David Guzik :: Study Guide for Numbers 1

The Census of Israel

A. The book of Numbers: In the Wilderness.

1. (Numbers 1:1) God spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai.

Now the Lord spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle 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:

a. In the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt: As recorded in the book of Exodus, God miraculously rescued Israel from their long slavery in Egypt. They came through the Red Sea and saw God provide through the desert wilderness. Israel then came to Mount Sinai where God appeared to them in a spectacular way. At Mount Sinai Moses went up to meet with God and receive the law. At Mount Sinai, the people of Israel also honored an idolatrous image of a golden calf and were afterward corrected by the Lord.

i. Camped at Mount Sinai, Israel built a tabernacle of meeting as the center of worship and sacrifice. They established a priesthood, receiving God’s plan for the priests and the nation at large in Leviticus. At the end of Leviticus, they had been out of Egypt for about a year.

ii. The main part of the book of Exodus covers about one year, and Leviticus only a month — but the story of the book of Numbers covers more than 38 years.

iii. “He placed them in circumstances which developed the facts of their inner life, until they knew them for themselves. That is the meaning of the forty years in the wilderness. They were not years in which God had withdrawn Himself from the people and refused to have anything to do with them. Every year was necessary for the teaching of a lesson, and the revealing of a truth.” (Morgan)

iv. On the first day of the second month: “As the tabernacle was erected upon the first day of the first month, in the second year after their coming out of Egypt, Exodus 40:17; and this muster of the people was made on the first day of the second month, in the same year; it is evident that the transactions related in the preceding book must all have taken place in the space of one month, and during the time the Israelites were encamped at Mount Sinai, before they had begun their journey to the promised land.” (Clarke)

b. Now the Lord spoke to Moses: The book of Numbers approaches it all God’s way. In the wilderness, one may be tempted to launch a hundred different schemes and plans to move forward. But only God’s way really works; and the book of Numbers tells us about God’s way. The idea that the Lord spoke to Moses is repeated more than 150 times and more than 20 different ways in Numbers.

i. The wilderness was never meant to be Israel’s destination. God’s intention was to bring them into the Promised Land of Canaan. The wilderness was intended as a temporary place — a place to move through, not to live in.

ii. “The Hebrew word for wilderness (midbar) means a place for driving flocks. It is not a completely arid desert, but contains little vegetation and a few trees. The rainfall in such areas is too light, a few inches per year, to support cultivation.” (Wenham)

c. In the Wilderness of Sinai: The Hebrew title of this book gives us an idea of the theme of Numbers. In Hebrew, this book is titled In the Wilderness instead of Numbers. The book of Numbers is all about God’s people in the Wilderness — how they got there, how God dealt with them in the wilderness, and how He brought them out of the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land.

i. “The theme of the book of Numbers is the journey to the Promised Land of Canaan. Its opening ten chapters, covering a mere fifty days, describe how Moses organized Israel for the march from Sinai to the Promised Land.” (Wenham)

ii. “The phrase ‘Desert of Sinai’ locates the census taking in the rugged regions of the Sinai Peninsula. The precise location of the encampment of Israelites near Mount Sinai (Mount Horeb), the mountain of God, has been debated since at least as early as the fourth century A.D.” (Cole)

d. After they had come out of the land of Egypt: The Book of Numbers gives us a big vision: Where is God taking us? What will it take to get there? What inner qualities must God develop in us and demand in us along the way? Israel had to be transformed from a people dominated by hundreds of years of slavery into a people suited for the Promised Land.

i. Promised Land people are different from slave people. Israel emerged from Egypt a slave people, basically unsuited for the Promised Land. Numbers tells part of the story of how God transformed them into Promised Land people.

ii. “So the Israelites had been slaves in the land of Goshen; their tasks were appointed, and their taskmasters compelled their obedience. Their difficulties had been great, their bondage cruel, but they were free from the necessity of thought and arrangement. Having escaped from their taskmaster, they imagined that freedom meant escape from rule. They had been taught in their year of encampment under the shadow of the mountain that they had to submit to law, and it was irksome to them, and they became discontented. This discontent resulted from lack of perfect confidence in God.” (Morgan)

2. (Numbers 1:2-3) The command to take a census.

“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above—all who are able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies.

a. Take a census of the congregation of the children of Israel: As Moses met with the Lord in the tabernacle (verse 1), God commanded him to take a census — but counting only all who are able to go to war in Israel.

i. It was Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, who suggested that Israel be organized by their thousands, their hundreds, their fifties, and their tens (Exodus 18:21). With this organization already in place, the census would not be difficult.

ii. A month before this, the Israelites were numbered for the sake of taxation (the money for the tabernacle, Exodus 38:26). Now they were numbered again for the purpose of organizing and counting an army.

b. By their families, by their fathers’ houses: God wanted the count made by their families because the strength of Israel was determined by looking at the strength of individual families.

c. From twenty years old and above: The men for war were counted as those from twenty years old and older, showing that it takes some amount of time and maturity to be able to fight well. It is also interesting that there is no upper age limit declared, though one may be implied.

i. “One could wish for a Divine conscription, a command laid on every one in youth to be ready at a certain day and hour to take the sword of the Spirit.” (Watson)

d. You and Aaron shall number them by their armies: This was a military census to see who could fight for Israel in taking the Promised Land. This was the first step in taking the Promised Land — an inventory to understand the resources they had to conquer the Promised Land.

i. Though the Promised Land had been mentioned during the journey out of Egypt to this point, the focus was on getting to Mount Sinai and receiving the law. That was just the beginning; now, the focus turned towards taking the Promised Land and recognizing it would be a battle, and they needed to know how many soldiers were available for this battle.

ii. The taking of this census would have a great effect on the nation. As the count was made, every family knew preparations were being made for war.

e. By their armies: The order to count the potential soldiers was not meant to imply that Israel would take the land because of superior forces, or merely because of the bravery of these men. They would receive the Promised Land by the hand of God. Nevertheless, they still had to fight and know what they had available to them going into battle.

i. “The story of the conquest of Canaan is not that of the spoliation of feeble peoples by a stronger, in order to possess territory. It is that of the purification of a land, in order that there might be planted in it a people from whose history blessing would come to all the nations.” (Morgan)

ii. Shall number them by their armies: “The term saba [armies] is generally used in the context of military forces and in the divine appellation YHWH seba ot, often translated “Yahweh of hosts” or ‘Yahweh of armies.’” (Cole)

iii. Israel had a literal, physical, fought-in-the-material-world war to fight. As believers, we do not battle against flesh and blood enemies, but spiritual enemies (Ephesians 6:10-12). We may fail in spiritual battle because we do not take an honest inventory about where we are spiritually. We may overestimate or underestimate our spiritual strength and resources. This count of Israel wouldn’t let them do that.

B. Israel takes inventory: The census of Numbers 1

1. (Numbers 1:4-16) The heads of the tribes.

“And with you there shall be a man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house. “These are the names of the men who shall stand with you: from Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; from Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; from Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; from Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; from Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; from Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; from Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; from Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; from Asher, Pagiel the son of Ocran; from Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel; from Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.” These were chosen from the congregation, leaders of their fathers’ tribes, heads of the divisions in Israel.

a. A man from every tribe, each one the head of his father’s house: Israel was organized according to the tribes that descended from the original twelve sons of Jacob (who was later renamed Israel by God). Each of these twelve tribes designated one man who was the head of his father’s house, who was to stand with Moses and stand for their whole tribe.

i. In a sense, this is a representative form of government; each head of his father’s house was essentially the “governor” or chieftain of the tribe.

b. From Reuben…from Simeon: Twelve tribes are mentioned, but not the tribe of Levi. Yet the number twelve is maintained because from Jacob’s son Joseph, two tribes were established (Ephraim and Manasseh).

i. This was a military census, and the absence of the tribe of Levi among the potential soldiers is important, and will be explained later in the chapter.

ii. Nahshon: This was the head of the house of Judah and he is mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus (Matthew 1:4).

c. These were chosen from the congregation: It is possible — even likely — that the head of his father’s house for each tribe was elected (chosen) by those in the tribe.

d. These are the names of the men: Some find interest in the names of these chosen tribal leaders and the possible meaning of their names (as in Cole and Wenham). In general, the names have a significant and positive spiritual meaning, saying something good about the spiritual life of the Israeli community that left Egypt. These are Hebrew names. believing names; not Egyptian names. Most all the names make reference to God (Elohim).

• From the tribe of Reuben, Elizur — whose name can mean, (My) God Is a Rock.
• From the tribe of Simeon, Shelumiel — whose name can mean, (My) Peace Is God.
• From the tribe of Judah, Nahshon — whose name can mean, (My) People Are Noble.
• From the tribe of Issachar, Nethanel — whose name can mean, Gift of God.
• From the tribe of Zebulun, Eliab — whose name can mean, (My) God Is Father.
• From the tribe of Ephraim, Elishama — whose name can mean, (My) God Hears. This man was the grandfather of Joshua (1 Chronicles 7:26-27).
• From the tribe of Manasseh, Gamaliel — whose name can mean, Reward of God.
• From the tribe of Benjamin, Abidan — whose name can mean, (My) Father Is Judge.
• From the tribe of Dan, Ahiezer — whose name can mean, (My) Brother Is a Helper.
• From the tribe of Asher, Pagiel — whose name can mean, Met by God.
• From the tribe of Gad, Eliasaph — whose name can mean, (My) God Has Added, Multiplied.
• From the tribe of Naphtali, Ahira — whose name can mean, (My) Brother Is Evil.

i. “And they are all excellent good names and very significant; hereby is testified to posterity that they forgat not the name of their God when they were in the iron furnace.” (Trapp)

2. (Numbers 1:17-19) The assembly of the leaders.

