Numbers 31 (Israel Plundered the Madianites)

Numbers Chapter 31

Israel Plundered the Madianites
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1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 Avenge the wrongs of the children of Israel on the Madianites, and afterwards thou shalt be added to thy people. 3 And Moses spoke to the people, saying, Arm some of you, and set yourselves in array before the Lord against Madian, to inflict vengeance on Madian from the Lord. 4 Send a thousand of each tribe from all the tribes of the children of Israel to set themselves in array. 5 And they numbered of the thousands of Israel a thousand of each tribe, twelve thousands; these were armed for war. 6 And Moses sent them away a thousand of every tribe with their forces, and Phinees the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest: and the holy instruments, and the signal trumpets were in their hands. 7 And they set themselves in array against Madian, as the Lord commanded Moses; and they slew every male. 8 And they slew the kings of Madian together with their slain subjects; even Evi and Rocon, and Sur, and Ur, and Roboe, five kings of Madian; and they slew with the sword Balaam the son of Beor with their other slain. 9 And they made a prey of the women of Madian, and their store, and their cattle, and all their possessions: and they spoiled their forces. 10 And they burnt with fire all their cities in the places of their habitation, and they burnt their villages with fire. 11 And they took all their plunder, and all their spoils, both man and beast. 12 And they brought to Moses and to Eleazar the priest, and to all the children of Israel, the captives, and the spoils, and the plunder, to the camp of Araboth Moab, which is at Jordan by Jericho. 13 And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the rulers of the synagogue went forth out of the camp to meet them. 14 And Moses was angry with the captains of the host, the heads of thousands and the heads of hundreds who came from the battle-array. 15 And Moses said to them, Why have ye saved every female alive? 16 For they were the occasion to the children of Israel by the word of Balaam of their revolting and despising the world of the Lord, because of Phogor; and there was a plague in the congregation of the Lord. 17 Now then slay every male in all the spoil, slay every woman, who has know he lying with man. 18 And as for all the captivity of women, who have not known the lying with man, save them alive. 19 And ye shall encamp outside the great camp seven days; every one who has slain and who touches a dead body, shall be purified on the third day, and ye and your captivity shall purify yourselves on the seventh day. 20 And ye shall purify every garment and every leathern utensil, and all furniture of goat skin, and every wooden vessel.

21 And Eleazar the priest said to the men of the host that came from the battle-array, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord commanded Moses. 22 Besides the gold, and the silver, and the brass, and the iron, and the lead, and tin, 23 every that shall pass through the fire shall so be clean, nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of sanctification; and whatsoever will not pass through the fire shall pass through the water. 24 And on the seventh day ye shall wash your garments, and be clean; and afterwards ye shall come into the camp.

25 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 26 Take the sum of the spoils of the captivity both of man and beast, thou and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the families of the congregation. 27 And ye shall divide the spoils between the warriors that went out to battle, and the whole congregation. 28 And ye shall take a tribute for the Lord from the warriors that went out to battle; one soul out of five hundred, from them en, and from the cattle, even from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses; and ye shall take from their half. 29 And thou shalt give them to Eleazar the priest as the first-fruits of the Lord. 30 And from the half belonging to the children of Israel thou shalt take one in fifty from the men, and from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses, and from all the cattle; and thou shalt give them to the Levites that keep the charges in the tabernacle of the Lord.

31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses. 32 And that which remained of the spoil which the warriors took, was—of the sheep, six hundred and seventy-five thousand: 33 and oxen, seventy-two thousand: 34 and asses, sixty-one thousand. 35 And persons of women who had not known lying with a man, all the souls, thirty-two thousand. 36 And the half, even the portion of them that went out to war, from the number of the sheep, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand and five hundred. 37 And the tribute to the Lord from the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five. 38 And the oxen, six and thirty thousand, and the tribute to the Lord, seventy-two. 39 And asses, thirty thousand and five hundred, and the tribute to the Lord, sixty-one: 40 and the persons, sixteen thousand, and the tribute of them to the Lord, thirty-two souls.

41 And Moses gave the tribute to the Lord, the heave-offering of God, to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord commanded Moses; 42 from the half belonging to the children of Israel, whom Moses separated from the men of war. 43 And the half taken from the sheep, belonging to the congregation, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand and five hundred. 44 And the oxen, thirty-six thousand; 45 asses, thirty thousand and five hundred; 46 and persons, sixteen thousand. 47 And Moses took of the half belonging to the children of Israel the fiftieth part, of men and of cattle, and he gave them to the Levites who keep the charges of the tabernacle of the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

48 And all those who were appointed to be officers of thousands of the host, captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, approached Moses, and said to Moses, 49 Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war with us, and not one is missing. 50 And we have brought our gift to the Lord, every man who has found an article of gold, whether an armlet, or a chain, or a ring, or a bracelet, or a clasp for hair, to make atonement for us before the Lord. 51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, even every wrought article. 52 And all the wrought gold, even the offering that they offered to the Lord, was sixteen thousand and seven hundred and fifty shekels from the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds. 53 For the men of war took plunder every one for himself. 54 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from the captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, and brought the vessels into the tabernacle of witness, a memorial of the children of Israel before the Lord.