Numbers 3:40

Numbers 3:40 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord said unto Moses, Number all the firstborn of the males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.
• New International Version (NIV)The Lord said to Moses, “Count all the firstborn Israelite males who are a month old or more and make a list of their names.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the Lord said to Moses, "List all the firstborn males of the people of Israel, from a month old and upward, taking the number of their names.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then the Lord said to Moses: “Number all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and above, and take the number of their names.

Context of Numbers 3:40

38Moses, Aaron and Aaron's sons had to put up their tents in front of the tabernacle, on the east side. They were the only people who could go into the Holy Place in the Tent. Any other person who went near it had to die. 39So Moses and Aaron obeyed the Lord. They counted the Levites by their clans. There were 22,000 males who were one month old or older. The Lord said to Moses, ‘Record all the firstborn sons of the Israelites. Record every male who is one month old or older. Make a list of their names. 41The Israelites' firstborn sons belong to me. I am the Lord. But I will accept all the males among the Levites instead. The Israelites' firstborn animals also belong to me. But I will accept the animals of the Levites instead.’ 42So Moses counted all the firstborn males among the Israelites as the Lord had said.

Numbers 3:40 word by word

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהוָ֜ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה פְּקֹ֨ד כָּל־בְּכֹ֤ר זָכָר֙ לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִבֶּן־חֹ֖דֶשׁ וָמָ֑עְלָה וְשָׂ֕א אֵ֖ת מִסְפַּ֥ר שְׁמֹתָֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
• Numberפָּקַדpâqad · to reckon: listH6485
• all the firstbornבְּכוֹרbekôr · firstbornH1060
• of the malesזָכָרzâkâr · maleH2145
• of the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• from a monthחֹ֫דֶשׁchôdesh · monthH2320
• oldבֵּןbên · son: agedH1121
• and upwardמַ֫עַלma‛al · aboveH4605
• and takeנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: countH5375
• the numberמִסְפָּרmispâr · numberH4557
• of their namesשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034

Cross-references for Numbers 3:40

• Numbers 3:12‘I will not take the firstborn son of every woman in Israel to belong to me. I will take the Levites instead of them.
• Exodus 32:26So Moses stood at the edge of the camp. He said, ‘Everyone who decides to serve the Lord must come here to me.’ Then all the Levites went to stand near Moses.
• Psalms 87:6The Lord will write a list of all their names. For the people from different nations, he will say, ‘This person was born in Zion.’ Selah.
• Isaiah 4:3Everyone who remains in Zion and Jerusalem will be called holy. All their names will be on a list of Jerusalem's people who live there.
• Luke 10:20But do not be happy because you have authority over bad spirits. God has written your names in his book in heaven. That is why you should be happy.’
• Philippians 4:3I ask you too, my true friend, please help these two women to agree together. They have worked with me to tell people the good news. They have worked very hard to help me. They worked together with Clement, and with the other people who helped me in the work. All those workers' names are written in God's book of life.
• 2 Timothy 2:19But the group of true believers remains strong, like the foundation under a building. God has written his message there. It says, ‘The Lord knows who his own people are.’ It also says, ‘Everyone who says that he belongs to the Lord must stop doing bad things.’
• Hebrews 12:23All God's people meet together there. They are like his most important sons. They belong in heaven because God has written down their names. You have come to God himself, who will judge all people. You have come to the place where the spirits of God's people are. Those people have become right with God. God has now finished his work in them.
• Revelation 3:5Everyone who wins against Satan will wear white clothes like they do. I will never remove their names from God's book of life. I will say clearly to my Father and his angels that those people belong to me.
• Revelation 14:4These 144,000 people have kept themselves pure. They have not had sex with women in a wrong way. They follow the Lamb everywhere that he goes. God has saved them from among the people of the world and he has paid for their sins. They are the first people to become a gift to God and to the Lamb.

Commentaries on Numbers 3:40

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 40-51Verses 40-51 The number of the first-born, and that of the Levites, came near to each other. Known unto God are all his works beforehand; there is an exact proportion between them, and so it will appear, when they are compared together. The small number of first-born, over and above the number of the Levites, were to be redeemed, and the redemption-money given to Aaron. The church is called the church of the first-born, which is redeemed, not as they…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 40-51There were 273 more firstborn sons in Israel from the non-Levite tribes than there were Levite males (compare Leviticus 3:39). The Levites acted as substitutes for Israel's firstborn sons (3:41; see study note on 3:11–13). The law required a redemption price of five pieces of silver for each extra firstborn son (Numbers 3:46–48; compare Leviticus 27:6). It is unclear who paid this cost. This arrangement for special substitutes points to Christ’s role as a…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 40-5140-51. Number all the first-born of the males of the children of Israel, &c.--The principle on which the enumeration of the Levites had been made was now to be applied to the other tribes. The number of their male children, from a month old and upward, was to be reckoned, in order that a comparison might be instituted with that of the Levites, for the formal adoption of the latter as substitutes for the first-born. The Levites, amounting to twenty-two…Read the comment

Topics related to Numbers 3:40

• Census
• Firstborn

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Moses
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Children of Israel
• Chief
• Conclude
• Custody
• Encamp
• O

Commentaries on Numbers 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings