Numbers 26-36

New Life Version

The Second Numbering of Israel

26 After the very bad disease came on the people because of Israel’s sin, the Lord said to Moses and Eleazar the son of Aaron the religious leader, ² “Add the numbers of all the people of Israel who are twenty years old and older, by their fathers’ houses. Number whoever in Israel is able to go to war.” ³ So Moses and Eleazar the religious leader said to the people in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, ⁴ “Number the people who are twenty years old and older, as the Lord has told Moses.”

Now these were the sons of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt. ⁵ Reuben was the first-born son of Israel. Reuben’s sons were the family of the Hanochites from Hanoch, the family of the Palluites from Pallu, ⁶ the family of the Hezronites from Hezron, and the family of the Carmites from Carmi. ⁷ These are the families of the Reubenites, and their number was 43,730. ⁸ Eliab was the son of Pallu. ⁹ The sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan and Abiram. These are Dathan and Abiram who were chosen by the people and who joined with Korah to argue against Moses and Aaron. They argued against the Lord, ¹⁰ and the earth opened its mouth and took them together with Korah, when that group died. The fire destroyed 250 men, and taught others to be careful. ¹¹ But the sons of Korah did not die.

¹² The sons of Simeon by their families were the family of the Nemuelites from Nemuel, the family of the Jaminites from Jamin, the family of the Jachinites from Jachin, ¹³ the family of the Zerahites from Zerah, and the family of the Shaulites from Shaul. ¹⁴ These are the families of the Simeonites, 22,200 people. ¹⁵ The sons of Gad by their families were the family of the Zephonites from Zephon, the family of the Haggites from Haggi, the family of the Shunites from Shuni, ¹⁶ the family of the Oznites from Ozni, the family of the Erites from Eri, ¹⁷ the family of the Arodites from Arod, and the family of the Arelites from Areli. ¹⁸ These are the families of the sons of Gad. Their number was 40,500.

¹⁹ The sons of Judah were Er and Onan. But Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. ²⁰ The sons of Judah by their families were the family of the Shelanites from Shelah, the family of the Perezites from Perez, and the family of the Zerahites from Zerah. ²¹ The sons of Perez were the family of the Hezronites from Hezron, and the family of the Hamulites from Hamul. ²² These are the families of Judah. Their number was 76,500.

²³ The sons of Issachar by their families were the family of the Tolaites from Tola, the family of the Punites from Puvah, ²⁴ the family of the Jashubites from Jashub, and the family of the Shimronites from Shimron. ²⁵ These are the families of Issachar. Their number was 64,300.

²⁶ The sons of Zebulun by their families were the family of the Seredites from Sered, the family of the Elonites from Elon, and the family of the Jahleelites from Jahleel. ²⁷ These are the families of the Zebulunites. Their number was 60,500.

²⁸ The sons of Joseph by their families were Manasseh and Ephraim. ²⁹ The sons of Manasseh were the family of the Machirites from Machir, and the family of the Gileadites from Gilead. Machir was the father of Gilead. ³⁰ The sons of Gilead were the family of the Iezerites from Iezer, the family of the Helekites from Helek, ³¹ the family of the Asrielites from Asriel, the family of the Shechemites from Shechem, ³² the family of the Shemidaites from Shemida, and the family of the Hepherites from Hepher. ³³ Hepher’s son Zelophehad had no sons, but only daughters. The names of Zelophehad’s daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. ³⁴ These were the families of Manasseh. Their number was 52,700.

³⁵ The sons of Ephraim by their families were the family of the Shuthelaites from Shuthelah, the family of the Becherites from Becher, and the family of the Tahanites from Tahan. ³⁶ The sons of Shuthelah were the family of the Eranites from Eran. ³⁷ These are the families of the sons of Ephraim. Their number was 32,500. These are the sons of Joseph by their families.

³⁸ The sons of Benjamin by their families were the family of the Belaites from Bela, the family of the Ashbelites from Ashbel, the family of the Ahiramites from Ahiram, ³⁹ the family of the Shuphamites from Shupham, and the family of the Huphamites from Hupham. ⁴⁰ The sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman, the family of the Ardites from Ard, and the family of the Naamites from Naaman. ⁴¹ These are the sons of Benjamin by their families. Their number was 45,600.

⁴² The sons of Dan by their families were the family of the Shuhamites from Shuham. These are the families of Dan by their families. ⁴³ The number of all the families of the Shuhamites was 64,400.

⁴⁴ The sons of Asher by their families were the family of the Imnites from Imnah, the family of the Ishvites from Ishvi, and the family of the Beriites from Beriah. ⁴⁵ The sons of Beriah were the family of the Heberites from Heber, and the family of the Malchielites from Malchiel. ⁴⁶ The name of Asher’s daughter was Serah. ⁴⁷ These are the families of the sons of Asher. Their number was 53,400.

