Numbers 1

¹ Yahweh spoke to Moses, in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after the exodus from the land of Egypt. He said:

² ‘Take a census of the whole community of Israel’s sons, by clans and families, of the names of all the males, head by head.

³ Every man of Israel, twenty years of age and over, fit to bear arms, must be registered by you and Aaron answered to his fighting station.

⁴ You are to take a man from each tribe, the head of his family, to help you in this.

⁵ ‘These are the names of those who are to be your helpers: For Reuben, Elizur son of Shedeur.

⁶ For Simeon, Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai.

⁷ For Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab.

⁸ For Issachar, Nethanel son of Zuar.

⁹ For Zebulun, Eliab son of Helon.

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

¹¹ For Benjamin, Abidan son of Gideoni.

¹² For Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai.

¹³ For Asher, Pagiel son of Ochran.

¹⁴ For Gad, Eliasaph son of Reuel.

¹⁵ For Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan.’

¹⁶ These were men of repute in the community; they were leaders of their ancestral clans, chiefs of Israel’s hosts.

¹⁷ Moses and Aaron took these men who have been named,

¹⁸ and on the first day of the second month they mustered the whole community. The sons of Israel established their kinship by clans and families, and one by one the names of all men of twenty years and over were singled out.

¹⁹ As Yahweh had commanded, Moses took a census of them in the wilderness of Sinai.

²⁰ When the kinship of the sons of Reuben, Israel’s first-born, had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

²¹ The total of these for the tribe of Reuben was forty-six thousand five hundred.

²² When the kinship of the sons of Simeon had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out, one by one.

²³ The total of these for the tribe of Simeon was fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

²⁴ When the kinship of the sons of Gad had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

²⁵ The total of these for the tribe of Gad was forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

²⁶ When the kinship of the sons of Judah had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

²⁷ The total of these for the tribe of Judali was seventy-four thousand six hundred.

²⁸ When the kinship of the sons of Issachar had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

²⁹ The total of these for the tribe of Issachar was fifty-four thousand four hundred.

³⁰ When the kinship of the sons of Zebulun had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

³¹ The total of these for the tribe of Zebulun was fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

³² The sons of Joseph: when the kinship of the sons of Ephraim had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

³³ The total of these for the tribe of Ephraim was forty thousand five hundred.

³⁴ When the kinship of the sons of Manasseh had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

³⁵ The total of these for the tribe of Manasseh was thirty-two thousand two hundred. When the kinship of the sons of Benjamin had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

³⁶ The total of these for the tribe of Benjamin was thirty-five thousand four hundred. When the kinship of the sons of Dan had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

³⁹ The total of these for the tribe of Dan was sixty-two thousand seven hundred.

⁴⁰ When the kinship of the sons of Asher had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

⁴¹ The total of these for the tribe of Asher was forty-one thousand five hundred.

⁴² When the kinship of the sons of Naphtali had been established by clans and families, the names of all the males of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, were singled out one by one.

⁴³ The total of these for the tribe of Naphtali was fifty-three thousand four hundred.

⁴⁴ Such were the men registered by Moses, Aaron and the leaders of Israel, of whom there were twelve, each representing his patriarchal House.

⁴⁵ Every man of Israel of twenty years and over, fit to bear arms, was counted according to his patriarchal House.

⁴⁶ Altogether the full total was six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty.[*a]

⁴⁷ But the Levites and their patriarchal tribe were not included in the count.

⁴⁸ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

⁴⁹ ‘Do not, however, take any census of the Levites, or register them among the sons of Israel.

⁵⁰ You yourself must enrol the Levites to serve the tabernacle of the Testimony and to look after its furnishings and its belongings. They are to carry the tabernacle, and all its furnishings, and they are to take care of it and pitch their camp around it.

⁵¹ Whenever the tabernacle is moved the Levites are to be the people to dismantle it; whenever the tabernacle is set up again, they are to do this. Any layman coming near it must be put to death.

⁵² The sons of Israel are to pitch their tents in formation each in their own encampment, every man by his standard.

⁵³ But the Levites are to pitch their tents round the tabernacle of the Testimony. In this way the wrath will be kept from falling on the whole community of the sons of Israel. The Levites are to be in charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.’

⁵⁴ The Sons of Israel did exactly as Yahweh had ordered Moses. They did as he said.