Numbers 1
The Voice
The people of the Lord have been out of Egypt for more than a year; and God has provided direction, instruction, and correction from inside columns of smoke, from on top of mountains, from anywhere His people were located. But now they have the special congregation tent—a complex, multilayered tent within an enclosed court, which they can take along on their journeys and set up anywhere. This is a holy place for the people of the Lord. It is the place for them to offer sacrifices; and inside this special tent, behind a heavy curtain, is the holiest place of all, where their spiritual leaders receive revelation from God. There are two Hebrew words used for this special place. One is literally “tent” while the other is “dwelling.” The word “tent” usually refers to the entire congregation tent, where any Israelite may come to the outer court and sacrifice. The word “dwelling” is used for that extra holy place or sanctuary behind the curtain, the residence of God or the place of His revelation where only certain priests were allowed.
Now the people are ready to begin the preparation to move into the land promised to them by the Lord. First, He sets about organizing this enormous band of escaped slaves.
1 Nearly two years after they had left Egypt, the Israelites were still in the wild desert area of Sinai. But on the first day of the second month, the Eternal One spoke to Moses in the tent of congregation.
Eternal One (to Moses): 2 Add up exactly how many Israelites there are, but don’t merely count them. Identify all the people by their clans and families, right down to the individual name of every male. 3 Furthermore, those who are 20 years old or older shall be considered potential soldiers. Aaron can help you organize them into groups and record them as armies. 4 Your leadership team will include someone from each tribe who is the head of his extended family. 5 They are: Elizur (Shedeur’s son) from the Reuben family; 6 Shelumiel (Zurishaddai’s son) from the Simeon family; 7 Nahshon (Amminidab’s son) from the Judah family; 8 Nethanel (Zuar’s son) from the Issachar family; 9 Eliab (Helon’s son) from the Zebulun family; 10 from the two branches of Joseph’s family, Elishama (Ammihud’s son) from the Ephraim family and Gamaliel (Pedahzur’s son) from the Manasseh family; 11 Abidan (Gideoni’s son) from the Benjamin family; 12 Ahiezer (Ammishaddai’s son) from the Dan family; 13 Pagiel (Ochran’s son) from the Asher family; 14 Eliasaph (Deuel’s son) from the Gad family; 15 and Ahira (Enan’s son) from the Naphtali family. 16 These are the tribal leaders and representatives of the extended families, chosen by the community. They are the heads of the clans that compose Israel.
17 Moses and Aaron gathered these chosen leaders by name; 18 and on the first day of the second month, they brought the whole community together to register by their clans and extended families and to specify individuals who were 20 years old and older. 19 This Moses did in the wild desert area of Sinai, just as the Eternal One had directed him to do. 20-21 This is the tally of the twelve clans by extended family, identifying those for battle (20 years old and older): from Reuben’s tribe (Reuben was the firstborn of Jacob, whom God renamed “Israel”)—46,500; 22-23 from Simeon’s tribe—59,300; 24-25 from Gad—45,650; 26-27 from Judah—74,600; 28-29 from Issachar—54,400; 30-31 from Zebulun—57,400; 32-35 from Joseph, the Ephraim tribe—40,500; from Joseph, the Manasseh tribe—32,200; 36-37 from Benjamin—35,400; 38-39 from Dan—62,700; 40-41 from Asher—41,500; 42-43 from Naphtali—53,400. 44 This is the organization that Moses, Aaron, and the heads of the twelve clans recorded according to their extended families. 45 Those who were 20 years old or older and could fight in the army 46 totaled 603,550.
Three times God calls the Israelites to count their people. In Exodus 30, they count the population to develop an orderly funding program for the construction of the congregation tent. Here God tells them to count the men eligible for fighting in their militia; and in chapter 26, after a plague has ravaged the people, they will once again determine the size and makeup of their fighting force. It is interesting to note the change in the number of warriors within each of the extended families. Some tribes experience a tremendous loss in the number of fighters, and other tribes have a considerable increase:
47-49 The Levites were not included in this registration and organizing of the extended families’ tribe members because the Eternal One had expressly told Moses not to count them.