⁴⁸ The sons of Naphtali by their families were the family of the Jahzeelites from Jahzeel, the family of the Gunites from Guni, ⁴⁹ the family of the Jezerites from Jezer, and the family of the Shillemites from Shillem. ⁵⁰ These are the families of Naphtali by their families. Their number was 45,400.

⁵¹ Those who were numbered of the sons of Israel were 601,730.

⁵² The Lord said to Moses, ⁵³ “The land will be divided among these people by the number of names. ⁵⁴ Give more land to the larger group. Give less land to the smaller group. Each family should be given land by the number of its people. ⁵⁵ But the land should be divided by drawing names. They will receive their land by the names of the families of their fathers. ⁵⁶ The land will be divided between the larger and smaller groups by the names that are drawn.”

⁵⁷ Those who were numbered of the Levites by their families were the family of the Gershonites from Gershon, the family of the Kohathites from Kohath, and the family of the Merarites from Merari. ⁵⁸ The families of Levi were the Libnites, the Hebronites, the Mahlites, the Mushites, and the Korahites. Kohath was the father of Amram. ⁵⁹ The name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi. She was born to Levi in Egypt. And she gave birth to Amram’s children, Aaron and Moses and their sister Miriam. ⁶⁰ Aaron was the father of Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ⁶¹ But Nadab and Abihu died when they burned fire that was not holy before the Lord. ⁶² The number of all of their males a month old and older was 23,000. For they were not numbered among the people of Israel, because no land was given to them among the people of Israel.

⁶³ These are the people who were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the religious leader. They numbered the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho. ⁶⁴ But among all these was not one of those numbered by Moses and Aaron the religious leader when the people of Israel were numbered in the Desert of Sinai. ⁶⁵ For the Lord had said of them, “For sure they will die in the desert.” There was not a man left of them, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

Zelophehad’s Daughters

27 Then came the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph. The names of his daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. ² They stood in front of Moses and Eleazar the religious leader, and the leaders, and all the people at the door of the meeting tent. The daughters said, ³ “Our father died in the desert. He was not one of those who gathered together with Korah against the Lord. But he died for his own sin, and he had no sons. ⁴ Why should the name of our father be taken away from his family because he had no son? Give us land among our father’s brothers.”

⁵ Moses asked the Lord what should be done. ⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, ⁷ “The daughters of Zelophehad are right in what they say. Be sure to give them their own land among their father’s brothers. Give them what would have been given to their father. ⁸ And say to the people of Israel, ‘If a man dies and has no son, then give what belongs to him to his daughter. ⁹ If he has no daughter, then give what belongs to him to his brothers. ¹⁰ If he has no brothers, give what belongs to him to his father’s brothers. ¹¹ And if his father has no brothers, then you must give what belongs to him to the nearest person in his own family and it will be his. This will be a Law to the people of Israel, just as the Lord told Moses.’”

Joshua Takes over from Moses

¹² Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go up to this mountain of Abarim, and see the land I have given to the people of Israel. ¹³ When you have seen it, you will be buried with your people as Aaron your brother was. ¹⁴ For you went against My Word when the people complained in the Desert of Zin. You should have honored Me as holy at the waters in front of their eyes.” (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the Desert of Zin.)

¹⁵ Moses said to the Lord, ¹⁶ “May the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, choose a man to lead the people. ¹⁷ Let this man go out and come in before them. Let him lead them out and bring them in. Then the people of the Lord may not be like sheep which have no shepherd.” ¹⁸ So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. ¹⁹ Have him stand in front of Eleazar the religious leader and in front of all the people. Let them see you give him the work he must do. ²⁰ Give some of your power to him so all the people of Israel will obey him. ²¹ He will stand in front of Eleazar the religious leader, who will learn My will for him by using the Urim. At his word, both he and all the people of Israel will go out and at his word, they will come in.” ²² Moses did just as the Lord told him. He took Joshua and had him stand in front of Eleazar the religious leader, and in front of all the people. ²³ Then he laid his hands on him and gave him the work he must do, just as the Lord had said through Moses.

Daily Gifts on the Altar

28 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel, ‘Be careful to bring My gift, My food for My gifts by fire, as a pleasing smell to me, at the right time.’ ³ And say to them, ‘This is the gift by fire which you must give to the Lord. Give two perfect male lambs one year old, as a burnt gift every day. ⁴ Give one lamb in the morning, and the other lamb in the evening. ⁵ And give a tenth part of a basket of fine flour for a grain gift, mixed with a fourth part of a jar of beaten oil. ⁶ It is a burnt gift which was set apart at Mount Sinai as a pleasing smell, a gift by fire always to the Lord. ⁷ Its drink gift will be a fourth part of a jar for each lamb. Pour out a drink gift of strong drink to the Lord in the holy place. ⁸ Give the other lamb in the evening. Like the grain gift of the morning, and like its drink gift, you will give it as a gift by fire. It is a pleasing smell to the Lord.

Day of Rest Gifts

⁹ ‘On the Day of Rest give a gift of two perfect male lambs one year old. With it give two-tenths part of a basket of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift, and its drink gift. ¹⁰ The burnt gift of every Day of Rest is to be added to the burnt gift which is always given and its drink gift.

Gifts Each Month

¹¹ ‘Then you must give a burnt gift to the Lord at the beginning of your months. Give two bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs one year old that are perfect. ¹² Give three-tenths part of a basket of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift for each bull. Give two-tenths part of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift for the one ram. ¹³ And give a tenth part of a basket of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain gift for each lamb. They are to be given for a burnt gift of a pleasing smell, a gift by fire to the Lord. ¹⁴ Their drink gifts will be half a jar of wine for a bull, a third of a jar for the ram, and a fourth part of a jar for a lamb. This is the burnt gift of each month for all the months of the year. ¹⁵ And give one male goat for a sin gift to the Lord. It will be given with its drink gift, besides each day’s burnt gift.

Gifts at Passover

¹⁶ ‘The fourteenth day of the first month will be the Lord’s Passover. ¹⁷ A special supper will be on the fifteenth day of this month. Bread without yeast will be eaten for seven days. ¹⁸ On the first day will be a holy gathering. You must do no hard work. ¹⁹ You will give a gift by fire, a burnt gift to the Lord. It will be two bulls, one ram, and seven perfect male lambs one year old. ²⁰ And give fine flour mixed with oil for their grain gift. Give three-tenths part of a basket for a bull, two-tenths part for a ram, ²¹ and a tenth part of a basket for each of the seven lambs. ²² Then give one male goat for a sin gift, to pay for your sins. ²³ Give these besides the burnt gift of the morning, which is each day’s burnt gift. ²⁴ Give the food of the gift by fire in this way each day for seven days, as a pleasing smell to the Lord. Give it with its drink gift, besides each day’s burnt gift. ²⁵ And on the seventh day you will have a holy gathering. You must do no hard work.

Gifts at Supper of Weeks

²⁶ ‘You will have a holy gathering on the day of the first-fruits also. This is when you will bring a gift of new grain to the Lord in your Special Supper of Weeks. You must do no hard work. ²⁷ And you will give for a pleasing smell to the Lord a burnt gift of two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs one year old. ²⁸ Give fine flour mixed with oil for their grain gift. Give three-tenths part of a basket for each bull, two-tenths part for the one ram, ²⁹ and a tenth part for each of the seven lambs. ³⁰ And give one male goat to pay for your sins. ³¹ These gifts should be besides each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift. Give them with their drink gifts. The animals must be perfect.

Gifts at Supper of Horns

29 ‘You will have a holy gathering on the first day of the seventh month. You must do no hard work. It is a day for you to blow the horns. ² Give as a pleasing smell to the Lord a burnt gift of one bull, one ram, and seven male lambs one year old, all are to be perfect. ³ And give fine flour mixed with oil for their grain gift. Give three-tenths part of a basket for the bull, two-tenths part for the ram, ⁴ and one-tenth part for each of the seven lambs. ⁵ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, to pay for your sins. ⁶ These gifts should be besides the burnt gift of the new moon, and its grain gift, and each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift, and their drink gifts. It must be done by the Law, for a pleasing smell, a gift by fire to the Lord.

Gifts on the Day to Pay for Sins

⁷ ‘You will have a holy gathering on the tenth day of this seventh month, and be without pride. You must not do any work. ⁸ You will give to the Lord as a pleasing smell a burnt gift of one bull, one ram, and seven male lambs one year old, all are to be perfect. ⁹ And give fine flour mixed with oil for their grain gift. Give three-tenths part of a basket for the bull, two-tenths part for the one ram, ¹⁰ and a tenth part for each of the seven lambs. ¹¹ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides the sin gift to pay for sins, each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift, and their drink gifts.

Gifts at Supper of Tents

¹² ‘You will have a holy gathering on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. You must do no hard work, and you will have a special supper to the Lord for seven days. ¹³ You will give a burnt gift of thirteen bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. They will be a gift by fire, a pleasing smell to the Lord. ¹⁴ And give fine flour mixed with oil for their grain gift. Give three-tenths part of a basket for each of the thirteen bulls, two-tenths part for each of the two rams, ¹⁵ and a tenth part for each of the fourteen lambs. ¹⁶ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift, its grain gift and its drink gift.

¹⁷ ‘Then on the second day give twelve bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ¹⁸ And give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ¹⁹ Give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift, and their drink gifts.

²⁰ ‘On the third day give eleven bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ²¹ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ²² Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift and drink gift.

²³ ‘On the fourth day give ten bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ²⁴ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ²⁵ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift, its grain gift and drink gift.

²⁶ ‘On the fifth day give nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ²⁷ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ²⁸ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift and drink gift.

²⁹ ‘On the sixth day give eight bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ³⁰ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ³¹ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift, its grain gift and drink gift.

³² ‘On the seventh day give seven bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs one year old that are perfect. ³³ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the number of bulls, rams and lambs, by the Law. ³⁴ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift, its grain gift and drink gift.

