Numbers 31
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Christian Standard Bible

Numbers 31:15-40

15“Have you let every female live?” he asked them.

16“Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam’s advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord’s community.

17So now, kill every male among the dependents and kill every woman who has gone to bed with a man,

18but keep alive for yourselves all the young females who have not gone to bed with a man.

19“You are to remain outside the camp for seven days. All of you and your prisoners who have killed a person or touched the dead are to purify yourselves on the third day and the seventh day.

20Also purify everything: garments, leather goods, things made of goat hair, and every article of wood.”

21Then the priest Eleazar said to the soldiers who had gone to battle, “This is the legal statute the Lord commanded Moses:

22The gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead —

23everything that can withstand fire — you are to pass through fire, and it will be clean. It must still be purified with the purification water. Anything that cannot withstand fire, pass through the water.

24On the seventh day wash your clothes, and you will be clean. After that you may enter the camp.”

25The Lord told Moses,

26“You, the priest Eleazar, and the family heads of the community are to take a count of what was captured, people and animals.

27Then divide the captives between the troops who went out to war and the entire community.

28Set aside a tribute for the Lord from what belongs to the fighting men who went out to war: one out of every five hundred people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.

29Take the tribute from their half and give it to the priest Eleazar as a contribution to the Lord.

30From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every fifty from the people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats, all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who perform the duties of the Lord’s tabernacle.”

31So Moses and the priest Eleazar did as the Lord commanded Moses.

32The captives remaining from the plunder the army had taken totaled: 675,000 sheep and goats,

3372,000 cattle,

3461,000 donkeys,

35and 32,000 people, all the females who had not gone to bed with a man.

36The half portion for those who went out to war numbered: 337,500 sheep and goats,

37and the tribute to the Lord was 675 from the sheep and goats;

38from the 36,000 cattle, the tribute to the Lord was 72;

39from the 30,500 donkeys, the tribute to the Lord was 61;

40and from the 16,000 people, the tribute to the Lord was 32 people.

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Commentaries on Numbers 31

Christian Standard Bible — © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers