The Census of Israel’s Warriors

1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on ^(A)the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, ² “^(B)Take a ^[a]census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, every male, head by head ³ from ^(C)twenty years old and upward, whoever is able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall ^[b]count them by their armies. ⁴ With you, moreover, there shall be a man of each tribe, ^(D)each one head of his father’s household. ⁵ These then are the names of the men who shall stand with you: ^(E)of the tribe of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; ⁶ of the tribe of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; ⁷ of the tribe of Judah, ^(F)Nahshon the son of Amminadab; ⁸ of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; ⁹ of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; ¹⁰ of the sons of Joseph: of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; ¹¹ of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; ¹² of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; ¹³ of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran; ¹⁴ of Gad, Eliasaph the son of ^(G)Deuel; ¹⁵ of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan. ¹⁶ These are the men who were ^(H)called from the congregation, the leaders of their fathers’ tribes; they were the ^(I)heads of ^[c]divisions of Israel.”

¹⁷ So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name, ¹⁸ and they assembled all the congregation on the ^(J)first day of the second month. Then they registered by ^(K)ancestry in their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, head by head, ¹⁹ just as ^(L)the Lord had commanded Moses. So he counted them in the wilderness of Sinai.

^20 (M)Now the sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ²¹ their numbered men of the tribe of Reuben were 46,500.

^22 (N)Of the sons of Simeon, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, their numbered men, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, ^(O)whoever was able to go to war, ²³ their numbered men of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300.

^24 (P)Of the sons of Gad, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ²⁵ their numbered men of the tribe of Gad were 45,650.

^26 (Q)Of the sons of Judah, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ²⁷ their numbered men of the tribe of Judah were 74,600.

^28 (R)Of the sons of Issachar, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ²⁹ their numbered men of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400.

^30 (S)Of the sons of Zebulun, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ³¹ their numbered men of the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400.

^32 (T)Of the sons of Joseph, namely, of the sons of Ephraim, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ³³ their numbered men of the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500.

^34 (U)Of the sons of Manasseh, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ³⁵ their numbered men of the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200.

^36 (V)Of the sons of Benjamin, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ³⁷ their numbered men of the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400.

^38 (W)Of the sons of Dan, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ³⁹ their numbered men of the tribe of Dan were 62,700.

^40 (X)Of the sons of Asher, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ⁴¹ their numbered men of the tribe of Asher were 41,500.

^42 (Y)Of the sons of Naphtali, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, ⁴³ their numbered men of the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400.

⁴⁴ These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron counted, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each of whom was of his father’s household. ⁴⁵ So all the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers’ households, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war in Israel, ⁴⁶ all the numbered men were ^(Z)603,550.

Levites Exempted

^47 (AA)The Levites, however, were not counted among them by their fathers’ tribe. ⁴⁸ For the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying, ⁴⁹ “Only the tribe of Levi ^(AB)you shall not count, nor shall you take their ^[d]census among the sons of Israel. ⁵⁰ And you shall ^(AC)appoint the Levites over the ^[e]tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings and over everything that belongs to it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall take care of it; they shall also camp around the ^[f]tabernacle. ^51 (AD)So when the tabernacle is to move on, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle encamps, the Levites shall set it up. But ^(AE)the ^[g]layman who comes near it shall be put to death. ^52 (AF)So the sons of Israel shall camp, each man by his own camp, and each man by his own ^[h]flag, according to their armies. ^53 (AG)But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there will be ^(AH)no divine wrath against the congregation of the sons of Israel. ^(AI)So the Levites shall be responsible for service to the tabernacle of the testimony.” ⁵⁴ And the sons of Israel did so; in accordance with all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so they did.

Arrangement of the Camps

2 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, ² “^(A)The sons of Israel shall camp, each by his own ^[a]flag, with the banners of their fathers’ households; they shall camp around the tent of meeting ^[b]at a distance. ³ Now those who camp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the flag of the camp of Judah, by their armies; and the leader of the sons of Judah: ^(B)Nahshon the son of Amminadab, ⁴ and his army, their ^[c]numbered men: 74,600. ⁵ Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar; and the leader of the sons of Issachar: ^(C)Nethanel the son of Zuar, ⁶ and his army, their numbered men: 54,400. ⁷ Then follows the tribe of Zebulun; and the leader of the sons of Zebulun: ^(D)Eliab the son of Helon, ⁸ and his army, his numbered men: 57,400. ⁹ The total of the numbered men of the camp of Judah: 186,400, by their armies. ^(E)They shall set out first.

¹⁰ “On the south side shall be the flag of the camp of Reuben by their armies; and the leader of the sons of Reuben: ^(F)Elizur the son of Shedeur, ¹¹ and his army, their numbered men: 46,500. ¹² And those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon; and the leader of the sons of Simeon: ^(G)Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, ¹³ and his army, their numbered men: 59,300. ¹⁴ Then follows the tribe of Gad; and the leader of the sons of Gad: ^(H)Eliasaph the son of ^[d]Deuel, ¹⁵ and his army, their numbered men: 45,650. ¹⁶ The total of the numbered men of the camp of Reuben: 151,450 by their armies. And ^(I)they shall set out second.

¹⁷ “^(J)Then the tent of meeting shall set out with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camps; just as they camp, so they shall set out, every man in his place by their flags.

¹⁸ “On the west side shall be the flag of the camp of ^(K)Ephraim by their armies; and the leader of the sons of Ephraim: ^(L)Elishama the son of Ammihud, ¹⁹ and his army, their numbered men: 40,500. ²⁰ Next to him shall be the tribe of Manasseh; and the leader of the sons of Manasseh: ^(M)Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, ²¹ and his army, their numbered men, 32,200. ²² Then follows the tribe of ^(N)Benjamin; and the leader of the sons of Benjamin: ^(O)Abidan the son of Gideoni, ²³ and his army, their numbered men, 35,400. ²⁴ The total of the numbered men of the camp of Ephraim: 108,100, by their armies. And ^(P)they shall set out third.

²⁵ “On the north side shall be the flag of the camp of Dan by their armies; and the leader of the sons of Dan: ^(Q)Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, ²⁶ and his army, their numbered men: 62,700. ²⁷ Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher; and the leader of the sons of Asher: ^(R)Pagiel the son of Ochran, ²⁸ and his army, their numbered men: 41,500. ²⁹ Then follows the tribe of ^(S)Naphtali; and the leader of the sons of Naphtali: ^(T)Ahira the son of Enan, ³⁰ and his army, their numbered men: 53,400. ³¹ The total of the numbered men of the camp of Dan was 157,600. ^(U)They shall set out last by their flags.”

³² These are the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers’ households; the total of the numbered men of the camps by their armies, ^(V)603,550. ^33 (W)The Levites, however, were not counted among the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. ³⁴ So the sons of Israel did all this; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they camped by their flags, and so they set out, everyone by his family according to his father’s household.

The Triumphs of Faith

11 Now faith is the ^(A)certainty of things ^[a](B)hoped for, a ^[b]proof of ^(C)things not seen. ² For by it the ^(D)people of old ^[c](E)gained approval.

³ By faith we understand that the ^[d](F)world has been created ^(G)by the word of God so that what is seen ^(H)has not been made out of things that are visible. ⁴ By faith ^(I)Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he was ^(J)attested to be righteous, God testifying ^[e]about his ^(K)gifts, and through ^[f]faith, though ^(L)he is dead, he still speaks. ⁵ By faith ^(M)Enoch was taken up so that he would not ^(N)see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for before he was taken up, he was attested to have been pleasing to God. ⁶ And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who ^(O)comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him. ⁷ By faith ^(P)Noah, being ^(Q)warned by God about ^(R)things not yet seen, ^[g](S)in reverence ^(T)prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of ^(U)the righteousness which is according to faith.

⁸ By faith ^(V)Abraham, when he was called, obeyed ^[h]by going out to a place which he was to ^(W)receive for an inheritance; and he left, not knowing where he was going. ⁹ By faith he lived as a stranger in ^(X)the land of promise, as in a foreign land, ^(Y)living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, ^(Z)fellow heirs of the same promise; ¹⁰ for he was looking for ^(AA)the city which has ^(AB)foundations, ^(AC)whose architect and builder is God. ¹¹ By faith even ^(AD)Sarah herself received ^[i]ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him ^(AE)faithful who had promised. ¹² Therefore even from one man, and ^(AF)one who was as good as dead ^[j]at that, there were born descendants who were ^(AG)just as the stars of heaven in number, and as the innumerable grains of sand along the seashore.

^13 (AH)All these died in faith, ^(AI)without receiving the promises, but ^(AJ)having seen and welcomed them from a distance, and ^(AK)having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. ¹⁴ For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. ¹⁵ And indeed if they had been ^[k]thinking of that country which they left, ^(AL)they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a ^(AM)heavenly one. Therefore ^(AN)God is not ^[l]ashamed to be ^(AO)called their God; for ^(AP)He has prepared a city for them.

¹⁷ By faith ^(AQ)Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and the one who had ^(AR)received the promises was offering up his ^[m]only son; ¹⁸ it was he to whom it was said, “^(AS)Through Isaac your ^[n]descendants shall be named.” ^19 [o]He considered that ^(AT)God is able to raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back ^[p]as a ^[q](AU)type. ²⁰ By faith ^(AV)Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even regarding things to come. ²¹ By faith ^(AW)Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and ^(AX)worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. ²² By faith ^(AY)Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the exodus of the sons of Israel, and gave orders concerning his bones.

²³ By faith ^(AZ)Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the ^(BA)king’s edict. ²⁴ By faith Moses, ^(BB)when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, ²⁵ choosing rather to ^(BC)endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the temporary pleasures of sin, ^26 (BD)considering the ^[r]reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the ^(BE)reward. ²⁷ By faith he ^(BF)left Egypt, not ^(BG)fearing the wrath of the king; for he persevered, as though ^(BH)seeing Him who is unseen. ²⁸ By faith he ^[s](BI)kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood, so that ^(BJ)the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch them. ²⁹ By faith they ^(BK)passed through the Red Sea as through dry land; and the Egyptians, when they attempted it, were ^[t]drowned.

³⁰ By faith ^(BL)the walls of Jericho fell down ^[u](BM)after the Israelites had marched around them for seven days. ³¹ By faith the prostitute ^(BN)Rahab did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies ^[v]in peace.

³² And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of ^(BO)Gideon, ^(BP)Barak, ^(BQ)Samson, ^(BR)Jephthah, of ^(BS)David and ^(BT)Samuel and the prophets, ³³ who by faith ^(BU)conquered kingdoms, ^(BV)performed acts of righteousness, ^(BW)obtained promises, ^(BX)shut the mouths of lions, ^34 (BY)quenched the power of fire, ^(BZ)escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, ^(CA)became mighty in war, ^(CB)put foreign armies to flight. ^35 (CC)Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their ^[w]release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; ³⁶ and others ^[x]experienced mocking and flogging, and further, ^(CD)chains and imprisonment. ³⁷ They were ^(CE)stoned, they were sawn in two, ^[y]they were tempted, they were ^(CF)put to death with the sword; they went about ^(CG)in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ^(CH)tormented ³⁸ (people of whom the world was not worthy), ^(CI)wandering in deserts, on mountains, and sheltering in caves and holes ^[z]in the ground.

³⁹ And all these, having ^(CJ)gained approval through their faith, ^(CK)did not receive ^[aa]what was promised, ⁴⁰ because God had ^[ab]provided ^(CL)something better for us, so that ^(CM)apart from us they would not be made perfect.

Prayer for Rescue from Secret Enemies.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.