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Dividing the Plunder

25 The Lord spoke to Moses: 26 “You, Eleazar the priest, and the leading fathers[a] of the community are to count the spoils of war—the captives, both people and animals— 27 and divide the spoils of war into two equal parts: one part for the troops who went out for combat and one for all the rest of the community. 28 Raise a tribute to the Lord to be given by the fighting men who went out for battle. Take one out of every five hundred from the people, the cattle, the donkeys, and the flocks. 29 Take it from the fighting men’s half, and give it to Eleazar the priest as an elevated offering[b] to the Lord. 30 Also from the Israelites’ half, you will take one out of every fifty from the people, the cattle, the donkeys, the flocks, and all the animals, and give them to the Levites, who attend to the duties at the Lord’s Dwelling.”

31 Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses. 32 Now the spoils of war remaining from the plunder that the army took was 675,000 animals from the flocks, 33 72,000 cattle, 34 61,000 donkeys, 35 and 32,000 people in all, that is, the women who had not had sexual relations with a man.

36 The half share for those who went out into combat numbered 337,500 animals from the flocks, 37 and the tribute for the Lord from the flocks was 675. 38 The cattle numbered 36,000; the tribute for the Lord was 72. 39 The donkeys numbered 30,500; the tribute for the Lord was 61. 40 The people numbered 16,000; the tribute for the Lord was 32 people. 41 Moses gave the tribute, the elevated offering to the Lord, to Eleazar the priest as the Lord commanded Moses.

42 From the Israelites’ half, which Moses set aside from the share of the men who fought, 43 the community’s half share was 337,500 animals from the flocks, 44 36,000 cattle, 45 30,500 donkeys, 46 and 16,000 people. 47 From the Israelites’ half share Moses took one out of every fifty from the people and the animals and gave them to the Levites, who attended to the duties at the Lord’s Dwelling, as the Lord commanded Moses.

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 31:26 Since Israel’s social structure was based on kinship relationships, fathers is frequently the title for leaders of social/political units of the nation.
  2. Numbers 31:29 The term elevated offering refers to the gestures with which these offerings were presented. The name does not mean that every item offered was literally elevated.

Division of the War-Booty

25 Yahweh said to Moses, saying, 26 “You and Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the families[a] of the community, take count[b] of the war-booty that was captured, both humans[c] and the domestic animals;[d] 27 divide the war-booty between those who engaged in the war, who went out to the battle, and all the community. 28 Exact a tribute for Yahweh from the men of the war, those who went out to the battle, one from five hundred persons, and from the cattle and from the male donkeys and from the flock; 29 take from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as a contribution to Yahweh. 30 From half of the Israelites,[e] take one share drawn by lot from the fifty from the humans,[f] from the cattle, from the male donkeys, from the flock, from all the domestic animals,[g] and give them to the Levities who keep the responsibilities of the tabernacle of Yahweh.” 31 Moses and Eleazar the priest did just as Yahweh commanded Moses.

32 Thus the war-booty that remained of the plunder that the people of the battle plundered was six hundred and seventy-five thousand flocks of sheep, 33 seventy-two thousand cattle, 34 sixty-one thousand male donkeys, 35 and the life of humankind, from the women who did not have sexual intercourse with a man,[h] all the persons[i] were thirty-two thousand.

36 The half of the share that was going out to the battle: the number of the flock of sheep was thee hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred; 37 the tribute to Yahweh from the flock was six hundred and seventy-five; 38 and the cattle were thirty-six thousand; and the tribute to Yahweh was seventy-two. 39 Of the male donkeys there were thirty thousand five hundred, and the tribute to Yahweh was sixty-one; 40 the humans[j] were sixteen thousand, and the tribute to Yahweh was thirty-two persons. 41 And Moses gave away the tribute of the contribution of Yahweh to Eleazar the priest, just as Yahweh commanded Moses.

42 From the half of the Israelites,[k] which Moses divided from the men who were fighting, 43 the half that belonged to the community was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred from the flock, 44 and thirty-six thousand cattle, 45 and thirty thousand five hundred male donkeys, 46 and sixteen thousand humans.[l] 47 From the half that belonged to the Israelites,[m] Moses took one share drawn by lot out of every fifty humans[n] and domestic animals, and he gave them to the Levites, who keep the responsibility of the tabernacle of Yahweh, just as Yahweh commanded Moses.

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 31:26 Literally “fathers”
  2. Numbers 31:26 Literally “lift up the head”
  3. Numbers 31:26 Hebrew “human”
  4. Numbers 31:26 Hebrew “animal”
  5. Numbers 31:30 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  6. Numbers 31:30 Hebrew “human”
  7. Numbers 31:30 Hebrew “animal”
  8. Numbers 31:35 Literally “who has known the bed of a male”
  9. Numbers 31:35 Hebrew “person”
  10. Numbers 31:40 Hebrew “human”
  11. Numbers 31:42 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  12. Numbers 31:46 Hebrew “human”
  13. Numbers 31:47 Literally “sons/children of Israel”
  14. Numbers 31:47 Hebrew “human”