Numbers 31

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

2 “Take vengeance on the Midianites for what they did to the Israelites. After doing that, you will die and be gathered to your people.”

Revenge first the children of Israel on the Madianites, and so thou shalt be gathered to thy people.

3 So Moses spoke to the people. He said, “Arm some of your men for war so they may go against Midian and carry out Yahweh's vengeance on it.

And Moses forthwith said: Arm of you men to fight, who may take the revenge of the Lord on the Madianites.

4 Every tribe throughout Israel must send a thousand soldiers to war.”

Let a thousand men be chosen out of every tribe of Israel to be sent to the war.

5 So out of Israel's thousands of men, one thousand was provided from each tribe, twelve thousand men armed for war.

And they gave a thousand of every tribe, that is to say, twelve thousand men well appointed for battle.

6 Then Moses sent them to battle, a thousand from every tribe, along with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, and with some articles from the holy place and the trumpets in his possession for sounding signals.

And Moses sent them with Phinees the son of Eleazar the priest, and he delivered to him the holy vessels, and the trumpets to sound.

7 They fought against Midian, as Yahweh had commanded Moses. They killed every man.

And when they had fought against the Madianites and had overcome them, they slew all the men.

8 They killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their dead: Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam son of Beor, with the sword.

And their kings Evi, and Recem, and Sur, and Hur, and Rebe, five princes of the nation: Balaam also the son of Beer they killed with the sword.

9 The army of Israel took captive the women of Midian, their children, all their cattle, all their flocks, and all their goods. They took these as plunder.

And they took their women, and their children captives, and all their cattle, and all their goods: and all their possessions they plundered:

10 They burned all their cities where they lived and all their camps.

And all their cities, and their villages, and castles, they burned.

11 They took all the plunder and prisoners, both people and animals.

And they carried away the booty, and all that they had taken both of men and of beasts.

12 They brought the prisoners, the plunder, and the captured things to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the community of the people of Israel. They brought these to the camp in the plains of Moab, by the Jordan near Jericho.

And they brought them to Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and to all the multitude of the children of Israel. But the rest of the things for use they carried to the camp on the plains of Moab, beside the Jordan over against Jericho.

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

And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the princes of the synagogue went forth to meet them without the camp.

14 But Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the captains of hundreds, who came from battle.

And Moses being angry with the chief officers of the army, the tribunes, and the centurions that were come from the battle,

15 Moses said to them, “Have you let all the women live?

Said: Why have you saved the women?

16 Look, these women caused the people of Israel, through Balaam's advice, to commit sin against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, when the plague spread among Yahweh's community.

Are not these they, that deceived the children of Israel by the counsel of Balaam, and made you transgress against the Lord by the sin of Phogor, for which also the people was punished?

17 Now then, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has ever slept with a man.

Therefore kill all that are of the male sex, even of the children: and put to death the women, that have carnally known men.

18 But take for yourselves all the young girls who have never slept with a man.

But the girls, and all the women that are virgins save for yourselves:

19 You must camp outside the camp of Israel for seven days. All of you who have killed anyone and or have touched any dead person—you must purify yourselves on the third day and on the seventh day—you and your prisoners.

And stay without the camp seven days. He that hath killed a man, or touched one that is killed, shall be purified the third day and the seventh day.

20 You must purify every garment and everything made of animal hide and goats' hair, and everything made of wood.”

And of all the spoil, every garment, or vessel, or any thing made for use, of the skins, or hair of goats, or of wood, shall be purified.

21 Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone to war, “This is a decreed law that Yahweh has given to Moses:

Eleazar also the priest spoke to the men of the army, that had fought, in this manner: This is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord hath commanded Moses:

22 The gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead,

Gold, and silver, and brass, and iron, and lend, and tin,

23 and everything that resists fire, you must put it through the fire, and it will become clean. You must then purify those things with the water of cleansing. Whatever cannot go through the fire you must cleanse with that water.

And all that may pass through the fire, shall be purified by fire, but whatsoever cannot abide the fire, shall be sanctified with the water of expiation:

24 You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and then you will become clean. Afterward you may come into Israel's camp.”

And you shall wash your garments the seventh day, and being purified, you shall afterwards enter into the camp.

25 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,

And the Lord said to Moses:

26 “Count all the plundered things that were taken, both people and animals. You, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the community's ancestor's clans

Take the sum of the things that were taken both of man and beast, thou and Eleazar the priest and the princes of the multitude:

27 must divide the plunder into two parts. Divide it between the soldiers who went out to battle and all the rest of the community.

And thou shalt divide the spoil equally, between them that fought and went out to the war, and between the rest of the multitude.

28 Then levy a tax to be given to me from the soldiers who went out to battle. This tax must be one out of every five hundred, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, or goats.

And thou shalt separate a portion to the Lord from them that fought and were in the battle, one soul of five hundred as well of persons as of oxen and asses and sheep.

29 Take this tax from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest for an offering to be presented to me.

And thou shalt give it to Eleazar the priest, because they are the firstfruits of the Lord.

30 Also from the people of Israel's half, you must take one out of every fifty—from the persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats. Give these to the Levites who take care of my tabernacle.”

Out of the moiety also of the children of Israel thou shalt take the fiftieth head of persons, and of oxen, and asses, and sheep, and of all beasts, and thou shalt give them to the Levites that watch in the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.

31 So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as Yahweh had commanded Moses.

And Moses and Eleazar did as the Lord had commanded.

32 Now the plunder that remained of what the soldiers had taken was 675,000 sheep,

And the spoil which the army had taken, was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep,

33 seventy-two thousand oxen,

Seventy-two thousand oxen,

34 sixty-one thousand donkeys,

Sixty-one thousand asses:

35 and thirty-two thousand women who had never slept with any man.

And thirty-two thousand persons of the female sex, that had not known men.

36 The half that was kept for the soldiers numbered 337,000 sheep.

And one half was given to them that had been in the battle, to wit, three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep:

37 Yahweh's part of the sheep was 675.

Out of which, for the portion of the Lord, were reckoned six hundred seventy-five sheep.

38 The oxen were thirty-six thousand which Yahweh's tax was seventy-two.

And out of the thirty-six thousand oxen, seventy-two oxen:

39 The donkeys were 30,500 from which Yahweh's part was sixty-one.

Out of the thirty thousand five hundred asses, sixty-one asses:

40 The persons were sixteen thousand women of whom Yahweh's tax was thirty-two.

Out of the sixteen thousand persons, there fell to the portion of the Lord, thirty-two souls.

41 Moses took the tax that was to be an offering presented to Yahweh. He gave it to Eleazar the priest, as Yahweh commanded Moses.

And Moses delivered the number of the firstfruits of the Lord to Eleazar the priest, as had been commanded him,

42 As for the people of Israel's half that Moses had taken from the soldiers who had gone to war—

Out of the half of the children of Israel, which he had separated for them that had been in the battle.

43 the community's half was 337,500 sheep,

But out of the half that fell to the rest of the multitude, that is to say, out of the three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,

44 thirty-six thousand oxen,

And out of the thirty-six thousand oxen,

45 30,500 donkeys,

And out of the thirty thousand five hundred asses,

46 and sixteen thousand women.

And out of the sixteen thousand persons,

47 From the people of Israel's half, Moses took one out of every fifty, both of people and animals. He gave them to the Levites who kept care of Yahweh's tabernacle, as Yahweh had commanded him to do.

Moses took the fiftieth head, and gave it to the Levites that watched in the tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord had commanded.

48 Then the officers of the army, the commanders over thousands and the captains over hundreds, came to Moses.

And when the commanders of the army, and the tribunes and centurions were come to Moses, they said:

49 They said to him, “Your servants have counted the soldiers who are under our command, and not one man is missing.

We thy servants have reckoned up the number of the fighting men, whom we had under our hand, and not so much as one was wanting.

50 We have brought Yahweh's offering, what each man found, articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and necklaces, to make atonement for ourselves before Yahweh.”

Therefore we offer as gifts to the Lord what gold every one of us could find in the booty, in garters and tablets, rings and bracelets, and chains, that thou mayst pray to the Lord for us.

51 Moses and Eleazar the priest received from them the gold and all the articles of craftsmanship.

And Moses and Eleazar the priest received all the gold in divers kinds,

52 All the gold of the offering that they gave to Yahweh—the offerings from the commanders of thousands and from the captains of hundreds—weighed 16,750 shekels.

In weight sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty sicles, from the tribunes and from the centurions.

53 Each soldier had taken plunder, each man for himself.

For that which every one had taken in the booty was his own.

54 Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from the commanders of thousands and captains of hundreds. They took it into the tent of meeting as a reminder of the people of Israel for Yahweh.

And that which was received they brought into the tabernacle of the testimony, for a memorial of the children of Israel before the Lord.