Liber Numeri 31
1 Locutusque est Dominus ad Moysen, dicens:
The Lord told Moses,
2 Ulciscere prius filios Israel de Madianitis, et sic colligeris ad populum tuum.
“Punish the Midianites because of what they did to the Israelites. After that you will join your forefathers in death.”
3 Statimque Moyses, Armate, inquit, ex vobis viros ad pugnam, qui possint ultionem Domini expetere de Madianitis.
Moses instructed the people, “Have some of your men get ready for battle, so they can go and attack the Midianites and carry out the Lord's punishment on them.
4 mille viri de singulis tribubus eligantur ex Israel qui mittantur ad bellum.
You are to contribute one thousand men from each Israelite tribe.”
5 Dederuntque millenos de singulis tribubus, id est, duodecim millia expeditorum ad pugnam:
So one thousand men were chosen from each Israelite tribe, making twelve thousand troops ready for battle.
6 quos misit Moyses cum Phinees filio Eleazari sacerdotis, vasaque sancta, et tubas ad clangendum tradidit ei.
Moses sent them into battle, one thousand from each tribe, together with Phinehas, son of Eleazar the priest. He carried with him the holy objects from the sanctuary and the trumpets used for giving signals.
7 Cumque pugnassent contra Madianitas atque vicissent, omnes mares occiderunt,
They attacked the Midianites, as the Lord had told Moses to do, and they killed all the men.
8 et reges eorum Evi, et Recem, et Sur, et Hur, et Rebe, quinque principes gentis: Balaam quoque filium Beor interfecerunt gladio.
Among those killed were the five kings of Midian, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. They also killed Balaam, son of Beor, with the sword.
9 Ceperuntque mulieres eorum, et parvulos, omniaque pecora, et cunctam supellectilem: quidquid habere potuerant depopulati sunt:
The Israelites captured the Midianite women and children, and they took as plunder all their herds, flocks, and possessions.
10 tam urbes quam viculos et castella flamma consumpsit.
They set fire to all the Midianite towns and camps where they had lived,
11 Et tulerunt praedam, et universa quae ceperant tam ex hominibus quam ex iumentis,
and carried away all the plunder and loot, including people and animals.
12 et adduxerunt ad Moysen, et Eleazarum sacerdotem, et ad omnem multitudinem filiorum Israel. reliqua autem utensilia portaverunt ad castra in campestribus Moab iuxta Iordanem contra Iericho.
They brought the prisoners, loot, and plunder to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the rest of the Israelites where they were camped on the plains of Moab, beside the Jordan opposite Jericho.
13 Egressi sunt autem Moyses, et Eleazar sacerdos, et omnes principes synagogae in occursum eorum extra castra.
Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the Israelite leaders went out of the camp to meet them.
14 Iratusque Moyses principibus exercitus, tribunis, et centurionibus qui venerant de bello,
Moses was angry with the army officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, who returned from the battle.
15 ait: Cur feminas reservastis?
“Why did you let all the women live?” he asked them.
16 Nonne istae sunt, quae deceperunt filios Israel ad suggestionem Balaam, et praevaricari vos fecerunt in Dominum super peccato Phogor, unde et percussus est populus?
“You realize that these were the women seduced the Israelite men, leading them to be unfaithful to the Lord at Peor, following Balaam's advice! That's why the Lord's people suffered from the plague!
17 Ergo cunctos interficite quidquid est generis masculinis, etiam in parvulis: et mulieres, quae noverunt viros in coitu, iugulate:
So go and kill all the boys and every woman who has had slept with a man.
18 puellas autem et omnes feminas virgines reservate vobis:
Let all the girls who are virgins live. They are yours.
19 et manete extra castra septem diebus. Qui occiderit hominem, vel occisum tetigerit, lustrabitur die tertio et septimo.
All those of you who killed someone or touched a dead body must stay outside the camp for seven days. Purify yourselves and your prisoners on the third day and the seventh day.
20 Et de omni praeda, sive vestimentum fuerit, sive vas, et aliquid in utensilia praeparatum, de caprarum pellibus, et pilis, et ligno expiabitur.
Also purify all your clothing garment and anything made of leather, goat's hair, or wood.”
21 Eleazar quoque sacerdos ad viros exercitus, qui pugnaverunt, sic locutus est: Hoc est praeceptum legis, quod mandavit Dominus Moysi:
Eleazar the priest told the soldiers who had gone into battle, “These are the legal regulations that the Lord has ordered Moses to be carried out:
22 Aurum, et argentum, et aes, et ferrum, et plumbum, et stannum,
All that's made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—
23 et omne, quod potest transire per flammas, igne purgabitur. quidquid autem ignem non potest sustinere, aqua expiationis sanctificabitur:
anything that doesn't burn—must be put through fire to make it clean. But it still has to be purified using water of purification. Anything that burns must be put through the water.
24 et lavabitis vestimenta vestra die septimo, et purificati postea castra intrabitis.
Wash your clothes on the seventh day and you will be clean. Then you can enter the camp.”
25 Dixit quoque Dominus ad Moysen:
The Lord told Moses,
26 Tollite summam eorum, quae capta sunt ab homine usque ad pecus, tu et Eleazar sacerdos et principes vulgi:
“You, Eleazar the priest, and the Israelite family leaders are to take a record of the people and animals that were captured.
27 dividesque ex aequo praedam inter eos, qui pugnaverunt egressique sunt ad bellum, et inter omnem reliquam multitudinem.
Then divide them between the troops who went into battle and the rest of the Israelites.
28 et separabis partem Domino ab his, qui pugnaverunt et fuerunt in bello, unam animam de quingentis tam ex hominibus quam ex bobus et asinis et ovibus,
Take as a contribution to the Lord from what is allocated to the troops who went into battle one out of every five hundred people, cattle, donkeys, or sheep.
29 et dabis eam Eleazaro sacerdoti, quia primitiae Domini sunt.
Take this from their half share and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the Lord.
30 Ex media quoque parte filiorum Israel accipies quinquagesimum caput hominum, et boum, et asinorum, et ovium, cunctorum animantium, et dabis ea Levitis, qui excubant in custodiis tabernaculi Domini.
From the Israelites; half share, take one out of every fifty people, cattle, donkeys, or sheep, or other animals, and give them to the Levites who take care of the Lord's Tabernacle.”
31 Feceruntque Moyses, et Eleazar, sicut praeceperat Dominus.
Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord had ordered Moses.
32 Fuit autem praeda, quam exercitus ceperat, ovium sexcenta septuaginta quinque millia,
This was the list of plunder remaining that had been looted by the troops: 675,000 sheep,
33 boum septuaginta duo millia,
72,000 cattle,
34 asinorum sexaginta millia et mille:
61,000 donkeys,
35 animae hominum sexus feminei, quae non cognoverant viros, triginta duo millia.
and 32,000 virgins.
36 Dataque est media pars his, qui in praelio fuerant, ovium trecenta triginta septem millia quingentae:
This was the half share for those who had gone to fight: 337,500 sheep,
37 e quibus in partem Domini supputatae sunt oves sexcentae septuaginta quinque.
with a contribution for the Lord of 675,
38 Et de bobus triginta sex millibus, boves septuaginta et duo:
36,000 cattle, with a Lord's contribution of 72,
39 de asinis triginta millibus quingentis, asini sexaginta unus:
30,500 donkeys, with a Lord's contribution of 61,
40 de animabus hominum sedecim millibus, cesserunt in partem Domini triginta duae animae.
and 16,000 people, with a Lord's contribution of 32.
41 Tradiditque Moyses numerum primitiarum Domini Eleazaro sacerdoti, sicut fuerat ei imperatum,
Moses gave the contribution to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the Lord as the Lord had ordered Moses.
42 ex media parte filiorum Israel, quam separaverat his, qui in praelio fuerant.
The Israelites' half share left after Moses had given the half share to the troops who had gone to fight,
43 De media vero parte, quae contigerat reliquae multitudini, id est, de ovibus trecentis triginta septem millibus quingentis,
consisted of: 337,500 sheep,
44 et de bobus triginta sex millibus,
36,000 cattle,
45 et de asinis triginta millibus quingentis,
30,500 donkeys,
46 et de hominibus sedecim millibus,
and 16,000 people.
47 tulit Moyses quinquagesimum caput, et dedit Levitis, qui excubabant in tabernaculo Domini, sicut praeceperat Dominus.
Moses took from the Israelites' half one out of every fifty people and animals and gave them the Levites who take care of the Lord's Tabernacle, as the Lord had ordered him.
48 Cumque accessissent principes exercitus ad Moysen, et tribuni, centurionesque dixerunt:
The army officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, came to Moses
49 Nos servi tui recensuimus numerum pugnatorum, quos habuimus sub manu nostra: et ne unus quidem defuit.
and told him, “We, your servants, have checked the troops we command and not a single man is missing.
50 Ob hanc causam offerimus in donariis Domini singuli quod in praeda auri potuimus invenire, periscelides et armillas, annulos et dextralia, ac muraenulas, ut depreceris pro nobis Dominum.
So we have brought the Lord an offering of the gold objects each man received—armlets, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces—in order that we may be right before the Lord.”
51 Susceperuntque Moyses, et Eleazar sacerdos omne aurum in diversis speciebus,
Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted from them all the objects made out of gold.
52 pondo sedecim millia, septingentos quinquaginta siclos a tribunis et centurionibus.
The gold that the commanders of thousands and of hundreds gave as an offering to the Lord weighed in total 16,750 shekels.
53 Unusquisque enim quod in praeda rapuerat, suum erat.
(The men who had fought in the battle had each taken plunder for himself.)
54 Et susceptum intulerunt in tabernaculum testimonii, in monimentum filiorum Israel coram Domino.
Moses and Eleazar the priest accepted the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds and took it into the Tent of Meeting as a memorial offering for the Israelites in the presence of the Lord.