³⁵ ‘You will have a religious gathering on the eighth day. You must do no hard work. ³⁶ But give a burnt gift of one bull, one ram, and seven male lambs one year old that are perfect. It will be a gift by fire, a pleasing smell to the Lord. ³⁷ Give their grain gifts and drink gifts for the bull, the ram and lambs, for their number, by the Law. ³⁸ Then give one male goat for a sin gift, besides each day’s burnt gift and its grain gift and drink gift.

³⁹ ‘Give these to the Lord at the times given, besides your promised gifts and your free-will gifts. They will be for your burnt gifts, your grain gifts, your drink gifts and for your peace gifts.’” ⁴⁰ Moses said to the people of Israel all that the Lord had told him.

Laws about Agreements

30 Then Moses said to the heads of the families of the sons of Israel, “This is what the Lord has said. ² If a man makes a promise to the Lord, or swears that he will keep his promise, he must not break his word. He must do all that he said he would do. ³ If a woman makes a promise to the Lord, and swears to keep her promise in her father’s house when she is young, ⁴ and if her father hears her promise and how she has sworn to keep it, and says nothing to her, then all her promises must be kept. She must keep every promise she has sworn to keep. ⁵ But if her father does not allow her to keep her promise on the day he hears of it, then she does not need to keep any of the promises she has sworn to keep. The Lord will forgive her because her father would not allow it.

⁶ “If she gets married and has promises to keep because of what she swore without thinking, ⁷ and if her husband hears of it and says nothing to her on the day he hears, then she must keep the promises she has sworn to keep. ⁸ But if on the day he hears of it, her husband does not allow her to keep her promise, then she will not have to keep the promise that she had sworn to keep when she was not thinking. The Lord will forgive her.

⁹ “A woman whose husband has died or left her must keep the promises she has sworn to keep. ¹⁰ But if she has made a promise in her husband’s house, and she has sworn to keep a promise there ¹¹ and if her husband hears of it, and does not go against her or say anything to her, then she must keep all the promises she had sworn to keep. ¹² But if her husband does not allow her to keep her promises on the day he hears of them, then she does not have to keep the promises she had sworn to keep. If her husband will not let her keep them, the Lord will forgive her.

¹³ “Her husband has the right to have her keep, or not keep, any promise she has sworn to keep. ¹⁴ But if her husband says nothing to her from day to day, then she must keep all her promises. He made her promises so they could not be changed, because he said nothing to her on the day he heard of them. ¹⁵ But if he will not allow her to keep her promises after he has heard of them, then her guilt will be on him.”

¹⁶ These are the Laws which the Lord told Moses, between a man and his wife, and between a father and his daughter, while she is young and in her father’s house.

War against Midian

31 The Lord said to Moses, ² “Punish the Midianites for the people of Israel. After that you will be buried with your people.” ³ Then Moses said to the people, “Take men from among you and make them ready for war against Midian. They will punish Midian for the Lord. ⁴ Send to the war 1,000 men from each of all the family groups of Israel.” ⁵ So 1,000 men came from each of the family groups of the thousands of Israel. There were 12,000 ready for war. ⁶ Moses sent them, 1,000 from each family group, to the war. Phinehas the son of Eleazar the religious leader went to the war with them. In his hand were the holy objects and the horns for blowing the sound of coming danger. ⁷ So the men made war against Midian, just as the Lord had told Moses, and they killed every male. ⁸ They killed the five kings of Midian with the sword also, Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. And they also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword. ⁹ The people of Israel took the women of Midian and their little ones, and all their cattle, all their flocks, and all the good things that belonged to them. ¹⁰ Then they burned all their cities where they lived and all their tents. ¹¹ They took all that was left of both man and animal. ¹² And they brought the people they had taken and the animals and whatever belonged to them to Moses, and to Eleazar the religious leader, and to the people of Israel. Their tents were on the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho.

¹³ Moses and Eleazar the religious leader and all the leaders of the people went out from the tents to meet them. ¹⁴ Moses was angry with the leaders of the army, the heads of thousands and the heads of hundreds, who had fought in the war. ¹⁵ He said to them, “Have you allowed all the women to live? ¹⁶ See, these women listened to Balaam and caused the people of Israel to sin against the Lord in what happened at Peor. So the very bad disease came to the people of the Lord. ¹⁷ Now kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has had a man. ¹⁸ But keep alive for yourselves all the girls who have not had a man. ¹⁹ Stay away from the tents for seven days. If you have killed any person or have touched any dead body, you must make yourself and those you have taken clean, on the third day and on the seventh day. ²⁰ You must clean every piece of clothing, everything made of leather, everything made of goats’ hair, and everything made of wood.”

²¹ Then Eleazar the religious leader said to the men of war who had gone to battle, “This is the Law which the Lord has told Moses. ²² Take the gold, silver, brass, iron, tin and lead, ²³ everything that can last through fire. Pass it through the fire, and it will be clean. But it must be made pure with the water for cleaning. Whatever cannot last through fire you must pass through the water. ²⁴ You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you will be clean. Then you may come among the tents.”

²⁵ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁶ “You and Eleazar the religious leader and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the people should number all that was taken from the battle, both of man and animal. ²⁷ Divide what was taken between the men of war who went to battle and all the people. ²⁸ Then take a tax for the Lord from the men of war who went out to battle. Take one out of 500 of the persons and the cattle and the donkeys and the sheep. ²⁹ Take this from their half and give it to Eleazar the religious leader, as a gift to the Lord. ³⁰ From the half belonging to the people of Israel, take one out of every fifty of the persons and cattle and donkeys and sheep and all the animals. Give them to the Levites who take care of the meeting tent of the Lord.” ³¹ Moses and Eleazar the religious leader did just as the Lord had told Moses.

³² What was left from that which the men of war had taken was 675,000 sheep, ³³ 72,000 cattle, ³⁴ 61,000 donkeys, ³⁵ and 32,000 persons in all, of women who had never had a man. ³⁶ The half taken by those who went out to war was 337,500 sheep. ³⁷ The Lord’s tax was 675 sheep. ³⁸ There were 36,000 cattle, from which the Lord’s tax was seventy-two. ³⁹ There were 30,500 donkeys, from which the Lord’s tax was sixty-one. ⁴⁰ And there were 16,000 persons, from whom the Lord’s tax was thirty-two. ⁴¹ Moses gave the tax, which was the Lord’s gift, to Eleazar the religious leader, just as the Lord had told Moses.

⁴² Moses divided the people of Israel’s half from the men who had gone to war. ⁴³ The people’s half was 337,500 sheep, ⁴⁴ 36,000 cattle, ⁴⁵ 30,500 donkeys, ⁴⁶ and 16,000 persons. ⁴⁷ Moses took one out of every fifty of both man and animal from the people of Israel’s half. He gave them to the Levites, who took care of the meeting tent of the Lord, just as the Lord had told Moses.

⁴⁸ Then the leaders of the thousands of the army, the heads of thousands and the heads of hundreds, came to Moses. ⁴⁹ They said to him, “Your servants have numbered the men of war whom we lead. Not one man is missing from us. ⁵⁰ We have brought as a gift to the Lord what each man found, objects of gold, things to be worn on the arms and fingers and ears and necks. They are to pay for our sins before the Lord.” ⁵¹ Moses and Eleazar the religious leader took the gold from them, all the objects made of beaten gold. ⁵² All the gold of the gift they gave to the Lord from the heads of thousands and the heads of hundreds was worth 16,750 gold pieces. ⁵³ For the men of war had taken things from the battle, every man for himself. ⁵⁴ So Moses and Eleazar the religious leader took the gold from the heads of thousands and of hundreds. They brought it to the meeting tent so that the people of Israel would be remembered before the Lord.

The Family Groups East of the Jordan

32 Now the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad had very many cattle. And they saw that the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead was a good place for cattle. ² So the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben came and said to Moses and Eleazar the religious leader and the leaders of the people, ³ “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo and Beon, ⁴ the land which the Lord won in battle in front of the people of Israel, is a land for cattle and your servants have cattle.” ⁵ And they said, “If we have found favor in your eyes, let this land be given to your servants as our own. Do not take us to the other side of the Jordan.”

⁶ But Moses said to the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben, “Should your brothers go to war while you sit here? ⁷ Why do you take from the people of Israel the desire to cross over into the land the Lord has given them? ⁸ This is what your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to see the land. ⁹ They went up to the valley of Eshcol and saw the land. Then they took the desire away from the people of Israel so that they did not go into the land the Lord had given them. ¹⁰ So the Lord’s anger burned on that day, and He swore, saying ¹¹ ‘None of the men who came up from Egypt, twenty years old and older, will see the land I promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For they did not follow Me with all their heart. ¹² Only Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun will see it. For they have followed the Lord with all their hearts.’ ¹³ So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel. He made them travel in the desert forty years, until all the people of that day who had sinned in the eyes of the Lord were destroyed. ¹⁴ Now see, you have grown up in your fathers’ place, children of sinful men. You add still more to the burning anger of the Lord against Israel. ¹⁵ For if you turn away from following Him, He will leave them in the desert again and you will destroy all these people.”

¹⁶ Then they came near him and said, “We will build safe places for our flocks here, and cities for our little ones. ¹⁷ But we will be ready for battle and will go with the people of Israel until we have brought them to their place. Our little ones will live within the walls of the cities because of the people who live in the land. ¹⁸ We will not return to our homes until every one of the people of Israel has received his land. ¹⁹ For we will not have any land among them on the other side of the Jordan. Our land has come to us on this side of the Jordan toward the east.”

