The mustering of the tribes described in this chapter was immediately preparatory to the war against Midian, and to the invasion of Canaan wbich shortly followed. With a view also to an equitable allotment of the land to be conquered (compare Numbers 26:54) the numbers of the several tribes were taken according to their families.

1And it came to pass after the plague, that the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying,

After the plague - These words serve to show approximately the date at which the census was taken, and intimate the reason for the great decrease in numbers which was found to have taken place in certain tribes. Compare Deuteronomy 4:3 and Numbers 26:5 note in this chapter.

2Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, throughout their fathers' house, all that are able to go to war in Israel.

3And Moses and Eleazar the priest spake with them in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,

4Take the sum of the people, from twenty years old and upward; as the LORD commanded Moses and the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt.

5Reuben, the eldest son of Israel: the children of Reuben; Hanoch, of whom cometh the family of the Hanochites: of Pallu, the family of the Palluites:

Following The tribes are mentioned in the same order as in the earlier census Numbers 1, except that Manasseh here precedes Ephraim; probably as being now the larger tribe.

The following table shows the numbers of the tribes at each census; at Sinai, and in the Plains of Moab:

At Sinai Plains of Moab Reuben 46,500 43,730 Simeon 9,300 22,200 Gad 45,650 40,500 Judah 74,600 76,500 Issachar 54,400 64,300 Zebulun 57,400 60,500 Ephraim 40,500 32,500 Manasseh 32,200 52,700 Benjamin 35,400 45,600 Daniel 62,700 64,400 Asher 41,500 53,400 Naphtali 53,400 45,400 Totals 603, 550 601, 730

Seven of the tribes, of which three are tribes belonging to the camp of Judah, show an increase of numbers; and five, among whom are the three belonging to the camp of Reuben, show a decrease. The greatest increase of any one tribe is in Manasseh. The most remarkable decrease is in Simeon, which now shows less than half its former strength. To this tribe Zimri, the chief offender in the recent transgression, belonged Numbers 25:14. Probably his tribesmen generally had followed his example, and had accordingly suffered most severely in the plague. In the parting blessing of Moses, uttered at no great interval from this date, the tribe of Simeon alone is omitted.

The families of all the tribes, excluding the Levites, number 57. The ancestral heads after whom these families are named correspond nearly with the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Jacob, enumerated in Genesis 46:8 ff. Both lists consist mainly of grandchildren of Jacob, both contain also the same two grandchildren of Judah, and the same two grandchildren of Asher. The document in Genesis should be regarded as a list, not of those who went down in their own persons with Jacob into Egypt, but of those whose names were transmitted to their posterity at the date of the Exodus as the heads of Israelite houses, and wire may thus be reckoned the early ancestors of the people.

6Of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Carmi, the family of the Carmites.

7These are the families of the Reubenites: and they that were numbered of them were forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty.

8And the sons of Pallu; Eliab.

9And the sons of Eliab; Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, which were famous in the congregation, who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah, when they strove against the LORD:

10And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died, what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men: and they became a sign.

Together with Korah - i. e., they were engulfed at the same time that Korah perished, for Korah himself appears to bare died among the two hundred and fifty incense offerers at the door of the tabernacle, not with Dathan and Abiram (compare Numbers 16:32 note).

11Notwithstanding the children of Korah died not.

The children of Korah died not - Compare Numbers 26:58. Samuel the prophet was of this family, and Heman, "the king's seer" 1 Chronicles 6:22, 1 Chronicles 6:33; 1 Chronicles 25:5. Several of the Psalms appear from the titles to have been composed for the sons of Korah: compare titles of Psalm 42:1-11; 44; 45, etc.

12The sons of Simeon after their families: of Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites: of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites: of Jachin, the family of the Jachinites:

13Of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites: of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites.

14These are the families of the Simeonites, twenty and two thousand and two hundred.

15The children of Gad after their families: of Zephon, the family of the Zephonites: of Haggi, the family of the Haggites: of Shuni, the family of the Shunites:

16Of Ozni, the family of the Oznites: of Eri, the family of the Erites:

17Of Arod, the family of the Arodites: of Areli, the family of the Arelites.

18These are the families of the children of Gad according to those that were numbered of them, forty thousand and five hundred.

19The sons of Judah were Er and Onan: and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.

20And the sons of Judah after their families were; of Shelah, the family of the Shelanites: of Pharez, the family of the Pharzites: of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites.

21And the sons of Pharez were; of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites.

22These are the families of Judah according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and sixteen thousand and five hundred.

23Of the sons of Issachar after their families: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites: of Pua, the family of the Punites:

24Of Jashub, the family of the Jashubites: of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites.

25These are the families of Issachar according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and four thousand and three hundred.

26Of the sons of Zebulun after their families: of Sered, the family of the Sardites: of Elon, the family of the Elonites: of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites.

27These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those that were numbered of them, threescore thousand and five hundred.

28The sons of Joseph after their families were Manasseh and Ephraim.

29Of the sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the family of the Machirites: and Machir begat Gilead: of Gilead come the family of the Gileadites.

30These are the sons of Gilead: of Jeezer, the family of the Jeezerites: of Helek, the family of the Helekites:

31And of Asriel, the family of the Asrielites: and of Shechem, the family of the Shechemites:

32And of Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites: and of Hepher, the family of the Hepherites.

33And Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

34These are the families of Manasseh, and those that were numbered of them, fifty and two thousand and seven hundred.

35These are the sons of Ephraim after their families: of Shuthelah, the family of the Shuthalhites: of Becher, the family of the Bachrites: of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites.

36And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites.

37These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those that were numbered of them, thirty and two thousand and five hundred. These are the sons of Joseph after their families.

38The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites: of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites: of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites:

39Of Shupham, the family of the Shuphamites: of Hupham, the family of the Huphamites.

40And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: of Ard, the family of the Ardites: and of Naaman, the family of the Naamites.

41These are the sons of Benjamin after their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and six hundred.

42These are the sons of Dan after their families: of Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan after their families.

43All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those that were numbered of them, were threescore and four thousand and four hundred.

44Of the children of Asher after their families: of Jimna, the family of the Jimnites: of Jesui, the family of the Jesuites: of Beriah, the family of the Beriites.

45Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites: of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites.

46And the name of the daughter of Asher was Sarah.

47These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those that were numbered of them; who were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.

48Of the sons of Naphtali after their families: of Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites: of Guni, the family of the Gunites:

49Of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites: of Shillem, the family of the Shillemites.

50These are the families of Naphtali according to their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and four hundred.

51These were the numbered of the children of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty.

This shows a decrease of 1,820 from the number at Sinai; a decrease due to the recent plague.

52And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

53Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names.

54To many thou shalt give the more inheritance, and to few thou shalt give the less inheritance: to every one shall his inheritance be given according to those that were numbered of him.

55Notwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.

56According to the lot shall the possession thereof be divided between many and few.

According to the lot ... - This method was adopted not only in order to preclude jealousies and disputes, but also that the several tribes might regard the territories as determined for them by God Himself: compare Proverbs 16:33.

57And these are they that were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites: of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites: of Merari, the family of the Merarites.

58These are the families of the Levites: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, the family of the Korathites. And Kohath begat Amram.

59And the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bare to Levi in Egypt: and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister.

whom her mother bare - literally, "whom she bare;" the subject is wanting, and the verb is in the feminine gender. The words "her mother" are merely conjectural. The text is probably imperfect.

60And unto Aaron was born Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

61And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD.

62And those that were numbered of them were twenty and three thousand, all males from a month old and upward: for they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel.

The total number of male Levites, 23,000, shows an increase of 1,000 on the number at Sinai Numbers 3:39. It is doubtless to be taken as a round number; and, as before, includes the male children from a month old and upward, as well as the male adults.

63These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho.

64But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.

It appears from Deuteronomy 2:14-15 that the generation numbered at the former census had perished before the host crossed the brook Zered.

65For the LORD had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.