Numbers 31:25-47

Modern English Version

Dividing the Plunder

²⁵ The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²⁶ “Take the count of the plunder that was taken, of man and of beast, you and Eleazar the priest, and the chief of the fathers of the assembly. ²⁷ And divide the prey into two parts between those that took the war on themselves, who went out to battle, and between all the assembly. ²⁸ And levy a tribute to the Lord from the fighting men of Israel who went out to battle: one person out of five hundred, of the people and of the oxen, and of the donkeys, and of the sheep; ²⁹ take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the Lord. ³⁰ Of the half of the children of Israel, you will take one portion of fifty, of the people, of the oxen, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and give them to the Levites, who keep the guard of the tabernacle of the Lord.” ³¹ Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.

³² The plunder, being the rest of the prey, which the fighting men of Israel had caught, was six hundred and seventy-five thousand sheep, ³³ seventy-two thousand oxen, ³⁴ and sixty-one thousand donkeys, ³⁵ and thirty-two thousand people in all, of women who had not known a man by lying with him.

³⁶ The half, which was the portion of those that went out to war, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep.

³⁷ And the Lord’s tribute of the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five.

³⁸ The oxen were thirty-six thousand, of which the Lord’s tribute was seventy-two.

³⁹ The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the Lord’s tribute was sixty-one.

⁴⁰ The people were sixteen thousand, of which the Lord’s tribute was thirty-two people.

⁴¹ Moses gave the tribute which was the Lord’s offering to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord commanded Moses.

⁴² Of the half of the children of Israel, which Moses divided from the men who fought, ⁴³ the half belonging to the assembly was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, ⁴⁴ thirty-six thousand oxen, ⁴⁵ thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, ⁴⁶ and sixteen thousand people. ⁴⁷ From the half of the children of Israel Moses took one out of fifty, of man and of beast, and gave them to the Levites, who kept the guard of the tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.