²⁰ So Moses said to them, “Do as you say. Get ready for war before the Lord. ²¹ All of you men of war cross over the Jordan before the Lord until He has driven away those who fight against Him, ²² and has won the land in battle. Then after this you may return because you have done your duty to the Lord and to Israel. This land will be your land before the Lord. ²³ But if you do not do as you say, you have sinned against the Lord. And for sure you will be punished for your sin. ²⁴ Build cities for your little ones and places for your sheep. Then do what you have promised.” ²⁵ The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben said to Moses, “Your servants will do just as my lord says. ²⁶ Our little ones, our wives, our flocks and all our cattle will stay there in the cities of Gilead. ²⁷ But your servants, everyone who is ready for war, will cross over before the Lord to battle, just as my lord says.”

²⁸ So Moses gave news about them to Eleazar the religious leader, Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers’ houses of the families of the people of Israel. ²⁹ Moses said to them, “The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben, every man ready for battle, are to cross with you over the Jordan before the Lord, and the land will be won. After this, you must give them the land of Gilead for their own. ³⁰ But if they will not cross over with you ready for battle, their land must be among you in the land of Canaan.” ³¹ The sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben answered, “We will do as the Lord has said to your servants. ³² We will cross over into the land of Canaan ready for battle before the Lord. And the land on this side of the Jordan will be ours.”

³³ So Moses gave the nations of Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan to the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben and the half-family group of Joseph’s son Manasseh. He gave them the land, with its cities and the country around them. ³⁴ Then the sons of Gad built Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer, ³⁵ Atrothshophan, Jazer, Jogbehah, ³⁶ Bethnimrah and Beth-haran, cities with walls around them. And they made safe places for their sheep. ³⁷ The sons of Reuben built Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim, ³⁸ Nebo and Baal-meon (their names to be changed), and Sibmah. And they gave other names to the cities they built. ³⁹ The sons of Manasseh’s son Machir went to Gilead and took it. They drove away the Amorites who were in it. ⁴⁰ So Moses gave Gilead to Machir the son of Manasseh, and he lived in it. ⁴¹ Jair the son of Manasseh went and took its towns, and called them Havvoth-jair. ⁴² Nobah went and took Kenath and its towns, and called it Nobah after his own name.

From Egypt to Moab

33 These are the travels of the people of Israel, when Moses and Aaron led them out from the land of Egypt by their armies. ² Moses wrote down the starting places of their travels, as the Lord told him. These are their travels by their starting places. ³ They traveled from Rameses on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the day after the Passover the people of Israel started out strong in heart in front of all the Egyptians. ⁴ The Egyptians were burying all their first-born whom the Lord had killed among them. The Lord had punished their gods also.

⁵ Then the people of Israel traveled from Rameses and stayed in Succoth. ⁶ They traveled from Succoth and stayed in Etham, beside the desert. ⁷ They went from Etham and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, east of Baal-zephon, and stayed at Migdol. ⁸ Then they traveled from Hahiroth and passed through the sea into the desert. They traveled for three days in the desert of Etham, and stayed at Marah. ⁹ They left Marah and came to Elim. There were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees in Elim, and they stayed there. ¹⁰ Then they traveled from Elim and stayed by the Red Sea. ¹¹ They left the Red Sea and stayed in the Desert of Sin. ¹² They traveled from the Desert of Sin, and stayed at Dophkah. ¹³ Then they left Dophkah and stayed at Alush. ¹⁴ They traveled from Alush and stayed at Rephidim. It was there that the people had no water to drink. ¹⁵ They went from Rephidim and stayed in the Desert of Sinai. ¹⁶ They traveled from the Desert of Sinai, and stayed at Kibroth-hattaavah.

¹⁷ They went from Kibroth-hattaavah and stayed at Hazeroth. ¹⁸ They left Hazeroth and stayed at Rithmah. ¹⁹ Then they went from Rithmah and stayed at Rimmon-perez. ²⁰ They traveled from Rimmon-perez, and stayed at Libnah. ²¹ They left Libnah, and stayed at Rissah. ²² Then they went from Rissah and stayed at Kehelathah. ²³ They went from Kehelathah and stayed at Mount Shepher. ²⁴ They traveled from Mount Shepher and stayed at Haradah. ²⁵ They left Haradah and stayed at Makheloth. ²⁶ Then they traveled from Makheloth, and stayed at Tahath. ²⁷ They traveled from Tahath, and stayed at Terah. ²⁸ They went from Terah and stayed at Mithkah. ²⁹ They left Mithkah and stayed at Hashmonah. ³⁰ Then they left Hashmonah and stayed at Moseroth. ³¹ They went from Moseroth and stayed at Benejaakan. ³² They traveled from Benejaakan, and stayed at Hor-haggidgad. ³³ They went from Hor-haggidgad and stayed at Jotbathah. ³⁴ Then they left Jotbathah and stayed at Abronah. ³⁵ They went from Abronah and stayed at Ezion-geber. ³⁶ They went from Ezion-geber and stayed in the Desert of Zin, that is, Kadesh. ³⁷ And they traveled from Kadesh, and stayed at Mount Hor, beside the land of Edom.

³⁸ Then Aaron the religious leader went up to Mount Hor, as the Lord told him. He died there, in the fortieth year after the people of Israel had left the land of Egypt, on the first day of the fifth month. ³⁹ Aaron was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor.

⁴⁰ The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard of the coming of the people of Israel.

⁴¹ Then the people traveled from Mount Hor, and stayed at Zalmonah. ⁴² They left Zalmonah, and stayed at Punon. ⁴³ They went from Punon and stayed at Oboth. ⁴⁴ Then they left Oboth and stayed at Iye-abarim, beside Moab. ⁴⁵ They traveled from Iyim, and stayed at Dibon-gad. ⁴⁶ They went from Dibon-gad and stayed at Almon-diblathaim. ⁴⁷ They left Almon-diblathaim and stayed in the mountains of Abarim, near Nebo. ⁴⁸ They traveled from the mountains of Abarim, and stayed in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho. ⁴⁹ And they stayed by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth as far as Abelshittim in the plains of Moab.

⁵⁰ Then the Lord said to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho, ⁵¹ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘You will cross over the Jordan into the land of Canaan. ⁵² Then drive out all the people living in the land in front of you. Destroy all their cut stones, and all their man-made gods, and all their high places. ⁵³ Take the land for your own and live in it. For I have given the land to you. ⁵⁴ Your families will receive land by drawing names. The larger families should be given more land. The smaller families should be given less land. When a man’s name is drawn, that land will be his. You will receive land by the family groups of your fathers. ⁵⁵ Drive out the people who live in the land in front of you. If you do not, then those who are allowed to stay will be like sharp pieces in your eyes and like thorns in your sides. They will trouble you in the land where you live. ⁵⁶ And I will do to you as I thought to do to them.’”

The Land of Canaan

34 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the people of Israel, ‘When you go into the land of Canaan, this is the land that will be given to you, all the land of Canaan. ³ Your south side will be from the Desert of Zin along the side of Edom. It will go east from the end of the Salt Sea. ⁴ Then the side of your land will turn from the south up to the pass of Akrabbim and on to Zin. Its end will be south of Kadesh-barnea. It will go to Hazaraddar and on to Azmon. ⁵ Then it will turn from Azmon to the river of Egypt, and will end at the sea.

⁶ ‘The west side of your land will be the shore of the Great Sea.

⁷ ‘Your north side will be from the Great Sea to Mount Hor. ⁸ And it will go from Mount Hor to the Lebohamath, and end at Zedad. ⁹ Then it will go to Ziphron and end at Hazer-enan. This will be the north side.

¹⁰ ‘The east side of your land will be from Hazer-enan to Shepham, ¹¹ then down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain. Then it will go down to the hill on the east side of the Sea of Chinnereth. ¹² It will go down to the Jordan and end at the Salt Sea. This will be the sides all around your land.’”

¹³ Moses told the people of Israel, “This is the land you will receive by drawing names, which the Lord has said should be given to the nine and a half-family groups. ¹⁴ For the sons of Reuben have received their land by their fathers’ houses. The sons of Gad have received theirs by their fathers’ houses. And the half-family group of Manasseh has received their land. ¹⁵ The two and a half-family groups have received their land on the other side of the Jordan from Jericho, toward the east.”

¹⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁷ “Eleazar the religious leader and Joshua the son of Nun are the men who will divide the land to be given to you. ¹⁸ And take one leader of every family group to divide the land among you. ¹⁹ These are the names of the men. Take Caleb the son of Jephunneh of the family group of Judah. ²⁰ Take Samuel the son of Ammihud of the family group of the sons of Simeon. ²¹ Take Elidad the son of Chislon of the family group of Benjamin. ²² Take Bukki the son of Jogli as the leader of the family group of the sons of Dan. ²³ Of the sons of Joseph, take Hanniel the son of Ephod as the leader of the family group of the sons of Manasseh. ²⁴ Take Kemuel the son of Shiphtan as the leader of the family group of the sons of Ephraim. ²⁵ Take Elizaphan the son of Parnach as the leader of the family group of the sons of Zebulun. ²⁶ Take Paltiel the son of Azzan as the leader of the family group of the sons of Issachar. ²⁷ Take Ahihud the son of Shelomi as the leader of the family group of the sons of Asher. ²⁸ And take Pedahel the son of Ammihud as the leader of the family group of the sons of Naphtali.” ²⁹ These are the men whom the Lord told to divide the land among the people of Israel in the land of Canaan.

Cities for the Levites

35 The Lord said to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho, ² “Tell the people of Israel to give the Levites cities to live in from the land they receive. And give the Levites fields around the cities. ³ The cities will be theirs to live in. Their fields will be for their cattle and flocks and for all their animals. ⁴ The fields you give the Levites should be around the cities, from the city walls out 500 long steps. ⁵ And you should number 1,000 long steps from the city on the east side, on the south side, on the west side, and on the north side, with the city in the center. These fields around the cities will belong to them for their animals. ⁶ The cities you give the Levites will be the six cities where people can go to be safe. They will be where a man may run to if he has killed another person. And give them forty-two other cities, added to these. ⁷ Give forty-eight cities in all to the Levites, together with their fields. ⁸ Take more cities from the larger families of Israel to give to the Levites. And take less cities from the smaller families. Each should give some of its cities to the Levites by how much land is received.”

The Cities to Be a Safe Place

⁹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹⁰ “Say to the people of Israel, ‘When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, ¹¹ choose which cities are to be the ones where you can run to be safe. The man who has killed a person without meaning to may run there. ¹² The cities will be a safe place for you from the one who wants to punish you. So the one who has killed a person may not die until the people decide if he is guilty or not. ¹³ The cities you give will be your six cities where you can go to be safe. ¹⁴ Give three cities on the east side of the Jordan and three cities in the land of Canaan. They will be the cities where you can go to be safe. ¹⁵ These six cities will be safe places for the people of Israel and for the stranger and for the one who visits them. Anyone who kills a person without meaning to may run there.

¹⁶ ‘But if he killed him with an iron object, then he is guilty. For sure the killer will be put to death. ¹⁷ If he knocked him down with a stone so that he died, he is guilty. For sure the killer will be put to death. ¹⁸ Or if he hit him with a piece of wood in his hand so that he died, he is guilty. For sure the killer will be put to death. ¹⁹ The man who wants to punish him for the killing will put the killer to death. He will put him to death when he meets him. ²⁰ If the killer has pushed him because he hated him, or has thrown something at him after waiting for him, and because of this he died, ²¹ or if he hit him down with his hand because he hated him and killed him, for sure the one who killed him must be put to death. He is guilty. The man who wants to punish him for the killing will put him to death when he meets him.

²² ‘But if he pushed him without planning to and without hating him, or threw something at him without having waited for him, ²³ or he threw a stone without seeing him, killing him without hating him or meaning to hurt him, ²⁴ then the people will decide by these Laws between the killer and the one who wants to punish him. ²⁵ The people will save the killer from the man who wants to punish him. And they will return him to his city where he had gone to be safe. He will live in it until the death of the head religious leader who was set apart with the holy oil. ²⁶ But if the man who killed another person at sometime goes outside his city where he went to be safe, ²⁷ then the man who wants to punish him will not be guilty of blood if he finds him outside the safe city and kills him. ²⁸ Because the man should have stayed in his city to be safe until the death of the head religious leader. But after the head religious leader dies, the man who killed another person may return to his own land.

²⁹ ‘These things will be a Law to you and to all your children-to-come in all your homes. ³⁰ If anyone kills a person, the killer must be put to death by what is told by those who saw the killing. But no person may be put to death because of what one person says. ³¹ You must not take pay to save the life of a killer who is guilty of death. But he must be put to death. ³² You must not take pay for him who has run to his city to be safe, so that he may return to live in the land before the death of the religious leader. ³³ You must not make the land where you live unclean. The land is not holy when people are killed. And only the blood of him who is guilty can pay to make the land free from the blood that has fallen on it. ³⁴ Do not make the land where you live unclean, in the place where I live. For I the Lord am living among the people of Israel.’”

Married Women and What They Would Get from Their Families

36 The heads of the fathers’ houses of the family group of the sons of Gilead the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of the sons of Joseph, came near. They spoke in front of Moses and the leaders, the heads of the fathers’ houses of the people of Israel. ² They said, “The Lord told my lord to give the land to the people of Israel by drawing names. And my lord was told by the Lord to give the land of our brother Zelophehad to his daughters. ³ But if they marry one of the sons of the other family groups of Israel, then their land would be taken away from what was given to our fathers and would be added to the land of the family group they marry into. So it would be taken from the land that had been given to us. ⁴ When the Year of Jubilee of the people of Israel comes, their land will be added to the land of the family group into which they marry. So their land will be taken from the land of the family group of our fathers.”

⁵ Then Moses told the people of Israel what the Lord said. He said, “The family group of the sons of Joseph are right in what they say. ⁶ This is what the Lord has said about the daughters of Zelophehad: ‘Let them marry whom they think best. Only they must marry within the family group of their father.’ ⁷ This way no land of the people of Israel will go from one family group to another. The people of Israel will each hold to the land of the family group of his fathers. ⁸ Every daughter who comes to own the land of any family group of Israel, must be the wife of one of her father’s family group. So every one of the people of Israel may own the land of his fathers. ⁹ No land will go from one family group to another. For the families of Israel will each hold to his own land.” ¹⁰ The daughters of Zelophehad did just as the Lord had told Moses. ¹¹ Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah and Noah, the daughters of Zelophehad, married sons of their father’s brothers. ¹² They married into the families of the sons of Manasseh the son of Joseph. And their land stayed with their father’s family group.

¹³ These are the Laws which the Lord told the people of Israel through Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.