Numbers 31:28

Numbers 31:28 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:
• New International Version (NIV)From the soldiers who fought in the battle, set apart as tribute for the Lord one out of every five hundred, whether people, cattle, donkeys or sheep.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And levy for the Lord a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one out of five hundred, of the people and of the oxen and of the donkeys and of the flocks.
• New Living Translation (NLT)From the army’s portion, first give the Lord his share of the plunder—one of every 500 of the prisoners and of the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.

Context of Numbers 31:28

26“Count up the plunder that was taken—of man and beast—you and Eleazar the priest and the chief fathers of the congregation; 27and divide the plunder into two parts, between those who took part in the war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation. And levy a tribute for the Lord on the men of war who went out to battle: one of every five hundred of the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep; 29take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest as a heave offering to the Lord. 30And from the children of Israel’s half you shall take one of every fifty, drawn from the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep, from all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.”

Numbers 31:28 word by word

וַהֲרֵמֹתָ֨ מֶ֜כֶס לַֽיהוָ֗ה מֵאֵ֞ת אַנְשֵׁ֤י הַמִּלְחָמָה֙ הַיֹּצְאִ֣ים לַצָּבָ֔א אֶחָ֣ד נֶ֔פֶשׁ מֵחֲמֵ֖שׁ הַמֵּא֑וֹת מִן־הָאָדָם֙ וּמִן־הַבָּקָ֔ר וּמִן־הַחֲמֹרִ֖ים וּמִן־הַצֹּֽאן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And levyרוּםrûm · to exaltH7311
• a tributeמֶ֫כֶסmekes · tributeH4371
• unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• of the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• of warמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
• which went outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• to battleצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · army: warH6635
• oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
• soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: personH5315
• of fiveחָמֵשׁchâmêsh chămishshâh · fiveH2568
• hundredמֵאָהmê'âh mê'yâh · hundredH3967
• of the personsאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• and of the beevesבָּקָרbâqâr · cattleH1241
• and of the assesחֲמוֹרchămôr chămôr · donkeyH2543
• and of the sheepצֹאןtsô'n tse'ôn · flockH6629

Cross-references for Numbers 31:28

• Genesis 14:20And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all.
• Joshua 6:19But all the silver and gold, and vessels of bronze and iron, are consecrated to the Lord; they shall come into the treasury of the Lord.”
• 2 Samuel 8:11King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued—
• 1 Chronicles 18:11King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold that he had brought from all these nations—from Edom, from Moab, from the people of Ammon, from the Philistines, and from Amalek.
• 1 Chronicles 26:26This Shelomith and his brethren were over all the treasuries of the dedicated things which King David and the heads of fathers’ houses, the captains over thousands and hundreds, and the captains of the army, had dedicated.
• Proverbs 3:9Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
• Isaiah 18:7In that time a present will be brought to the Lord of hosts From a people tall and smooth of skin, And from a people terrible from their beginning onward, A nation powerful and treading down, Whose land the rivers divide— To the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, To Mount Zion.
• Isaiah 23:18Her gain and her pay will be set apart for the Lord; it will not be treasured nor laid up, for her gain will be for those who dwell before the Lord, to eat sufficiently, and for fine clothing.
• Isaiah 60:9Surely the coastlands shall wait for Me; And the ships of Tarshish will come first, To bring your sons from afar, Their silver and their gold with them, To the name of the Lord your God, And to the Holy One of Israel, Because He has glorified you.
• Matthew 22:21They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
• Numbers 31:30And from the children of Israel’s half you shall take one of every fifty, drawn from the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep, from all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.”
• Numbers 18:26“Speak thus to the Levites, and say to them: ‘When you take from the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them as your inheritance, then you shall offer up a heave offering of it to the Lord, a tenth of the tithe.

Commentaries on Numbers 31:28

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 28And levy a tribute unto the Lord - one soul of five hundred, etc. - The person to be employed in the Lord's service, under the Levites - the cattle either for sacrifice, or for the use of the Levites, Numbers 31:30. Some monsters have supposed that one out of every five hundred of the captives was offered in sacrifice to the Lord! but this is abominable. When God chose to have the life of a man, he took it in the way of justice, as in the case of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 25-47Verses 25-47 Whatever we have, God justly claims a part. Out of the people's share God required one in fifty, but out of the soldiers' share only one in five hundred. The less opportunity we have of honouring God with personal services, the more should we give in money or value.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25-31They divided the plunder into two equal parts. Half went to those who fought against the Midianites and half to the Israelites who stayed behind (compare 1 Samuel 30:21–25). In this way, everyone participated in the conflict. Yet, the smaller group of soldiers each received a larger portion than the much larger group who stayed behind.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 25-3925-39. Take the sum of the prey that was taken--that is, of the captives and cattle, which, having been first lumped together according to ancient usage (Ex 15:9; Jud 5:30), were divided into two equal parts: the one to the people at large, who had sustained a common injury from the Midianites and who were all liable to serve: and the other portion to the combatants, who, having encountered the labors and perils of war, justly received the largest share…Read the comment

Topics related to Numbers 31:28

• Armies
• Priest
• Servant
• Spoils

In the dictionaries

• Beeves
• Booty
• Prey
• Purify
• Abel-Shittim
• Balaam
• Moses
• Numbers, Book of
• Person, Personality
• Slave; Slavery

Commentaries on Numbers 31

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings