites, after which thou shalt be gathered unto thy people.

3 So Moses told the people, “Arm some of your men for war, that they may go against the Midianites and execute the LORD’s vengeance on them.

And Moses spoke unto the people, saying, Arm from yourselves some men for the army, and let them go against the Midianites, to execute the vengeance of the Lord on Midian.

4 Send into battle a thousand men from each tribe of Israel.”

A thousand each for every tribe, of all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the army.

5 So a thousand men were recruited from each tribe of Israel—twelve thousand armed for war.

And there were levied out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for the army.

6 And Moses sent the thousand from each tribe into battle, along with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, who took with him the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for signaling.

And Moses sent them, a thousand of every tribe, to the army; them and Phinehas the son of Elazar the priest, to the army, with the holy vessels, and the trumpets for blowing the alarm in his hand.

7 Then they waged war against Midian, as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they killed every male.

And they marched out against the Midianites, as the Lord had commanded Moses; and they slew every male.

8 Among the slain were Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba—the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword.

And the kings of Midian they slew, besides the rest of their men that were slain; namely, Evi and Rekem, and Zur, and Chur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian; and Bil'am the son of Beor they slew with the sword.

9 The Israelites captured the Midianite women and their children, and they plundered all their herds, flocks, and goods.

And the children of Israel took captives the women of Midian, and their little ones; and all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their goods, they took as spoil.

10 Then they burned all the cities where the Midianites had lived, as well as all their encampments,

And all their cities wherein they dwelt, and all their castles they burnt with fire.

11 and carried away all the plunder and spoils, both people and animals.

And they took all the spoil, and all the booty, both of men and of cattle.

12 They brought the captives, spoils, and plunder to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of Israel at the camp on the plains of Moab, by the Jordan across from Jericho.

And they brought unto Moses, and to Elazar the priest, and unto the congregation of the children of Israel, the captives, and the booty, and the spoil, unto the camp, to the plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan opposite Jericho.

13 And Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp.

And Moses, and Elazar the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them, to without the camp.

14 But Moses was angry with the officers of the army—the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds—who were returning from the battle.

And Moses was wroth with the officers of the host, the captains over the thousands, and the captains over the hundreds, who had come from the war-campaign.

15 “Have you spared all the women?” he asked them.

And Moses said unto them, Have ye allowed all the females to live?

16 “Look, these women caused the sons of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to turn unfaithfully against the LORD at Peor, so that the plague struck the congregation of the LORD.

Behold, these chiefly were the cause unto the children of Israel, through the counsel of Bil'am, to commit the gross trespass against the Lord in the matter of Peor; through which there was the plague among the congregation of the Lord.

17 So now, kill all the boys, as well as every woman who has had relations with a man,

And now kill ye every male among the little ones, and every woman that hath known man by lying with him shall ye kill.

18 but spare for yourselves every girl who has never had relations with a man.

But all among the women-children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.

19 All of you who have killed a person or touched the dead are to remain outside the camp for seven days. On the third day and the seventh day you are to purify both yourselves and your captives.

But ye, —you must abide without the camp seven days: all ye who have killed any person, and all who have touched any one slain, shall purify yourselves on the third day, and on the seventh day; both you and your captives.

20 And purify every garment and leather good, everything made of goat’s hair, and every article of wood.”

And every garment, and whatever is made of skins, and every work of goats' hair, and every vessel made of wood, shall ye purify unto yourselves.

21 Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, “This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:

And Elazar the priest said unto the men of the army who had gone to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord hath commanded Moses:

22 Only the gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—

Nevertheless the gold, and the silver, the copper, the iron, the tin, and the lead,

23 everything that can withstand the fire—must be put through the fire, and it will be clean. But it must still be purified with the water of purification. And everything that cannot withstand the fire must pass through the water.

Every thing that cometh into the fire shall ye make go through the fire, and it shall be clean; only it shall be purified with the waters of sprinkling: and whatsoever doth not come into the fire shall ye cause to go through the water.

24 On the seventh day you are to wash your clothes, and you will be clean. After that you may enter the camp.”

And ye shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and ye shall be clean, and after that may ye come into the camp.

25 The LORD said to Moses,

And the Lord said unto Moses, as followeth,

26 “You and Eleazar the priest and the family heads of the congregation are to take a count of what was captured, both of man and beast.

Take the sum of the booty of the captives, both of man and of cattle, thou, with Elazar the priest, and the chiefs of the families of the congregation:

27 Then divide the captives between the troops who went out to battle and the rest of the congregation.

And thou shalt divide the booty, between those that carried on the war, who went out to the army, and between all the congregation.

28 Set aside a tribute for the LORD from what belongs to the soldiers who went into battle: one out of every five hundred, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, or sheep.

And thou shalt levy a tribute unto the Lord from the men of war who went out to the army, one individual from every five hundred, of the persons, and of the beef-cattle, and of the asses, and of the sheep;

29 Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the LORD.

From their half shall ye take it; and thou shalt give it unto Elazar the priest, for a heave-offering of the Lord.

30 From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every fifty, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, or other animals, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the LORD.”

And from the half of the children of Israel, shalt thou take one individual, as it may come, from any fifty, of the persons, of beef-cattle, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of cattle; and thou shalt give the same unto the Levites, who keep the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.

31 So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD had commanded Moses,

And Moses with Elazar the priest did, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

32 and this plunder remained from the spoils the soldiers had taken: 675,000 sheep,

And the booty, being the rest of the spoil which the men of the army had taken, was of sheep and goats, six hundred thousand and seventy thousand and five thousand,

33 72,000 cattle,

And of beef-cattle, seventy and two thousand,

34 61,000 donkeys,

And of asses, sixty and one thousand,

35 and 32,000 women who had not slept with a man.

And of human persons, of women that had not known men by lying with him, in all thirty and two thousand.

36 This was the half portion for those who had gone to war: 337,500 sheep,

And the half, the portion of those who had gone out in the army, was, in the number of sheep and goats, three hundred thousand and seven and thirty thousand and five hundred.

37 including a tribute to the LORD of 675,

And the tribute unto the Lord of the flocks was six hundred and seventy and five.

38 36,000 cattle, including a tribute to the LORD of 72,

And the beef-cattle were thirty and six thousand; and the tribute thereof unto the Lord was seventy and two.

39 30,500 donkeys, including a tribute to the LORD of 61,

And the asses were thirty thousand and five hundred; and the tribute thereof unto the Lord was sixty and one.

40 and 16,000 people, including a tribute to the LORD of 32.

And the human persons were sixteen thousand; and the tribute thereof unto the Lord was thirty and two persons.

41 Moses gave the tribute to Eleazar the priest as an offering for the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

And Moses gave the tribute, the Lord's heave-offering, unto Elazar the priest, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

42 From the Israelites’ half, which Moses had set apart from the men who had gone to war,

And from the half of the children of Israel, which Moses divided off from the men that had gone forth in the army, —

43 this half belonged to the congregation: 337,500 sheep,

(Now the half of the congregation was, of sheep and goats three hundred thousand and thirty thousand, seven thousand and five hundred.

44 36,000 cattle,

And beef-cattle, thirty and six thousand,

45 30,500 donkeys,

And asses thirty thousand five hundred,

46 and 16,000 people.

And human persons sixteen thousand; )

47 From the Israelites’ half, Moses took one out of every fifty persons and animals and gave them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of the LORD, as the LORD had commanded him.

And Moses took from this half of the children of Israel, as it came, one from every fifty, of man and of cattle, and gave the same unto the Levites, who kept the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord; as the Lord had commanded Moses.

48 Then the officers who were over the units of the army—the commanders of thousands and of hundreds—approached Moses

And there came near unto Moses the officers who had been over the thousands of the army, the captains of the thousands, and the captains of the hundreds.

49 and said, “Your servants have counted the soldiers under our command, and not one of us is missing.

And they said unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war who have been under our command, and there lacketh not one man of us.

50 So we have brought to the LORD an offering of the gold articles each man acquired—armlets, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces—to make atonement for ourselves before the LORD.”

We have therefore brought an oblation unto the Lord, each what he hath gotten of vessels of gold, chains, and bracelets, finger-rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the Lord.

51 So Moses and Eleazar the priest received from them all the articles made out of gold.

And Moses with Elazar the priest took the gold from them, all kinds of wrought articles.

52 All the gold that the commanders of thousands and of hundreds presented as an offering to the LORD weighed 16,750 shekels.

And all the gold of the offering that they offered up to the Lord, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels, from the captains of the thousands, and from the captains of the hundreds.

53 Each of the soldiers had taken plunder for himself.

The men of the army had taken spoil, every man for himself.

54 And Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds and brought it into the Tent of Meeting as a memorial for the Israelites before the LORD.

And Moses and Elazar the priest took the gold from the captains of the thousands and of the hundreds, and they brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, as a memorial for the children of Israel before the Lord.