Numbers 31:25-47

Common English Bible

²⁵ The Lord said to Moses: ²⁶ You, Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the community’s households must take an inventory of the valuable property and the captives, both human and animals, ²⁷ and divide the valuable property between the warriors who went into battle and the entire community. ²⁸ You will offer as tribute to the Lord from each warrior who went into battle one living being in five hundred, whether human, oxen, donkeys, or flocks. ²⁹ Take it from the warriors’ half and give it to Eleazar the priest as a gift offering to the Lord. ³⁰ But from the Israelites’ half you will take one out of every fifty, whether from human, oxen, donkeys, or flock—all the animals. You will give them to the Levites who carry out the duties of the Lord’s dwelling.

³¹ Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses. ³² The valuable property remaining from the spoils of war that the people of the army had taken was 675,000 sheep, ³³ 72,000 oxen, ³⁴ 61,000 donkeys, ³⁵ and 32,000 women who hadn’t known a man intimately by sleeping with him. ³⁶ The half-share of those who had gone out to battle numbered 337,500 sheep, ³⁷ of which the Lord’s tribute was 675. ³⁸ The oxen were 36,000, of which the Lord’s tribute was 72. ³⁹ The donkeys were 30,500, of which the Lord’s tribute was 61. ⁴⁰ Humans were 16,000, of which the Lord’s tribute was 32 persons. ⁴¹ Moses gave the tribute, a gift offering for the Lord, to Eleazar the priest as the Lord had commanded Moses.

⁴² As for the half-share of the Israelites that Moses divided from those who had gone out to battle: ⁴³ the community’s half-share was 337,500 sheep, ⁴⁴ 36,000 oxen, ⁴⁵ 30,500 donkeys, ⁴⁶ and 16,000 humans. ⁴⁷ Moses took from the Israelites’ half one out of every fifty, from humans and animals. He gave them to the Levites who carry out the duties of the Lord’s dwelling, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.