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The People of Israel Are Counted

The Lord spoke to Moses in the Meeting Tent [C the Tabernacle; Ex. 25–31] in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Sinai. This was on the first day of the second month in the second year after the Israelites left Egypt [Ex. 12:50–51; C one year later]. He said to Moses: “You and Aaron must ·count [take a census of; L lift the head of] all the ·people of Israel [community/congregation/assembly of the sons/T children of Israel] by ·families [clans] and family groups, listing the name of each ·man [male]. You and Aaron must count every man twenty years old or older who will serve in the army of Israel, and list them by their divisions [C like a military registration]. One man from each tribe, the leader of his family, will help you. These are the names of the men who will help you:

from the tribe of Reuben—Elizur son of Shedeur;

from the tribe of Simeon—Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai;

from the tribe of Judah—Nahshon son of Amminadab;

from the tribe of Issachar—Nethanel son of Zuar;

from the tribe of Zebulun—Eliab son of Helon;

10 from the tribe of Ephraim son of Joseph—Elishama son of Ammihud;

from the tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph—Gamaliel son of Pedahzur;

11 from the tribe of Benjamin—Abidan son of Gideoni;

12 from the tribe of Dan—Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai;

13 from the tribe of Asher—Pagiel son of Ocran;

14 from the tribe of Gad—Eliasaph son of Deuel;

15 from the tribe of Naphtali—Ahira son of Enan.”

16 These were the men chosen from the ·people [community; congregation; assembly] to be leaders of their tribes, the heads of Israel’s family groups.

17 Moses and Aaron took these men ·who had been picked [L whose names had been designated] 18 and ·called [assembled] all the ·people [community; congregation; assembly] of Israel together on the first day of the second month. Then the people ·were listed [registered their genealogies] by their ·families [clans] and family groups, and all the ·men [males] who were twenty years old or older were listed by name. 19 Moses did exactly what the Lord had commanded and ·listed [enrolled] the people while they were in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Sinai.

20 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Reuben, the first son born to Israel [C Jacob; Gen. 35:23; 46:8; 49:3], ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 21 The tribe of Reuben totaled 46,500 men.

22 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Simeon ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 23 The tribe of Simeon totaled 59,300 men.

24 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Gad ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 25 The tribe of Gad totaled 45,650 men.

26 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Judah ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 27 The tribe of Judah totaled 74,600 men.

28 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Issachar ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 29 The tribe of Issachar totaled 54,400 men.

30 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Zebulun ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 31 The tribe of Zebulun totaled 57,400 men.

32 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Ephraim, a son of Joseph, ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 33 The tribe of Ephraim totaled 40,500 men.

34 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Manasseh, also a son of Joseph, ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 35 The tribe of Manasseh totaled 32,200 men.

36 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Benjamin ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 37 The tribe of Benjamin totaled 35,400 men.

38 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Dan ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 39 The tribe of Dan totaled 62,700 men.

40 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Asher ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 41 The tribe of Asher totaled 41,500 men.

42 The ·tribe [L sons; descendants] of Naphtali ·was counted [L according to their records/lineage]; all the men twenty years old or older who were able to serve in the army were listed by name with their ·families [clans] and family groups. 43 The tribe of Naphtali totaled 53,400 men.

44 Moses, Aaron, and the twelve leaders of Israel, one from each of the family groups, counted these men. 45 Every man of Israel twenty years old or older who was able to serve in the army was counted and listed with his family group. 46 The total number of men was 603,550.

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The Census of Israel’s Warriors

Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on (A)the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, (B)Take a [a]census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, every male, head by head from (C)twenty years old and upward, whoever is able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall [b]count them by their armies. With you, moreover, there shall be a man of each tribe, (D)each one head of his father’s household. These then are the names of the men who shall stand with you: (E)of the tribe of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; of the tribe of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; of the tribe of Judah, (F)Nahshon the son of Amminadab; of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10 of the sons of Joseph: of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11 of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12 of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13 of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran; 14 of Gad, Eliasaph the son of (G)Deuel; 15 of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan. 16 These are the men who were (H)called from the congregation, the leaders of their fathers’ tribes; they were the (I)heads of [c]divisions of Israel.”

17 So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name, 18 and they assembled all the congregation on the (J)first day of the second month. Then they registered by (K)ancestry in their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, head by head, 19 just as (L)the Lord had commanded Moses. So he counted them in the wilderness of Sinai.

20 (M)Now the sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 21 their numbered men of the tribe of Reuben were 46,500.

22 (N)Of the sons of Simeon, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, their numbered men, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, (O)whoever was able to go to war, 23 their numbered men of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300.

24 (P)Of the sons of Gad, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 25 their numbered men of the tribe of Gad were 45,650.

26 (Q)Of the sons of Judah, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 27 their numbered men of the tribe of Judah were 74,600.

28 (R)Of the sons of Issachar, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 29 their numbered men of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400.

30 (S)Of the sons of Zebulun, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 31 their numbered men of the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400.

32 (T)Of the sons of Joseph, namely, of the sons of Ephraim, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 33 their numbered men of the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500.

34 (U)Of the sons of Manasseh, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 35 their numbered men of the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200.

36 (V)Of the sons of Benjamin, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 37 their numbered men of the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400.

38 (W)Of the sons of Dan, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 39 their numbered men of the tribe of Dan were 62,700.

40 (X)Of the sons of Asher, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 41 their numbered men of the tribe of Asher were 41,500.

42 (Y)Of the sons of Naphtali, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 43 their numbered men of the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400.

44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron counted, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each of whom was of his father’s household. 45 So all the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers’ households, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war in Israel, 46 all the numbered men were (Z)603,550.

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 1:2 Lit sum
  2. Numbers 1:3 Lit muster, and so throughout the ch
  3. Numbers 1:16 Lit thousands; or clans