Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible RHE
New Revised Standard NRS
1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
1
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
2 Revenge first the children of Israel on the Madianites, and so thou shalt be gathered to thy people.
2
"Avenge the Israelites on the Midianites; afterward you shall be gathered to your people."
3 And Moses forthwith said: Arm of you men to fight, who may take the revenge of the Lord on the Madianites.
3
So Moses said to the people, "Arm some of your number for the war, so that they may go against Midian, to execute the Lord's vengeance on Midian.
4 Let a thousand men be chosen out of every tribe of Israel to be sent to the war.
4
You shall send a thousand from each of the tribes of Israel to the war."
5 And they gave a thousand of every tribe, that is to say, twelve thousand men well appointed for battle.
5
So out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand from each tribe were conscripted, twelve thousand armed for battle.
6 And Moses sent them with Phinees the son of Eleazar the priest, and he delivered to him the holy vessels, and the trumpets to sound.
6
Moses sent them to the war, a thousand from each tribe, along with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for sounding the alarm in his hand.
7 And when they had fought against the Madianites and had overcome them, they slew all the men.
7
They did battle against Midian, as the Lord had commanded Moses, and killed every male.
8 And their kings Evi, and Recem, and Sur, and Hur, and Rebe, five princes of the nation: Balaam also the son of Beor they killed with the sword.
8
They killed the kings of Midian: Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian, in addition to others who were slain by them; and they also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword.
9 And they took their women, and their children captives, and all their cattle, and all their goods: and all their possessions they plundered:
9
The Israelites took the women of Midian and their little ones captive; and they took all their cattle, their flocks, and all their goods as booty.
10 And all their cities, and their villages, and castles, they burned.
10
All their towns where they had settled, and all their encampments, they burned,
11 And they carried away the booty, and all that they had taken both of men and of beasts.
11
but they took all the spoil and all the booty, both people and animals.
12 And they brought them to Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and to all the multitude of the children of Israel. But the rest of the things for use they carried to the camp on the plains of Moab, beside the Jordan over against Jericho.
12
Then they brought the captives and the booty and the spoil to Moses, to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of the Israelites, at the camp on the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.
13 And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the princes of the synagogue went forth to meet them without the camp.
13
Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the congregation went to meet them outside the camp.
14 And Moses being angry with the chief officers of the army, the tribunes, and the centurions that were come from the battle,
14
Moses became angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, who had come from service in the war.
15 Said: Why have you saved the women?
15
Moses said to them, "Have you allowed all the women to live?
16 Are not these they, that deceived the children of Israel by the counsel of Balaam, and made you transgress against the Lord by the sin of Phogor, for which also the people was punished?
16
These women here, on Balaam's advice, made the Israelites act treacherously against the Lord in the affair of Peor, so that the plague came among the congregation of the Lord.
17 Therefore kill all that are of the male sex, even of the children: and put to death the women, that have carnally known men.
17
Now therefore, kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known a man by sleeping with him.
18 But the girls, and all the women that are virgins save for yourselves:
18
But all the young girls who have not known a man by sleeping with him, keep alive for yourselves.
19 And stay without the camp seven days. He that hath killed a man, or touched one that is killed, shall be purified the third day and the seventh day.
19
Camp outside the camp seven days; whoever of you has killed any person or touched a corpse, purify yourselves and your captives on the third and on the seventh day.
20 And of all the spoil, every garment, or vessel, or any thing made for use, of the skins, or hair of goats, or of wood, shall be purified.
20
You shall purify every garment, every article of skin, everything made of goats' hair, and every article of wood."
21 Eleazar also the priest spoke to the men of the army, that had fought, in this manner: This is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord hath commanded Moses:
21
Eleazar the priest said to the troops who had gone to battle: "This is the statute of the law that the Lord has commanded Moses:
22 Gold, and silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin,
22
gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—
23 And all that may pass through the fire, shall be purified by fire, but whatsoever cannot abide the fire, shall be sanctified with the water of expiation:
23
everything that can withstand fire, shall be passed through fire, and it shall be clean. Nevertheless it shall also be purified with the water for purification; and whatever cannot withstand fire, shall be passed through the water.
24 And you shall wash your garments the seventh day, and being purified, you shall afterwards enter into the camp.
24
You must wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be clean; afterward you may come into the camp."
25 And the Lord said to Moses:
25
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
26 Take the sum of the things that were taken both of man and beast, thou and Eleazar the priest and the princes of the multitude:
26
"You and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the ancestral houses of the congregation make an inventory of the booty captured, both human and animal.
27 And thou shalt divide the spoil equally, between them that fought and went out to the war, and between the rest of the multitude.
27
Divide the booty into two parts, between the warriors who went out to battle and all the congregation.
28 And thou shalt separate a portion to the Lord from them that fought and were in the battle, one soul of five hundred as well of persons as of oxen and asses and sheep.
28
From the share of the warriors who went out to battle, set aside as tribute for the Lord, one item out of every five hundred, whether persons, oxen, donkeys, sheep, or goats.
29 And thou shalt give it to Eleazar the priest, because they are the firstfruits of the Lord.
29
Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the Lord.
30 Out of the moiety also of the children of Israel thou shalt take the fiftieth head of persons, and of oxen, and asses, and sheep, and of all beasts, and thou shalt give them to the Levites that watch in the charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.
30
But from the Israelites' half you shall take one out of every fifty, whether persons, oxen, donkeys, sheep, or goats—all the animals—and give them to the Levites who have charge of the tabernacle of the Lord."
31 And Moses and Eleazar did as the Lord had commanded.
31
Then Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord had commanded Moses:
32 And the spoil which the army had taken, was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep,
32
The booty remaining from the spoil that the troops had taken totaled six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep,
33 Seventy-two thousand oxen,
33
seventy-two thousand oxen,
34 Sixty-one thousand asses:
34
sixty-one thousand donkeys,
35 And thirty-two thousand persons of the female sex, that had not known men.
35
and thirty-two thousand persons in all, women who had not known a man by sleeping with him.
36 And one half was given to them that had been in the battle, to wit, three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep:
36
The half-share, the portion of those who had gone out to war, was in number three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep and goats,
37 Out of which, for the portion of the Lord, were reckoned six hundred seventy five sheep.
37
and the Lord's tribute of sheep and goats was six hundred seventy-five.
38 And out of the thirty-six thousand oxen, seventy-two oxen:
38
The oxen were thirty-six thousand, of which the Lord's tribute was seventy-two.
39 Out of the thirty thousand five hundred asses, sixty-one asses:
39
The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which the Lord's tribute was sixty-one.
40 Out of the sixteen thousand persons, there fell to the portion of the Lord, thirty-two souls.
40
The persons were sixteen thousand, of which the Lord's tribute was thirty-two persons.
41 And Moses delivered the number of the firstfruits of the Lord to Eleazar the priest, as had been commanded him,
41
Moses gave the tribute, the offering for the Lord, to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
42 Out of the half of the children of Israel, which he had separated for them that had been in the battle.
42
As for the Israelites' half, which Moses separated from that of the troops,
43 But out of the half that fell to the rest of the multitude, that is to say, out of the three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,
43
the congregation's half was three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep and goats,
44 And out of the thirty-six thousand oxen,
44
thirty-six thousand oxen,
45 And out of the thirty thousand five hundred asses,
45
thirty thousand five hundred donkeys,
46 And out of the sixteen thousand persons,
46
and sixteen thousand persons.
47 Moses took the fiftieth head, and gave it to the Levites that watched in the tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord had commanded.
47
From the Israelites' half Moses took one of every fifty, both of persons and of animals, and gave them to the Levites who had charge of the tabernacle of the Lord; as the Lord had commanded Moses.
48 And when the commanders of the army, and the tribunes and centurions were come to Moses, they said:
48
Then the officers who were over the thousands of the army, the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, approached Moses,
49 We thy servants have reckoned up the number of the fighting men, whom we had under our hand, and not so much as one was wanting.
49
and said to Moses, "Your servants have counted the warriors who are under our command, and not one of us is missing.
50 Therefore we offer as gifts to the Lord what gold every one of us could find in the booty, in garters and tablets, rings and bracelets, and chains, that thou mayst pray to the Lord for us.
50
And we have brought the Lord's offering, what each of us found, articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and pendants, to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord."
51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest received all the gold in divers kinds,
51
Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from them, all in the form of crafted articles.
52 In weight sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty sicles, from the tribunes and from the centurions.
52
And all the gold of the offering that they offered to the Lord, from the commanders of thousands and the commanders of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels.
53 For that which every one had taken in the booty was his own.
53
(The troops had all taken plunder for themselves.)
54 And that which was received they brought into the tabernacle of the testimony, for a memorial of the children of Israel before the Lord.
54
So Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tent of meeting as a memorial for the Israelites before the Lord.
The Douay-Rheims Bible is in the public domain.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.