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NUM B ER S 32
page 153
purified with the water of purification. But
everything that burns must be purified by the
water alone. 24 On the seventh day you must
wash your clothes and be purified. Then you
may return to the camp.”
Division of the Plunder
25 And the Lord said to Moses, 26 “You and Eleazar the priest and the family leaders of each
tribe are to make a list of all the plunder taken
in the battle, including the people and animals.
27 Then divide the plunder into two parts, and
give half to the men who fought the battle and
half to the rest of the people. 28 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. 29 Give
this share of the army’s half to Eleazar the priest
as an offering to the Lord. 30 From the half that
belongs to the people of Israel, take one of every
fifty of the prisoners and of the cattle, donkeys,
sheep, goats, and other animals. Give this share
to the Levites, who are in charge of maintaining
the Lord’s Tabernacle.” 31 So Moses and Eleazar
the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.
32 The plunder remaining from everything the
fighting men had taken totaled 675,000 sheep
and goats, 33 72,000 cattle, 34 61,000 donkeys,
35 and 32,000 virgin girls.
36 Half of the plunder was given to the fighting men. It totaled 337,500 sheep and goats, 37 of
which 675 were the Lord’s share; 38 36,000 cattle,
of which 72 were the Lord’s share; 39 30,500 donkeys, of which 61 were the Lord’s share; 40 and
16,000 virgin girls, of whom 32 were the Lord’s
share. 41 Moses gave all the Lord’s share to Eleazar the priest, just as the Lord had directed him.
42 Half of the plunder belonged to the people
of Israel, and Moses separated it from the
half belonging to the fighting men. 43 It totaled 337,500 sheep and goats, 44 36,000 cattle,
45 30,500 donkeys, 46 and 16,000 virgin girls.
47 From the half-share given to the people, Moses
took one of every fifty prisoners and animals
and gave them to the Levites, who maintained
the Lord’s Tabernacle. All this was done as the
Lord had commanded Moses.
48 Then all the generals and captains came to
Moses 49 and said, “We, your servants, have accounted for all the men who went out to battle
under our command; not one of us is missing!
50 So we are presenting the items of gold we captured as an offering to the Lord from our share
of the plunder—armbands, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces. This will purify our lives
before the Lord and make us right with him.*”
51 So Moses and Eleazar the priest received
the gold from all the military commanders—all
31:50 Or will make atonement for our lives before the Lord.
31:52 Hebrew 16,750 shekels [191 kilograms]. 31:54 Hebrew
the Tent of Meeting. 32:3 As in Samaritan Pentateuch and
Greek version (see also 32:38); Hebrew reads Sebam.
kinds of jewelry and crafted objects. 52 In all, the
gold that the generals and captains presented as
a gift to the Lord weighed about 420 pounds.*
53 All the fighting men had taken some of the
plunder for themselves. 54 So Moses and Eleazar
the priest accepted the gifts from the generals
and captains and brought the gold to the Tabernacle* as a reminder to the Lord that the people
of Israel belong to him.
The Tribes East of the Jordan
The tribes of Reuben and Gad owned
vast numbers of livestock. So when
they saw that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were
ideally suited for their flocks and herds, 2 they
came to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the other
leaders of the community. They said, 3 “Notice
the towns of Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah,
Heshbon, Elealeh, Sibmah,* Nebo, and Beon.
4 The Lord has conquered this whole area for
the community of Israel, and it is ideally suited
for all our livestock. 5 If we have found favor
with you, please let us have this land as our
property instead of giving us land across the
Jordan River.”
6 “Do you intend to stay here while your brothers go across and do all the fighting?” Moses
asked the men of Gad and Reuben. 7 “Why do
you want to discourage the rest of the people
of Israel from going across to the land the Lord
has given them? 8 Your ancestors did the same
thing when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea to
explore the land. 9 After they went up to the valley of Eshcol and explored the land, they discouraged the people of Israel from entering the
land the Lord was giving them. 10 Then the Lord
was very angry with them, and he vowed, 11 ‘Of
all those I rescued from Egypt, no one who is
32
• Character
N U M B E R S 30:1-2
Moses reminded the people that they
must keep the promises they made—to
God and to one another. In ancient times
people rarely signed written contracts;
a person’s word was binding. Keeping
a promise signifies the sincerity and
faithfulness of a life devoted to pleasing
God. It also builds trust, which is an
important foundation for committed
human relationships. Without the
trust that comes from a promise kept,
community structures would (and do)
become unstable. Would your family
and friends say you are a person of
your word? Can they trust you in any
situation?