Numbers 31

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

And the LORD said to Moses,

2 Avenge the wrongs of the children of Israel on the Madianites, and afterwards you shall be added to your people.

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

3 And Moses spoke to the people, saying, Arm some of you, and set yourselves in array before the Lord against Madian, to inflict vengeance on Madian from the Lord.

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.

4 Send a thousand of each tribe from all the tribes of the children of Israel to set themselves in array.

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

5 And they numbered of the thousands of Israel a thousand of [each] tribe, twelve thousands; [these were] armed for war.

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

6 And Moses sent them away a thousand of every tribe with their forces, and Phinees the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest: and the holy instruments, and the signal trumpets [were] in their hands.

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.

7 And they set themselves in array against Madian, as the Lord commanded Moses; and they killed every male.

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

8 And they killed the kings of Madian together with their slain [subjects]; even Evi and Rocon, and Sur, and Ur, and Roboc, five kings of Madian; and they killed with the sword Balaam the son of Beor with their [other] slain.

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.

9 And they made a prey of the women of Madian, and their store, and their cattle, and all their possessions: and they spoiled their forces.

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

10 And they burnt with fire all their cities in the places of their habitation and they burnt their villages with fire.

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

11 And they took all their plunder, and all their spoils, both man and beast.

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

12 And they brought to Moses and to Eleazar the priest, and to all the children of Israel, the captives, and the spoils, and the plunder, to the camp to Araboth Moab, which is at Jordan by Jericho.

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.

13 And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the rulers of the synagogue went forth out of the camp to meet them.

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

14 And Moses was angry with the captains of the host, the heads of thousands and the heads of hundreds who came from the battle-array.

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

15 And Moses said to them, Why have you saved every female alive?

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

16 For they were [the occasion] to the children of Israel by the word of Balaam of their revolting and despising the word of the Lord, because of Phogor; and there was a plague in the congregation of the Lord.

“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.

17 Now then kill every male in all the spoil, kill every woman, who has known the lying with man.

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

18 And as for all the captivity of women, who have not known the lying with man, save you them alive.

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

19 And you shall encamp outside the [great] camp seven days; every one who has slain and who touches a dead body, shall be purified on the third day, and you and your captivity [shall purify yourselves] on the seventh day.

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.

20 And you shall purify every garment and every leather utensil, and all furniture of goat skin, and every wooden vessel.

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

21 And Eleazar the priest said to the men of the host that came from the battle-array, This [is] the ordinance of the law which the Lord has commanded Moses.

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:

22 Beside the gold, and the silver, and the brass, and the iron, and lead, and tin,

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

23 every thing that shall pass through the fire shall so be clean, nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of sanctification; and whatever will not pass through the fire shall pass through water.

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.

24 And on the seventh day you shall wash your garments, and be clean; and afterwards you shall come into the camp.

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

25 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

The LORD said to Moses,

26 Take the sum of the spoils of the captivity both of man and beast, you and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the families of the congregation.

“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.

27 And you shall divide the spoils between the warriors that went out to battle, and the whole congregation.

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

28 And you shall take a tribute for the Lord from the warriors that went out to battle; one soul out of five hundred, from the men, and from the cattle, even from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses; and you shall take from their half.

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.

29 And you shall give [them] to Eleazar the priest [as] the first fruits of the Lord.

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

30 And from the half belonging to the children of Israel you shall take one in fifty from the men, and from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses, and from all the cattle; and you shall give them to the Levites that keep the charges in the tabernacle of the Lord.

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.”

31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.

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

32 And that which remained of the spoil which the warriors took, was—of the sheep, six hundred and seventy-five thousand:

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

33 and oxen, seventy-two thousand:

72,000 cattle,

34 and asses, sixty-one thousand.

61,000 donkeys,

35 And persons of women who had not known lying with man, all the souls, thirty-two thousand.

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

36 And the half, [even] the portion of them that went out to war, from the number of the sheep, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand and five hundred.

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

37 And the tribute to the Lord from the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five.

including a tribute to the LORD of 675,

38 And the oxen, six and thirty thousand, and the tribute to the Lord seventy-two.

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

39 And asses, thirty thousand and five hundred, and the tribute to the Lord, sixty-one:

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

40 and the persons, sixteen thousand, and the tribute of them to the Lord, thirty-two souls.

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

41 And Moses gave the tribute to the Lord, the heave-offering of God, to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord commanded Moses;

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

42 from the half belonging to the children of Israel, whom Moses separated from the men of war.

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

43 And the half [taken] from the sheep, belonging to the congregation, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand and five hundred.

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

44 And the oxen, thirty-six thousand;

36,000 cattle,

45 asses, thirty thousand and five hundred;

30,500 donkeys,

46 and persons, sixteen thousand.

and 16,000 people.

47 And Moses took of the half belonging to the children of Israel the fifties part, of men and of cattle, and he gave them to the Levites who keep the charges of the tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

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.

48 And all those who were appointed to be officers of thousands of the host, captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, approached Moses, and said to Moses,

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

49 Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war with us, and not one is missing.

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

50 And we have brought our gift to the Lord, [every] man who has found an article of gold, whether an armlet, or a chain, or a ring, or a bracelet, or a clasp for hair, to make atonement for us before the Lord.

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.”

51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, even every wrought article.

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

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

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

53 For the men of war took plunder every one for himself.

Each of the soldiers had taken plunder for himself.

54 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from the captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, and brought the vessels into the tabernacle of witness, a memorial of the children of Israel before the Lord.

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.