Numbers 31
1 And the Lord spake vnto Moses, saying,
Yahweh spoke to Moses/me and said,
2 Reuenge the children of Israel of the Midianites, and afterwarde shalt thou be gathered vnto thy people.
“Before you die, [tell the] Israeli people that they should (pay back/get revenge on) the Midian people-group for what they did to you.”
3 And Moses spake to the people, saying, Harnesse some of you vnto warre, and let them goe against Midian, to execute the vengeance of the Lord against Midian.
So Moses/I said to the people, “Get some men prepared for battle. Yahweh will enable them to (pay back/get revenge on) the Midian people-group [for what they did to us].
4 A thousande of euery tribe throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye sende to the warre.
Select 1,000 men from each tribe to fight.”
5 So there were taken out of the thousands of Israel, twelue thousande prepared vnto warre, of euery tribe a thousand.
So 12,000 men prepared for fighting in the battle, 1,000 from each tribe.
6 And Moses sent them to the warre, euen a thousand of euery tribe, and sent them with Phinehas the sonne of Eleazar the Priest to the warre: and the holy instruments, that is, the trumpets to blow were in his hand.
When Moses/I sent them to the battle, Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the priest, went with them. He took with him some of the things from the Sacred Tent and the trumpets that would be blown to give the signal [to start the battle].
7 And they warred against Midian, as the Lord had commanded Moses, and slue all the males.
The Israeli men fought the soldiers from the Midian people-group, as Yahweh had told Moses/me to tell them to do, and they killed every man from the Midian people-group.
8 They slue also the Kings of Midian among them that were slaine: Eui and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur and Reba fiue kings of Midian, and they slue Balaam the sonne of Beor with the sworde:
Among those whom they killed were the five kings of the Midian people-group—Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. They also killed with a sword Balaam, the son of Beor.
9 But the children of Israel tooke the women of Midian prisoners, and their children, and spoyled all their cattell, and all their flockes, and all their goods.
They captured all the women and children of the Midian people-group and took away their cattle, their flocks of sheep, and herds of goats, and all their other possessions.
10 And they burnt all their cities, wherein they dwelt, and all their villages with fire.
Then they burned down all the houses in the towns and villages where the people of the Midian people-group lived,
11 And they tooke all the spoyle and all the pray both of men and beastes.
but they took home with them all the women and children and animals and possessions.
12 And they brought the captiues and that which they had taken, and the spoyle vnto Moses and to Eleazar the Priest, and vnto the Congregation of the children of Israel, into ye campe in the playne of Moab, which was by Iorden toward Iericho.
They brought all these to Eliezer and Moses/me, and to the rest of the Israeli people who were at their/our camp on the plains where the Moab people-group lived, near the Jordan River, across from Jericho.
13 Then Moses and Eleazar the Priest, and all the princes of the Congregation went out of the campe to meete them.
Eleazar and all the leaders of the people and Moses/I went outside the camp to greet/meet with them.
14 And Moses was angry with the captaines of the hoste, with the captaines ouer thousands, and captaines ouer hundreds, which came from the warre and battel.
But Moses/I was angry with some of the men who had returned from the battle. He/I was angry with the army officers and the men who were commanders of 1,000 men and those who were commanders of 100 men.
15 And Moses sayde vnto them, What? haue ye saued all the women?
He/I asked them, “Why did you allow the women to live [RHQ]?
16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel through the counsell of Balaam to commit a trespasse against the Lord, as concerning Peor, and there came a plague among the Congregation of the Lord.
They are the ones who did what Balaam suggested and urged/persuaded our people to worship Baal [instead of Yahweh]. As a result, Yahweh caused a plague to strike his people while they were at Peor.
17 Now therefore, slay all the males among the children, and kill all the women that haue knowen man by carnall copulation.
So, now you must kill all the boys of the Midian people-group, and also kill all the women who have had sex [EUP] with any man.
18 But all the women children that haue not knowen carnall copulation, keepe aliue for your selues.
Spare only the girls who are virgins [EUP]. You can keep them to be your [wives or your slaves].
19 And ye shall remaine without the host seuen dayes, all that haue killed any person, and all that haue touched any dead, and purifie both your selues and your prisoners the third day and the seuenth.
All of you who have killed someone or touched the corpse of someone who was killed [in the battle] must stay outside the camp for seven days. On the third day and on the seventh day, you must [perform the ritual to] cause you and those whom you have captured to become acceptable to God again.
20 Also ye shall purifie euery garment and all that is made of skins and al worke of goates heare, and all things made of wood.
You must also wash your clothes and anything [that you took to the battle] that is made of leather or goat’s hair or wood.”
21 And Eleazar ye Priest sayd vnto the men of warre, which went to the battel, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord commanded Moses,
Then Eleazar said to the soldiers who had returned from the battle, “This is what Yahweh has instructed Moses:
22 As for gold, and siluer, brasse, yron, tynne, and lead:
You must put into a fire any gold or silver or bronze or iron or tin or lead things [that you brought back from the battle].
23 Euen all that may abide the fire, yee shall make it goe through the fire, and it shalbe cleane: yet, it shalbe purified with the water of purification: and all that suffereth not the fire, yee shall cause to passe by the water.
Put everything that will not burn into the fire, and then they will be acceptable for you to use. But also sprinkle those things with the water that causes things and people to become acceptable to God. The things that would burn [if you put them] in a fire, sprinkle them with that water.
24 Ye shall wash also your clothes the seuenth day, and ye shalbe cleane: and afterward ye shall come into the Hoste.
On the seventh day, wash your clothes, and then you will become acceptable to God again. After you do that, you may return to the camp.”
25 And the Lord spake vnto Moses, saying,
Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
26 Take the summe of the praie that was taken, both of persons and of cattell, thou and Eleazar the Priest, and the chiefe fathers of the Congregation.
“Tell Eleazar and the leaders of the family groups that they must write down a list of all the goods, the women, and the animals that were captured [in the battle].
27 And deuide the praye betweene the souldiers that went to the warre, and all the Congregation.
Then they must divide all those things, half given to the men who fought in the battle and the other half given to the rest of the people.
28 And thou shalt take a tribute vnto ye Lord of the men of warre, which went out to battel: one person of fiue hundreth, both of the persons, and of the beeues, and of the asses, and of the sheepe.
From the men who fought in the battle, take one from every 500 people and from every 500 cattle and donkeys and sheep, to be a tax for me.
29 Yee shall take it of their halfe and giue it vnto Eleazar the Priest, as an heaue offring of the Lord.
Take these things to Eleazar to (be my share/belong to me).
30 But of the halfe of the children of Israel thou shalt take one, taken out of fiftie, both of the persons, of the beeues, of the asses, and of the sheepe, euen of all the cattel: and thou shalt giue them vnto the Leuites, which haue the charge of the Tabernacle of the Lord.
And from the half that belongs to the ordinary people, take one item from every 50. That includes people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats, and other animals. Give those things to the descendants of Levi who take care of my Sacred Tent.”
31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
So Eleazar and Moses/I did what Yahweh commanded.
32 And the bootie, to wit, the rest of the praie which the men of warre had spoyled, was sixe hundreth seuentie and fiue thousand sheepe,
There were 675,000 sheep, 72,000 cattle, 61,000 donkeys, and 32,000 virgins that they had captured from the Midian people-group.
33 And seuentie and two thousand beeues,
34 And three score and one thousand asses,
35 And two and thirtie thousande persons in all, of women that had lyen by no man.
36 And the halfe, to wit, the part of them that went out to warre touching the nomber of sheepe, was three hundreth seuen and thirtie thousand, and fiue hundreth.
The men who fought in the battle took 337,000 sheep [from the battle],
37 And the Lordes tribute of the sheepe was sixe hundreth and seuentie and fiue:
and they gave 675 of them to Yahweh.
38 And the beeues were six and thirty thousad, whereof the Lordes tribute was seuentie and two.
They took 36,000 cattle and gave 72 of them to Yahweh.
39 And the asses were thirtie thousande and fiue hundreth, whereof the Lordes tribute was three score and one:
They took 30,500 donkeys, and they gave 61 of them to Yahweh.
40 And of persons sixtene thousand, whereof the Lordes tribute was two and thirtie persons.
They took 16,000 virgins, and they dedicated 32 of them to Yahweh.
41 And Moses gaue the tribute of the Lordes offring vnto Eleazar the Priest, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Moses/I gave to Eleazar all [the animals] that had been given to Yahweh, as Yahweh had commanded.
42 And of the halfe of the children of Israel, which Moses deuided from the men of warre,
Moses/I separated what those who had fought in the battle received from what the other people received. The people had taken 337,500 sheep, 36,000 cattle, 30,500 donkeys, and 16,000 virgins,
43 (For the halfe that perteined vnto the Congregation, was three hundreth thirtie and seuen thousand sheepe and fiue hundreth,
44 And sixe and thirtie thousand beeues,
45 And thirtie thousand asses, and fiue hudreth,
46 And sixteene thousande persons)
47 Moses, I say, tooke of the halfe that perteined vnto the children of Israel, one taken out of fiftie, both of the persons, and of the cattell, and gaue them vnto the Leuites, which haue the charge of the Tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
From what the people received, Moses/I took one from every 50 items and dedicated them to Yahweh. That included animals and people. As Yahweh commanded, he/I gave them all to the descendants of Levi who took care of the Sacred Tent.
48 Then the captaines which were ouer thousandes of the hoste, the captaines ouer the thousandes, and the captaines ouer the hundreds came vnto Moses:
Then the army officers and those who commanded 1,000 men and those who commanded 100 men came to Moses/me.
49 And saide to Moses, Thy seruants haue taken the summe of the men of warre which are vnder our authoritie, and there lacketh not one man of vs.
They said, “We, who are your servants, have counted the soldiers whom we command, and [we found that] none of them (is missing/has been killed).
50 We haue therefore brought a present vnto the Lord, what euery man found of iewels of golde, bracelets, and cheines, rings, eare ringes, and ornaments of the legges, to make an atonement for our soules before the Lord.
So [to thank Yahweh for that], we have brought to him a gift of the gold items that we found [after the battle]: Gold arm bands and bracelets and rings and earrings and necklaces. This will enable us to be forgiven for our sins.”
51 And Moses and Eleazar the Priest tooke the golde of them, and all wrought iewels,
So Eleazar and Moses/I accepted the gold items that they brought.
52 And all the golde of the offring that they offered vp to the Lord (of the captaines ouer thousands and hundreds) was sixteene thousande seuen hundreth and fiftie shekels,
The total of it weighed about (420 pounds/190 kg.).
53 (For the men of warre had spoyled, euery man for him selfe)
Each soldier had taken these things for himself.
54 And Moses and Eleazar the Priest tooke the golde of the captaines ouer the thousandes, and ouer the hundreds, and brought it into the Tabernacle of the Congregation, for a memoriall of the children of Israel before the Lord.
Eleazar and Moses/I accepted these gold items from these commanders and put them in the Sacred Tent to remind the Israeli people about how Yahweh [had helped them defeat the Midian people-group].
