Numbers 1:1-46

The Census of Israel's Warriors

1 Then the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on ¹the first of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying,

2 "²Take a ^[a]census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, every male, head by head

3 from ³twenty years old and upward, whoever is able to go out to war in Israel, you and Aaron shall ^[b]number them by their armies.

4 "With you, moreover, there shall be a man of each tribe, ⁴each one head of his father's household.

5 "These then are the names of the men who shall stand with you: ⁵of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur;

6 of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai;

7 of Judah, ⁶Nahshon the son of Amminadab;

8 of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar;

9 of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon;

10 of the sons of Joseph: of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur;

11 of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni;

12 of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai;

13 of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran;

14 of Gad, Eliasaph the son of ⁷Deuel;

15 of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.

16 "These are they who were ⁸called of the congregation, the leaders of their fathers' tribes; they were the ⁹heads of ^[c]divisions of Israel."

17 So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name,

18 and they assembled all the congregation together on the ¹⁰first of the second month. Then they registered by ¹¹ancestry in their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, head by head,

19 just as ¹²the LORD had commanded Moses. So he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.

20 ¹³Now the sons of Reuben, Israel's firstborn, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

21 their numbered men of the tribe of Reuben were 46,500 * * * *.

22 ¹⁴Of the sons of Simeon, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, their numbered men, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, ¹⁵whoever was able to go out to war,

23 their numbered men of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300 * * * *.

24 ¹⁶Of the sons of Gad, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

25 their numbered men of the tribe of Gad were 45,650 * * * *.

26 ¹⁷Of the sons of Judah, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

27 their numbered men of the tribe of Judah were 74,600 * * *.

28 ¹⁸Of the sons of Issachar, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

29 their numbered men of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400 * * *.

30 ¹⁹Of the sons of Zebulun, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

31 their numbered men of the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400 * * * *.

32 ²⁰Of the sons of Joseph, namely, of the sons of Ephraim, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

33 their numbered men of the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500 * * *.

34 ²¹Of the sons of Manasseh, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

35 their numbered men of the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200 * * *.

36 ²²Of the sons of Benjamin, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

37 their numbered men of the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400 * * * *.

38 ²³Of the sons of Dan, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

39 their numbered men of the tribe of Dan were 62,700 * * * *.

40 ²⁴Of the sons of Asher, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

41 their numbered men of the tribe of Asher were 41,500 * * * *.

42 ²⁵Of the sons of Naphtali, their genealogical registration by their families, by their fathers' households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war,

43 their numbered men of the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400 * * * *.

44 These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, with the leaders of Israel, twelve * men, each of whom was of his father's household.

45 So all the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers' households, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go out to war in Israel,

46 even all the numbered men were ²⁶ 603,550 * * * * * * *.

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Numbers 1:1-46 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS

This book has its name from the account it gives of the "numbers" of the children of Israel, twice taken particularly; which name it has with this Greeks and Latins, and so with the Syriac and Arabic versions; but with the Jews it is called sometimes "Vajedabber", from the first word of it, "and the Lord spake"; and sometimes "Bemidbar", from the fifth word of the first verse, "in the wilderness", and sometimes "Sepher Pikkudim"; or, as with Origen {a}, "Ammesphkodim", the book of musters or surveys. That it was written by Moses is not to be doubted; and is indeed suggested by our Lord himself, Joh 5:46 compared with Nu 3:14, and the references to it, in the New Testament, fully ascertain to us Christians the authenticity of it, as that of our Lord hinted at, and those of the apostle in 1Co 10:4, Heb 9:13,14. It contains an history of the affairs of the Israelites, and of their travel in the wilderness for the space of thirty eight years; though the principal facts it relates were done in the second year of their coming out of Egypt, and in the last of their being in the wilderness; and it is not merely historical, but gives a particular account of several laws, ceremonial and judicial, to be observed by the people of Israel, as well as has many things in it very instructive, both of a moral and evangelical nature.

\\INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 1\\

In this chapter orders are given to Moses to take the number of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upwards, Nu 1:1-3; and the men that were to assist in this work, one of each tribe are mentioned by name, Nu 1:4-16; all which was accordingly done, Nu 1:17-19; and the particular numbers of each tribe are recorded, as they were taken, Nu 1:20-44; and the sum total is given, Nu 1:45,46; the Levites being excepted, who were employed about the tabernacle, and so not to be employed in military service, Nu 1:47-51; they encamped about that, while the Israelites pitched their tents every man by his own camp and standard, Nu 1:52-54.

{a} Apud Euseb. Hist. Ecclesiast. l. 6. c. 25.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible