New Living Translation
Numbers 5:3
3This command applies to men and women alike. Remove them so they will not defile the camp in which I live among them.”
Numbers 5:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Both male and female shall ye put out, without the camp shall ye put them; that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell.
- New International Version (NIV)Send away male and female alike; send them outside the camp so they will not defile their camp, where I dwell among them.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)You shall put out both male and female, putting them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camp, in the midst of which I dwell."
- New King James Version (NKJV)You shall put out both male and female; you shall put them outside the camp, that they may not defile their camps in the midst of which I dwell.”
Context of Numbers 5:3
1The Lord gave these instructions to Moses: 2“Command the people of Israel to remove from the camp anyone who has a skin disease or a discharge, or who has become ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person. This command applies to men and women alike. Remove them so they will not defile the camp in which I live among them.” 4So the Israelites did as the Lord had commanded Moses and removed such people from the camp. 5Then the Lord said to Moses,
Read all of Numbers 5Numbers 5:3 word by word
מִזָּכָ֤ר עַד־נְקֵבָה֙ תְּשַׁלֵּ֔חוּ אֶל־מִח֥וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֖ה תְּשַׁלְּח֑וּם וְלֹ֤א יְטַמְּאוּ֙ אֶת־מַ֣חֲנֵיהֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֲנִ֖י שֹׁכֵ֥ן בְּתוֹכָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Both maleזָכָרzâkâr · maleH2145
- and femaleנְקֵבָהneqêbâh · femaleH5347
- shall ye put outשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- withoutחוּץchûts chûts · outsideH2351
- the campמַחֲנֶהmachăneh · campH4264
- them; that they defileטָמֵאţâmê' · to defileH2930
- in the midstתָּ֫וֶךְtâvek · midstH8432
- whereofאֲשֶׁר'ăsher · whichH834
- I dwellשָׁכַןshâkan · to dwellH7931
Cross-references for Numbers 5:3
- 1 Kings 7:3The hall had a cedar roof. Above the beams on the pillars were forty-five side rooms, arranged in three tiers of fifteen each.
- 1 Corinthians 5:13God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”
- 2 Corinthians 6:17Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord. Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.
- 2 Thessalonians 3:6And now, dear brothers and sisters, we give you this command in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: Stay away from all believers who live idle lives and don’t follow the tradition they received from us.
- Hebrews 12:15Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.
- 2 John 1:10If anyone comes to your meeting and does not teach the truth about Christ, don’t invite that person into your home or give any kind of encouragement.
- Revelation 21:27Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
- Numbers 19:22Anything and anyone that a defiled person touches will be ceremonially unclean until evening.”
- Haggai 2:13Then Haggai asked, “If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?” And the priests answered, “Yes.”
- Leviticus 26:11I will live among you, and I will not despise you.
- Deuteronomy 23:14The camp must be holy, for the Lord your God moves around in your camp to protect you and to defeat your enemies. He must not see any shameful thing among you, or he will turn away from you.
- Psalms 68:18When you ascended to the heights, you led a crowd of captives. You received gifts from the people, even from those who rebelled against you. Now the Lord God will live among us there.
- Isaiah 12:6Let all the people of Jerusalem shout his praise with joy! For great is the Holy One of Israel who lives among you.”
- 2 Corinthians 6:16And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
- Revelation 21:3I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.
Commentaries on Numbers 5:3
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-4Verses 1-4 The general purpose of the directions given in this and the next chapter is to attest and to vindicate, by modes in harmony with the spirit of the theocratical law, the sanctity of the people of God. Thus, the congregation of Israel was made to typify the Church of God, within which, in its perfection, nothing that offends can be allowed to remain (compare Matthew 8:22; Revelation 21:27). The general purpose of the directions given in this and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-4Modern Western people may find it difficult to understand the Old Testament laws of purity. Today, things like skin diseases, bodily discharges, or contact with a dead body are viewed mainly as health concerns. But in the Old Testament, the main concern was protecting God’s holiness from ceremonial uncleanness (see Leviticus 11–15). The community had to keep the camp holy. Nothing unclean could touch what belonged to the Lord (Numbers 5:2–3). They had to…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-42. Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper--The exclusion of leprous persons from the camp in the wilderness, as from cities and villages afterwards, was a sanitary measure taken according to prescribed rules (Le 13:1-14:57). This exclusion of lepers from society has been acted upon ever since; and it affords almost the only instance in which any kind of attention is paid in the East to the prevention of contagion. The…Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 5:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 5
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries