Numbers

The fourth book of Moses, called Numbers, chapter 1, New English Translation and King James Version

Chapter 1 New English Translation

Organizing the Census of the Israelites

   1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting in the wilderness of Sinai on the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites departed from the land of Egypt. He said: 2 "Take a census of the entire Israelite community by their clans and families, counting the name of every individual male. 3 You and Aaron are to number all in Israel who can serve in the army, those who are twenty years old or older, by their divisions. 4 And to help you there is to be a man from each tribe, each man the head of his family. 5 Now these are the names of the men who are to help you: from Reuben, Elizur son of Shedeur;
   6 from Simeon, Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai;
   7 from Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab;
   8 from Issachar, Nethanel son of Zuar;
   9 from Zebulun, Eliab son of Helon;
   10 from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel son of Pedahzur;
   11 from Benjamin, Abidan son of Gideoni;
   12 from Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai;
   13 from Asher, Pagiel son of Ocran;
   14 from Gad, Eliasaph son of Deuel;
   15 from Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan."

The Census of the Tribes

   16 These were the ones chosen from the community, leaders of their ancestral tribes. They were the heads of the thousands of Israel.
   17 So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been mentioned specifically by name, 18 and they assembled the entire community together on the first day of the second month. Then the people recorded their ancestry by their clans and families, and the men who were twenty years old or older were listed by name individually, 19 just as the LORD had commanded Moses. And so he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.
   20 And they were as follows: The descendants of Reuben, the firstborn son of Israel: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name individually. 21 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Reuben were 46,500.
   22 From the descendants of Simeon: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males numbered of them twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name individually. 23 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Simeon were 59,300.
   24 From the descendants of Gad: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 25 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Gad were 45,650.
   26 From the descendants of Judah: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 27 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Judah were 74,600.
   28 From the descendants of Issachar: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 29 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Issachar were 54,400.
   30 From the descendants of Zebulun: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 31 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400.
   32 From the sons of Joseph: From the descendants of Ephraim: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 33 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500. 34 From the descendants of Manasseh: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 35 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200.
   36 From the descendants of Benjamin: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 37 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400.
   38 From the descendants of Dan: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 39 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Dan were 62,700.
   40 From the descendants of Asher: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 41 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Asher were 41,500.
   42 From the descendants of Naphtali: According to the records of their clans and families, all the males twenty years old or older who could serve in the army were listed by name. 43 Those of them who were numbered from the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400.
   44 These were the men whom Moses and Aaron numbered along with the twelve leaders of Israel, each of whom was from his own family. 45 All the Israelites who were twenty years old or older, who could serve in Israel's army, were numbered according to their families. 46 And all those numbered totaled 603,550.

The Exemption of the Levites

   47 But the Levites, according to the tribe of their fathers, were not numbered among them. 48 The LORD had said to Moses, 49 "Only the tribe of Levi you must not number or count with the other Israelites. 50 But appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the testimony, over all its furnishings and over everything in it. They must carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; and they must attend to it and camp around it. 51 Whenever the tabernacle is to move, the Levites must take it down, and whenever the tabernacle is to be reassembled, the Levites must set it up. Any unauthorized person who approaches it must be killed.
   52 "The Israelites will camp according to their divisions, each man in his camp, and each man by his standard. 53 But the Levites must camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that the LORD's anger will not fall on the Israelite community. The Levites are responsible for the care of the tabernacle of the testimony."
   54 The Israelites did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses - that is what they did.

King James Version

   1 And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,
   2 Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls;
   3 From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.
   4 And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers.
   5 ¶ And these are the names of the men that shall stand with you: of the tribe of Reuben; Elizur the son of Shedeur.
   6 Of Simeon; Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.
   7 Of Judah; Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
   8 Of Issachar; Nethaneel the son of Zuar.
   9 Of Zebulun; Eliab the son of Helon.
   10 Of the children 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 Ocran.
   14 Of Gad; Eliasaph the son of Deuel.
   15 Of Naphtali; Ahira the son of Enan.
   16 These were the renowned of the congregation, princes of the tribes of their fathers, heads of thousands in Israel.
   17 ¶ And Moses and Aaron took these men which are expressed by their names:
   18 And they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month, and they declared their pedigrees after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, by their polls.
   19 As the LORD commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.
   20 And the children of Reuben, Israel's eldest son, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   21 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Reuben, were forty and six thousand and five hundred.
   22 ¶ Of the children of Simeon, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, those that were numbered of them, according to the number of the names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   23 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Simeon, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred.
   24 ¶ Of the children of Gad, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   25 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Gad, were forty and five thousand six hundred and fifty.
   26 ¶ Of the children of Judah, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   27 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Judah, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred.
   28 ¶ Of the children of Issachar, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   29 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Issachar, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred.
   30 ¶ Of the children of Zebulun, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   31 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Zebulun, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred.
   32 ¶ Of the children of Joseph, namely, of the children of Ephraim, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   33 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Ephraim, were forty thousand and five hundred.
   34 ¶ Of the children of Manasseh, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   35 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Manasseh, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred.
   36 ¶ Of the children of Benjamin, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   37 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Benjamin, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred.
   38 ¶ Of the children of Dan, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   39 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Dan, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred.
   40 ¶ Of the children of Asher, by their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   41 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Asher, were forty and one thousand and five hundred.
   42 ¶ Of the children of Naphtali, throughout their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war;
   43 Those that were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Naphtali, were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.
   44 These are those that were numbered, which Moses and Aaron numbered, and the princes of Israel, being twelve men: each one was for the house of his fathers.
   45 So were all those that were numbered of the children of Israel, by the house of their fathers, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war in Israel;
   46 Even all they that were numbered were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty.
   47 ¶ But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.
   48 For the LORD had spoken unto Moses, saying,
   49 Only thou shalt not number the tribe of Levi, neither take the sum of them among the children of Israel:
   50 But thou shalt appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of testimony, and over all the vessels thereof, and over all things that belong to it: they shall bear the tabernacle, and all the vessels thereof; and they shall minister unto it, and shall encamp round about the tabernacle.
   51 And when the tabernacle setteth forward, the Levites shall take it down: and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.
   52 And the children of Israel shall pitch their tents, every man by his own camp, and every man by his own standard, throughout their hosts.
   53 But the Levites shall pitch round about the tabernacle of testimony, that there be no wrath upon the congregation of the children of Israel: and the Levites shall keep the charge of the tabernacle of testimony.
   54 And the children of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did they.