Numbers 31 :: Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)

Vengeance on Midian

Then Yahweh^H3068 spoke^H1696 to Moses^H4872, saying^H559,

Num 31:2“Take full vengeance for the sons of Israel on the Midianites; afterward you will be gathered to your people.”

Num 31:3And Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may [fn]go against Midian to execute Yahweh’s vengeance on Midian.

Num 31:4

Num 31:4“One thousand from each tribe of all the tribes of Israel you shall send to the war.”

Num 31:5

Num 31:5So there were [fn]furnished from the thousands of Israel, one thousand from each tribe, twelve thousand armed for war.

Num 31:6

Num 31:6And Moses sent them, one thousand from each tribe, to the war, and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war with them, and the holy vessels and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand.

Num 31:7

Num 31:7So they made war against Midian, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses, and they killed every male.

Num 31:8

Num 31:8They killed the kings of Midian along with the rest of their slain: Evi and Rekem and Zur and Hur and Reba, the five kings of Midian; they also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword.

Num 31:9

Num 31:9And the sons of Israel captured the women of Midian and their little ones; and all their cattle and all their flocks and all their goods they plundered.

Num 31:10

Num 31:10Then they burned all their cities where they lived and all their camps with fire.

Num 31:11

Num 31:11And they took all the spoil and all the loot, both of man and of beast.

Num 31:12

Num 31:12And they brought the captives and the loot and the spoil to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the congregation of the sons of Israel, to the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan opposite Jericho.

Num 31:13

And Moses^H4872 and Eleazar^H499 the priest^H3548 and all^H3605 the leaders^H5387 of the congregation^H5712 went^H3318 out^H3318 to meet^H7122 them outside^H413^H4480^H2351 the camp^H4264.

Num 31:14

Num 31:14And Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, who had come from service in the war.

Num 31:15

Num 31:15So Moses said to them, “Have you [fn]spared all the women?

Num 31:16

Num 31:16“Behold, these [fn]caused the sons of Israel, through the word of Balaam, to [fn]act unfaithfully against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, so the plague was among the congregation of Yahweh.

Num 31:17

Num 31:17“So now, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man [fn]intimately.

Num 31:18

Num 31:18“But all the [fn]girls who have not known man [fn]intimately, [fn]spare for yourselves.

Num 31:19

Num 31:19“And you, camp outside the camp seven days; whoever has killed any person and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves, you and your captives, on the third day and on the seventh day.

Num 31:20

Num 31:20“And you shall purify for yourselves every garment and every article of [fn]leather and all the work of goats’ hair and all articles of wood.”

Num 31:21

Then Eleazar^H499 the priest^H3548 said^H559 to the men^H376 of war^H6635 who had gone^H935 to battle^H4421, “This^H2088 is the statute^H2708 of the law^H8451 which^H834 Yahweh^H3068 has commanded^H6680 Moses^H4872:

Num 31:22

Num 31:22only the gold and the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin and the lead,

Num 31:23

Num 31:23everything that can stand the fire, you shall pass through the fire, and it shall be clean, but it shall be purified with water for impurity. But whatever cannot stand the fire you shall pass through the water.

Num 31:24

Num 31:24“And you shall wash your clothes on the seventh day and be clean, and afterward you may enter the camp.”

Division of the Loot

Num 31:25

Then Yahweh^H3068 spoke^H559 to Moses^H4872, saying^H559,

Num 31:26

Num 31:26“You and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the fathers’ households of the congregation take a count of the loot [fn]that was captured, both of man and of animal;

Num 31:27

Num 31:27and divide the loot between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation.

Num 31:28

Num 31:28“And you shall exact a levy for Yahweh from the men of war who went out to battle, one [fn]in five hundred of the persons and of the cattle and of the donkeys and of the sheep;

Num 31:29

Num 31:29take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest, as a [fn]contribution to Yahweh.

Num 31:30

Num 31:30“And from the sons of Israel’s half, you shall take one drawn out of every fifty of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the sheep, from all the animals, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of Yahweh.”

Num 31:31

Num 31:31Moses and Eleazar the priest did just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.

Num 31:32

Now the loot^H4455 that remained^H1961^H3499 from the plunder^H957 which^H834 the [fn]men^H5971 of war^H6635 had plundered^H962 was 675,000^H8337^H3967^H505^H7657^H505^H2568^H505 sheep^H6629,

Num 31:33

Num 31:33and 72,000 cattle,

Num 31:34

Num 31:34and 61,000 donkeys,

Num 31:35

Num 31:35and of human beings, of the women who had not known man [fn]intimately, all the persons were 32,000.

Num 31:36

And the half^H4275, the portion^H2506 of those who went^H3318 out^H3318 to war^H6635, was as follows: the number^H4557 of sheep^H6629 was 337,500^H7969^H3967^H505^H7970^H505^H7651^H505^H2568^H3967;

Num 31:37

Num 31:37and the levy of Yahweh from the sheep was 675;

Num 31:38

Num 31:38and the cattle were 36,000, from which the levy of Yahweh was 72;

Num 31:39

Num 31:39and the donkeys were 30,500, from which the levy of Yahweh was 61;

Num 31:40

Num 31:40and the human beings were 16,000, from whom the levy of Yahweh was 32 persons.

Num 31:41

Num 31:41And Moses gave the levy, which was the contribution to Yahweh, to Eleazar the priest, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.

Num 31:42

As for the sons^H1121 of Israel’s^H3478 half^H4276, which^H834 Moses^H4872 [fn]separated^H2673 from the men^H376 who had gone^H6633 to^H6633 war^H6633—

Num 31:43

Num 31:43now the congregation’s half was 337,500 sheep,

Num 31:44

Num 31:44and 36,000 cattle,

Num 31:45

Num 31:45and 30,500 donkeys,

Num 31:46

Num 31:46and the human beings were 16,000—

Num 31:47

Num 31:47and from the sons of Israel’s half, Moses took one drawn out of every fifty, both of man and of animals, and gave them to the Levites, who kept the responsibility of the tabernacle of Yahweh, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.

Num 31:48

Then the officers^H6485 who^H834 were over the thousands^H505 of the army^H6635, the commanders^H8269 of thousands^H505 and the commanders^H8269 of hundreds^H3967, came^H7126 near^H7126 to Moses^H4872,

Num 31:49

Num 31:49and they said to Moses, “Your servants have taken a census of men of war who are in our charge, and no man of us is missing.

Num 31:50

Num 31:50“So we have brought near as an offering to Yahweh what each man found—articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings and necklaces—to make atonement for ourselves before Yahweh.”

Num 31:51

Num 31:51And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, all kinds of crafted articles.

Num 31:52

Num 31:52And all the gold from the contribution offering which they raised up in offering to Yahweh, from the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, was 16,750 [fn]shekels.

Num 31:53

Num 31:53The men of war had taken plunder, every man for himself.

Num 31:54

Num 31:54So Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and they brought it to the tent of meeting as a memorial for the sons of Israel before Yahweh.