Eternal One (to Moses): 50 You will make the Levites responsible for the congregation tent that houses the terms of the covenant, its furnishings, and accoutrements. They will be the ones who carry all of it, maintain it, and camp around it. 51 When it’s time to move, it will be the Levites who pack up that tent; they are the ones who shall set it back up. If any outsider tries to get involved, he will be killed. 52 The rest of the Israelites will camp according to their troops, each extended family under its own banner. 53 Remember: only the Levites shall camp around the congregation tent that houses the terms of the covenant, guarding and servicing that place to spare the Israelites an outbreak of My wrath.
54 The Israelites did all this, exactly as the Eternal One had commanded through Moses.
Numbers 1
English Standard Version
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.
Numbers 1
Names of God Bible
Moses Takes a Census of Israel
1 Yahweh spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the Desert of Sinai. It was the first day of the second month in the second year after leaving Egypt. He said, 2 “Take a census of the whole community of Israel by families and households. List every man by name 3 who is at least 20 years old. You and Aaron must register everyone in Israel who is eligible for military duty. List them by divisions. 4 One man from each tribe will help you. Each of these men must be the head of a household.
5 “Here are the names of the men who will help you:
Elizur, son of Shedeur, from the tribe of Reuben;
6 Shelumiel, son of Zurishaddai, from the tribe of Simeon;
7 Nahshon, son of Amminadab, from the tribe of Judah;
8 Nethanel, son of Zuar, from the tribe of Issachar;
9 Eliab, son of Helon, from the tribe of Zebulun;
10 Elishama, son of Ammihud, from the tribe of Ephraim;
Gamaliel, son of Pedahzur, from the tribe of Manasseh;
(Ephraim and Manasseh are Joseph’s descendants.)
11 Abidan, son of Gideoni, from the tribe of Benjamin;
12 Ahiezer, son of Ammishaddai, from the tribe of Dan;
13 Pagiel, son of Ochran, from the tribe of Asher;
14 Eliasaph, son of Deuel, from the tribe of Gad;
15 Ahira, son of Enan, from the tribe of Naphtali.”
16 These were the men chosen from the community, the leaders of their ancestors’ tribes, and heads of the divisions of Israel.
17 Moses and Aaron took the men who had been named 18 and assembled the whole community on the first day of the second month. Each man at least 20 years old provided his genealogy by family and household. Then his name was listed. 19 So Moses registered the men of Israel in the Desert of Sinai as Yahweh had commanded him.
20 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn son, listed every man by name who was at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 21 The total for the tribe of Reuben was 46,500.
22 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Simeon registered and listed every man by name who was at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 23 The total for the tribe of Simeon was 59,300.
24 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Gad listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 25 The total for the tribe of Gad was 45,650.
26 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Judah listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 27 The total for the tribe of Judah was 74,600.
28 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Issachar listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 29 The total for the tribe of Issachar was 54,400.
30 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Zebulun listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 31 The total for the tribe of Zebulun was 57,400.
32 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Joseph—those from Ephraim—listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 33 The total for the tribe of Ephraim was 40,500.
34 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Manasseh listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 35 The total for the tribe of Manasseh was 32,200.
36 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Benjamin listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 37 The total for the tribe of Benjamin was 35,400.
38 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Dan listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 39 The total for the tribe of Dan was 62,700.
40 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Asher listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 41 The total for the tribe of Asher was 41,500.
42 The roster of families and households for the descendants of Naphtali listed the men by name who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty. 43 The total for the tribe of Naphtali was 53,400.
44 Moses, Aaron, and the 12 leaders of Israel, each representing his own family, added up these totals. 45 So the Israelites were registered by households. The grand total of men who were at least 20 years old and eligible for military duty 46 was 603,550.
47 But the households from the tribe of Levi were not registered along with the other Israelites. 48 Yahweh had said to Moses, 49 “Don’t register the tribe of Levi or include them in the census with the other Israelites. 50 Put the Levites in charge of the tent of God’s words, including the equipment for the tent and everything else having to do with the tent. The Levites will carry the tent and all its equipment. They will take care of the tent and camp around it. 51 When the tent has to be moved, the Levites will take it down. When we camp, they will set it up. Anyone else who comes near the tent will be put to death.
52 “The other Israelites will camp with each family in its own area under its own flag. 53 The Levites will camp all around the tent of God’s words. In this way the Lord won’t be angry with the community of Israel. So the Levites will be in charge of the tent of God’s words.”
54 The Israelites did everything as Yahweh commanded Moses.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
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The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.