Then Moses and Aaron took these men who had been mentioned by name, and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they recited their ancestry by families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, each one individually. As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai.

a. They assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month: This great assembly of the tribal leaders happened thirteen months after Israel came out of Egypt.

b. They recited their ancestry by families: The leaders of each tribe was responsible to count the potential soldiers in their tribe. Then, they gathered to make the report to Moses.

i. They recited their ancestry by families: The concept of ancestry and of families was important to the ancient Israelites; they kept genealogical records with care. Spiritually speaking, we can recite our ancestry, born again into God’s family.

c. Each one individually: Every individual was important to God. This wasn’t just the assembling of a final number, but a specific mention of each individual.

i. God’s guidance to Israel gave attention to both the individual and to the community. Both aspects were important and continue to be important today. Believers take seriously God’s concern for both the individual and the collective.

ii. “Under the New Covenant there is a distribution of grace to every one, an endowment of each according to his faith with priestly and even kingly powers…. [Yet] The commission each receives is not to be a free-lance in the Divine warfare, but to take his right place in the ranks; and that place he must find.” (Watson)

C. The count of the tribes.

1. (Numbers 1:20-21) The Tribe of Reuben: 46,500 potential soldiers.

Now the children of Reuben, Israel’s oldest son, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred.

a. Those who were numbered of the tribe of Reuben were forty-six thousand five hundred: To many, this seems too large a number, and some people wonder if these numbers are accurate and literal.

i. If one estimates that this count of the men for war represents 70% of the total male population, adds an equal number of females, and then adds another 25% for children, the total population of Israel would be between 2 million and 2.5 million.

ii. “This tremendous number, as well as the sizable figures tendered for each individual tribe, has posed the greatest dilemma for biblical interpreters since the Middle Ages. Many modern commentators summarily dismiss these numbers as hyperbolic or fictitious, while others provide a brief history of interpretation. Numerous suggestions have been proffered for comprehending these unbelievable sums.” (Cole)

iii. Cole and Allen mention several different ways these numbers have been understood.

• The census figures are literal and accurate.
• The census figures are literal and accurate but taken from David and Solomon’s time and read back into the history of Israel.
• The numbers have been interpreted as forms of gematria – mathematical calculation based on the Hebrew use of letters for numbers in calculations.
• The census figures are misunderstood because the word “thousands” (elep) may mean a different number or have a different meaning.
• The census figures are symbolic.
• The census figures are deliberate, purposeful exaggerations.
• The census figures have suffered from textual corruption. The original figures were much lower, but later copiers accidentally or purposefully made them larger. This last idea is not supported by any existing manuscripts.

iv. While mindful of the objections, it is best to trust the simple testimony of the Biblical record. Surely God could provide for such a multitude in the wilderness and occasional discrepancies in the record of these numbers is likely due to scribal errors.

b. Forty-six thousand five hundred: Most likely, these numbers are all rounded off to the nearest one hundred (except, for some unknown reason, in the case of the Tribe of Gad).

2. (Numbers 1:22-23) The Tribe of Simeon: 59,300 potential soldiers.

From the children of Simeon, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, of those who were numbered, according to the number of names, every male individually, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

3. (Numbers 1:24-25) The Tribe of Gad: 45,650 potential soldiers.

From the children of Gad, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Gad were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

4. (Numbers 1:26-27) The Tribe of Judah: 74,600 potential soldiers.

From the children of Judah, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Judah were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

5. (Numbers 1:28-29) The Tribe of Issachar: 54,400 potential soldiers.

From the children of Issachar, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Issachar were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

6. (Numbers 1:30-31) The Tribe of Zebulun: 57,400 potential soldiers.

From the children of Zebulun, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

7. (Numbers 1:32-33) The Tribe of Ephraim: 40,500 potential soldiers.

From the sons of Joseph, the children of Ephraim, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand five hundred.

8. (Numbers 1:34-35) The Tribe of Manasseh: 32,200 potential soldiers.

From the children of Manasseh, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were thirty-two thousand two hundred.

9. (Numbers 1:36-37) The Tribe of Benjamin: 35,400 potential soldiers.

From the children of Benjamin, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were thirty-five thousand four hundred.

10. (Numbers 1:38-39) The Tribe of Dan: 62,700 potential soldiers.

From the children of Dan, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Dan were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

11. (Numbers 1:40-41) The Tribe of Asher: 41,500 potential soldiers.

From the children of Asher, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Asher were forty-one thousand five hundred.

12. (Numbers 1:42-43) The Tribe of Naphtali: 53,400 potential soldiers.

From the children of Naphtali, their genealogies by their families, by their fathers’ house, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war: those who were numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were fifty-three thousand four hundred.

13. (Numbers 1:44-46) Summary of the tribes: 603,550 potential soldiers in Israel.

These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each one representing his father’s house. So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and above, all who were able to go to war in Israel — all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.

a. All who were able to go to war in Israel; all who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty: This census was repeated 38 years later, at the end of the book of Numbers. The total number of available soldiers in the second census was almost the same — only a loss of some two thousand. But the count of the individual tribes changed significantly, and there is meaning in what happened to each tribe over the critical 38 years.

b. So all who were numbered of the children of Israel, by their fathers’ houses: In this first census Manasseh was the smallest tribe and Judah was the largest. There were two tribes in the 30 thousands; three in the 40 thousands; four in the 50 thousands; one in the 60 thousands; and one in the 70 thousands.

c. All who were numbered were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty: Based on having 603,550 available soldiers, some estimate the total population of Israel at this time to be between two million and two-and-a-half million people, counting women, children, and others unable to fight.

i. “What an astonishing increase from seventy souls that went down into Egypt, Genesis 46:27, about 215 years before, where latterly they had endured the greatest hardships! But God’s promise cannot fail, (Genesis 16:5) and who can resist his will, and bring to naught his counsel?” (Clarke)

ii. In his commentary, Adam Clarke has an extended section citing Scheuchzer and Reyher, showing how the astounding multiplication of Israel in Egypt was mathematically plausible over four generations.

14. (Numbers 1:47-54) The special case of the tribe of Levi.

But the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe; for the Lord had spoken to Moses, saying: “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, nor take a census of them among the children of Israel; but you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it; they shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they shall attend to it and camp around the tabernacle. And when the tabernacle is to go forward, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall set it up. The outsider who comes near shall be put to death. The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies; but the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.” Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did.

a. But the Levites were not numbered among them: Because this was a census of potential soldiers, the Tribe of Levi was not counted. They alone among the tribes of Israel did not go to war because they had special responsibility to God for the priestly duties of Israel.

b. Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number: We also must see, that as in the case of Levi, there are some things that can’t — or shouldn’t — be counted. Israel had to appreciate that some of the most important things can’t be counted.

i. Taking inventory is fine; even a necessary first step in organizing for victory and taking hold of God’s promises. But it must always be done with the understanding that some of the important factors — as the Levites were in Israel — cannot be counted. No human inventory is totally complete, and God always works mightily through things that can’t be counted.

c. The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard: As Israel camped around the tabernacle, they were ordered according to the plan God revealed in Numbers 2. The place of each camp was marked by a standard, which was likely a flag or a banner.

i. By his own standard: “…each person lining up according to the tribal division or flag (degel). Rabbi Rashi suggested a colored flag according to the color of stone in the high priest’s breastplate (Exodus 28:17–21).”

d. The Levites shall camp around the tabernacle: In the arrangement of the camp of the tribes of Israel, the Levites were immediately surrounding the tabernacle. Anyone from the other tribes of Israel had to go through the camp of the Levites to get to the tabernacle.

i. Shall camp around the tabernacle: “As the living creatures (the ministers) are between the four and twenty eiders, the congregation of the faithful, and the throne. (Revelation 4:4).” (Trapp)

e. Thus the children of Israel did; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so they did: Counting, or taking inventory, is an essential step in organization and moving forward. In preparing to enter the Promised Land Israel had to be organized. God is an organized God and moves through organization, even when that organization is not easily seen. Therefore, it was essential that Israel take inventory and count how many men were ready to fight.

i. God counts things. He counts the stars and has a name for each one (Psalm 147:4; Isaiah 40:26). God even counts and knows the number of hairs on the human head (Matthew 10:30).

ii. “He who counts the stars and calls them all by their names, leaves nothing unarranged in his own service.” (Spurgeon)

© 2021 The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik — ewm@enduringword.com

Updated: August 2022