A Census of Israel's Warriors

1 The Lord spoke to Moses ^(A)in the wilderness of Sinai, ^(B)in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, ^2 (C)“Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, ^(D)by fathers' houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. ^3 (E)From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, ^(F)company by company. ⁴ And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers. ⁵ And these are the names of the men who shall assist you. From Reuben, ^(G)Elizur the son of Shedeur; ⁶ from Simeon, ^(H)Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; ⁷ from Judah, ^(I)Nahshon the son of Amminadab; ⁸ from Issachar, ^(J)Nethanel the son of Zuar; ⁹ from Zebulun, ^(K)Eliab the son of Helon; ¹⁰ from the sons of Joseph, from Ephraim, ^(L)Elishama the son of Ammihud, and from Manasseh, ^(M)Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; ¹¹ from Benjamin, ^(N)Abidan the son of Gideoni; ¹² from Dan, ^(O)Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; ¹³ from Asher, ^(P)Pagiel the son of Ochran; ¹⁴ from Gad, Eliasaph the son of ^(Q)Deuel; ¹⁵ from Naphtali, ^(R)Ahira the son of Enan.” ¹⁶ These were the ones ^(S)chosen from the congregation, ^(T)the chiefs of their ancestral tribes, the heads of the clans of Israel.

¹⁷ Moses and Aaron took these men ^(U)who had been named, ¹⁸ and on the first day of the second month, they assembled the whole congregation together, who registered themselves by clans, by fathers' houses, according to the number of names from twenty years old and upward, head by head, ¹⁹ as the Lord commanded Moses. So he listed them in the wilderness of Sinai.

²⁰ The people of ^(V)Reuben, Israel's firstborn, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²¹ those listed of the tribe of Reuben were ^(W)46,500.

²² Of the people of Simeon, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, those of them who were listed, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²³ those listed of the tribe of Simeon were ^(X)59,300.

²⁴ Of the people of Gad, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go to war: ²⁵ those listed of the tribe of Gad were ^(Y)45,650.

²⁶ Of the people of Judah, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ²⁷ those listed of the tribe of Judah were ^(Z)74,600.

²⁸ Of the people of Issachar, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ²⁹ those listed of the tribe of Issachar were ^(AA)54,400.

³⁰ Of the people of Zebulun, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³¹ those listed of the tribe of Zebulun were ^(AB)57,400.

³² Of the people of Joseph, namely, of the people of Ephraim, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³³ those listed of the tribe of Ephraim were ^(AC)40,500.

³⁴ Of the people of Manasseh, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁵ those listed of the tribe of Manasseh were ^(AD)32,200.

³⁶ Of the people of Benjamin, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁷ those listed of the tribe of Benjamin were ^(AE)35,400.

³⁸ Of the people of Dan, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ³⁹ those listed of the tribe of Dan were ^(AF)62,700.

⁴⁰ Of the people of Asher, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ⁴¹ those listed of the tribe of Asher were ^(AG)41,500.

⁴² Of the people of Naphtali, their generations, by their clans, by their fathers' houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war: ⁴³ those listed of the tribe of Naphtali were ^(AH)53,400.

^44 (AI)These are those who were listed, whom Moses and Aaron listed with the help of the chiefs of Israel, twelve men, each representing his fathers' house. ⁴⁵ So all those listed of the people of Israel, by their fathers' houses, from twenty years old and upward, every man able to go to war in Israel— ⁴⁶ all those listed were ^(AJ)603,550.

Levites Exempted

⁴⁷ But ^(AK)the Levites were not listed along with them by their ancestral tribe. ⁴⁸ For the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ⁴⁹ “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not list, and you shall not take a census of them among the people of Israel. ^50 (AL)But appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They are to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall take care of it ^(AM)and shall camp around the tabernacle. ^51 (AN)When the tabernacle is to set out, the Levites shall take it down, and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up. ^(AO)And if any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death. ⁵² The people of Israel shall pitch their tents by their companies, each man in his own camp and ^(AP)each man by his own standard. ⁵³ But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there may be no ^(AQ)wrath on the congregation of the people of Israel. ^(AR)And the Levites shall keep guard over the tabernacle of the testimony.” ⁵⁴ Thus did the people of Israel; they did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses.

Arrangement of the Camp

2 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ^2 (AS)“The people of Israel shall camp each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers' houses. They shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side. ³ Those to camp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Judah by their companies, the chief of the people of Judah being ^(AT)Nahshon the son of Amminadab, ⁴ his company as listed being 74,600. ⁵ Those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, the chief of the people of Issachar being Nethanel the son of Zuar, ⁶ his company as listed being 54,400. ⁷ Then the tribe of Zebulun, the chief of the people of Zebulun being Eliab the son of Helon, ⁸ his company as listed being 57,400. ⁹ All those listed of the camp of Judah, by their companies, were 186,400. ^(AU)They shall set out first on the march.

¹⁰ “On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben by their companies, the chief of the people of Reuben being Elizur the son of Shedeur, ¹¹ his company as listed being 46,500. ¹² And those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, the chief of the people of Simeon being Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, ¹³ his company as listed being 59,300. ¹⁴ Then the tribe of Gad, the chief of the people of Gad being Eliasaph the son of ^(AV)Reuel, ¹⁵ his company as listed being 45,650. ¹⁶ All those listed of the camp of Reuben, by their companies, were 151,450. ^(AW)They shall set out second.

^17 (AX)“Then the tent of meeting shall set out, with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camps; as they camp, so shall they set out, each in position, standard by standard.

¹⁸ “On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim by their companies, the chief of the people of Ephraim being Elishama the son of Ammihud, ¹⁹ his company as listed being 40,500. ²⁰ And next to him shall be the tribe of Manasseh, the chief of the people of Manasseh being Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, ²¹ his company as listed being 32,200. ²² Then the tribe of Benjamin, the chief of the people of Benjamin being Abidan the son of Gideoni, ²³ his company as listed being 35,400. ²⁴ All those listed of the camp of Ephraim, by their companies, were 108,100. ^(AY)They shall set out third on the march.

²⁵ “On the north side shall be the standard of the camp of Dan by their companies, the chief of the people of Dan being Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, ²⁶ his company as listed being 62,700. ²⁷ And those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, the chief of the people of Asher being Pagiel the son of Ochran, ²⁸ his company as listed being 41,500. ²⁹ Then the tribe of Naphtali, the chief of the people of Naphtali being Ahira the son of Enan, ³⁰ his company as listed being 53,400. ³¹ All those listed of the camp of Dan were 157,600. ^(AZ)They shall set out last, standard by standard.”

³² These are the people of Israel as listed by their fathers' houses. All those listed in the camps by their companies were ^(BA)603,550. ³³ But ^(BB)the Levites were not listed among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.

³⁴ Thus did the people of Israel. According to all that the Lord commanded Moses, ^(BC)so they camped by their standards, and so they set out, each one in his clan, according to his fathers' house.

The Sons of Aaron

3 These are the generations of Aaron and Moses at the time when the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. ² These are the names of the sons of Aaron: ^(BD)Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. ³ These are the names of the sons of Aaron, ^(BE)the anointed priests, ^(BF)whom he ordained to serve as priests. ^4 (BG)But Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests in the lifetime of Aaron their father.

Duties of the Levites

⁵ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^6 (BH)“Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him. ⁷ They shall keep guard over him and over the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, ^(BI)as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁸ They shall guard all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, and keep guard over the people of Israel as they minister at the tabernacle. ⁹ And ^(BJ)you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are ^(BK)wholly given to him from among the people of Israel. ¹⁰ And you shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and ^(BL)they shall guard their priesthood. But if ^(BM)any outsider comes near, he shall be put to death.”

¹¹ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹² “Behold, ^(BN)I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, ¹³ for ^(BO)all the firstborn are mine. ^(BP)On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.”

¹⁴ And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying, ¹⁵ “List the sons of Levi, by fathers' houses and by clans; ^(BQ)every male from a month old and upward you shall list.” ¹⁶ So Moses listed them according to the word of the Lord, as he was commanded. ^17 (BR)And these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merari. ¹⁸ And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their clans: ^(BS)Libni and Shimei. ¹⁹ And the sons of Kohath by their clans: ^(BT)Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ²⁰ And the sons of Merari by their clans: ^(BU)Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites, by their fathers' houses.

²¹ To Gershon belonged the clan of the Libnites and the clan of the Shimeites; these were the clans of the Gershonites. ²² Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was^[a] 7,500. ^23 (BV)The clans of the Gershonites were to camp behind the tabernacle on the west, ²⁴ with Eliasaph, the son of Lael as chief of the fathers' house of the Gershonites. ²⁵ And the ^(BW)guard duty of the sons of Gershon in the tent of meeting involved ^(BX)the tabernacle, ^(BY)the tent with ^(BZ)its covering, ^(CA)the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, ^26 (CB)the hangings of the court, ^(CC)the screen for the door of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and ^(CD)its cords—all the service connected with these.

²⁷ To Kohath belonged the clan of the ^(CE)Amramites and the clan of the Izharites and the clan of the Hebronites and the clan of the Uzzielites; these are the clans of the Kohathites. ²⁸ According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were 8,600, keeping guard over the sanctuary. ²⁹ The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle, ³⁰ with ^(CF)Elizaphan the son of Uzziel as chief of the fathers' house of the clans of the Kohathites. ³¹ And their guard duty involved ^(CG)the ark, ^(CH)the table, ^(CI)the lampstand, ^(CJ)the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which the priests minister, and ^(CK)the screen; all the service connected with these. ³² And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest was to be chief over the chiefs of the Levites, and to have oversight of those who kept guard over the sanctuary.

³³ To Merari belonged the clan of the Mahlites and the clan of the Mushites: these are the clans of Merari. ³⁴ Their listing according to the number of all the males from a month old and upward was 6,200. ³⁵ And the chief of the fathers' house of the clans of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. ^36 (CL)And the appointed guard duty of the sons of Merari involved the ^(CM)frames of the tabernacle, ^(CN)the bars, ^(CO)the pillars, the bases, and all their accessories; all the service connected with these; ³⁷ also ^(CP)the pillars around the court, with their bases and ^(CQ)pegs and ^(CR)cords.

³⁸ Those who were to camp before the tabernacle on the east, before the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, ^(CS)guarding the sanctuary itself, to protect^[b] the people of Israel. And any outsider who came near was to be put to death. ³⁹ All those listed among the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron listed at the commandment of the Lord, by clans, all the males from a month old and upward, were ^(CT)22,000.

Redemption of the Firstborn

⁴⁰ And the Lord said to Moses, “List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names. ^41 (CU)And you shall take the Levites for me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the cattle of the people of Israel.” ⁴² So Moses listed all the firstborn among the people of Israel, as the Lord commanded him. ⁴³ And all the firstborn males, according to the number of names, from a month old and upward as listed were 22,273.

⁴⁴ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^45 (CV)“Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the people of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites instead of their cattle. The Levites shall be mine: I am the Lord. ⁴⁶ And ^(CW)as the redemption price for the 273 of the firstborn of the people of Israel, over and above the number of the male Levites, ⁴⁷ you shall take ^(CX)five shekels^[c] per head; you shall take them according to ^(CY)the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel of twenty gerahs^[d]), ⁴⁸ and give the money to Aaron and his sons as the redemption price for those who are over.” ⁴⁹ So Moses took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the Levites. ⁵⁰ From the firstborn of the people of Israel he took the money, ^(CZ)1,365 shekels, by the shekel of the sanctuary. ⁵¹ And Moses ^(DA)gave the redemption money to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Birth of Jesus Christ

2 In those days ^(A)a decree went out from ^(B)Caesar Augustus that all the world should be ^(C)registered. ² This was the first ^(D)registration when^[a] Quirinius ^(E)was governor of Syria. ³ And all went to be registered, each to his own town. ⁴ And Joseph also went up ^(F)from Galilee, from the town of ^(G)Nazareth, to Judea, to ^(H)the city of David, which is called ^(I)Bethlehem, ^(J)because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵ to be registered with Mary, his betrothed,^[b] who was with child. ⁶ And ^(K)while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son and ^(L)wrapped him in swaddling cloths and ^(M)laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in ^(N)the inn.^[c]

The Shepherds and the Angels

⁸ And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord ^(O)appeared to them, and ^(P)the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all ^(Q)the people. ¹¹ For ^(R)unto you is born this day in ^(S)the city of David ^(T)a Savior, who is ^(U)Christ ^(V)the Lord. ¹² And ^(W)this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby ^(X)wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel ^(Y)a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

¹⁵ When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶ And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby ^(AE)lying in a manger. ¹⁷ And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. ¹⁸ And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹ But ^(AF)Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds returned, ^(AG)glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

²¹ And ^(AH)at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, ^(AI)he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

Jesus Presented at the Temple

²² And ^(AJ)when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem ^(AK)to present him to the Lord ²³ (as it is written in ^(AL)the Law of the Lord, ^(AM)“Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) ²⁴ and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in ^(AN)the Law of the Lord, ^(AO)“a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” ²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was ^(AP)righteous and ^(AQ)devout, ^(AR)waiting for ^(AS)the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not ^(AT)see death before he had seen ^(AU)the Lord's Christ. ²⁷ And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when ^(AV)the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, ²⁸ he took him up in his arms and ^(AW)blessed God and said,

³³ And ^(BF)his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. ³⁴ And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed ^(BG)for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign ^(BH)that is opposed ³⁵ (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

³⁶ And there was ^(BI)a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, ³⁷ and then as a widow until she was eighty-four.^[f] She did not depart from the temple, ^(BJ)worshiping with ^(BK)fasting and prayer night and day. ³⁸ And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were ^(BL)waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

The Return to Nazareth

³⁹ And when they had performed everything according to ^(BM)the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of ^(BN)Nazareth. ^40 (BO)And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

The Boy Jesus in the Temple

⁴¹ Now ^(BP)his parents went ^(BQ)to Jerusalem every year at ^(BR)the Feast of the Passover. ⁴² And when he was twelve years old, ^(BS)they went up according to custom. ⁴³ And when the feast ^(BT)was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. ^(BU)His parents did not know it, ⁴⁴ but supposing him to be in the group they went a day's journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, ⁴⁵ and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. ⁴⁶ After three days they found him in the temple, ^(BV)sitting among ^(BW)the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷ And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸ And when his parents^[g] saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, ^(BX)your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” ⁴⁹ And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that ^(BY)I must be in ^(BZ)my Father's house?”^{[h] 50} And ^(CA)they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. ⁵¹ And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And ^(CB)his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

⁵² And Jesus ^(CC)increased in wisdom and in stature^[i] and in ^(CD)favor with God and man.

Restore Us, O God

To the choirmaster: according to ^(A)Lilies. A Testimony. Of ^(B)Asaph, a Psalm.