“Count the plunder that was taken, both of man and of animal, you, and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the congregation; and divide the plunder into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation. Levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred; of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks. Take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest, for Yahweh’s wave offering.
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Numbers 31:26-29 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Count the plunder that was taken, both of man and of animal, you, and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the congregation; and divide the plunder into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation. Levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred; of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks. Take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest, for Yahweh’s wave offering. Of the children of Israel’s half, you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, of all the livestock, and give them to the Levites, who perform the duty of Yahweh’s tabernacle.”
Parallel Translations
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“Count the plunder that was taken, both of man and of animal, you, and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the congregation;
and divide the plunder into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation.
Levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred; of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks.
Take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest, for Yahweh’s wave offering.
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Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the chief fathers of the congregation:
And divide the prey into two parts; between them that took the war upon them, who went out to battle, and between all the congregation:
And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:
Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for an heave offering of the LORD.
Show all 3 translations
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'Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of beast, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the fathers' houses of the congregation;
and divide the prey into two parts: between the men skilled in war, that went out to battle, and all the congregation;
and levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war that went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the flocks;
take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, as a portion set apart for the LORD.
Cross-references (23)
- Joshua 22:8 (v27) and spoke to them, saying, “Return with much wealth to your tents, with very much livestock, with silver, with gold, with bronze, with…
- Numbers 18:26 (vv28–29) “Moreover you shall speak to the Levites, and tell them, ‘When you take of the children of Israel the tithe which I have given you from…
- Numbers 31:30 (v28) Of the children of Israel’s half, you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the…
- Numbers 31:47 (v28) even of the children of Israel’s half, Moses took one drawn out of every fifty, both of man and of animal, and gave them to the Levites,…
- 1 Samuel 30:24-25 (v27) Who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays with the baggage.…
Show all 22 cross-references
- Psalms 68:12 (v27) “Kings of armies flee! They flee!” She who waits at home divides the plunder,
- Genesis 14:20 (v28) Blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” Abram gave him a tenth of all.
- Exodus 29:27 (v29) You shall sanctify the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the wave offering, which is waved, and which is raised up, of the ram…
- Numbers 18:21 (v28) “To the children of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they serve,…
- Deuteronomy 12:12 (v29) You shall rejoice before Yahweh your God—you, and your sons, your daughters, your male servants, your female servants, and the Levite who…
- Deuteronomy 12:19 (v29) Be careful that you don’t forsake the Levite as long as you live in your land.
- Joshua 6:19 (v28) But all the silver, gold, and vessels of bronze and iron are holy to Yahweh. They shall come into Yahweh’s treasury.”
- Joshua 6:24 (v28) They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it. Only they put the silver, the gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron into the…
- 1 Samuel 30:4 (v27) Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voice and wept until they had no more power to weep.
- 2 Samuel 8:11-12 (v28) King David also dedicated these to Yahweh, with the silver and gold that he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued; of Syria, of…
- 1 Chronicles 18:11 (v28) King David also dedicated these to Yahweh, with the silver and the gold that he carried away from all the nations; from Edom, from Moab,…
- 1 Chronicles 26:26-27 (v28) This Shelomoth and his brothers were over all the treasures of the dedicated things, which David the king, and the heads of the fathers’…
- Proverbs 3:9-10 (v28) Honor Yahweh with your substance, with the first fruits of all your increase: so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will…
- Isaiah 18:7 (v28) In that time, a present will be brought to Yahweh of Armies from a people tall and smooth, even from a people awesome from their beginning…
- Isaiah 23:18 (v28) Her merchandise and her wages will be holiness to Yahweh. It will not be treasured nor laid up; for her merchandise will be for those who…
- Isaiah 60:9 (v28) Surely the islands will wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with them,…
- Matthew 22:21 (v28) They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are…
22 distinct cross-references across this passage (23 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (13 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv27–28 The prey is first divided equally among all.
The prey is first divided equally among all.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv27–28 The congregation hath some share, because the warriors went…
The congregation hath some share, because the warriors went in the name of all, and because all having been injured by the Midianites, all were to have some share in the reparations; but the warriors, who were but 12,000, have a far greater share than others of their brethren, because they underwent greater pains and dangers.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv26–29 And take it of their half,.... Of the half…
And take it of their half,.... Of the half part of the prey divided to the soldiers:
and give it unto Eleazar the priest for an heave offering of the Lord; by way of thanksgiving for the success and victory, God had given them, by means of which so much booty had fallen into their hands.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 Two parts - The congregation hath some share, because…
Two parts - The congregation hath some share, because the warriors went in the name of all, and because all having been injured by the Midianites, all were to have some share in the reparations: but the warriors who were but 12000, have a far greater share than their brethren, because they underwent greater pains and dangers.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v28 Verse 28. And levy a tribute unto the Lord…
Verse 28. And levy a tribute unto the Lord - one soul of five hundred, &c.] The person to be employed in the Lord's service, under the Levites-the cattle either for sacrifice, or for the use of the Levites, Nu 31:30. Some monsters have supposed that one out of every five hundred of the captives was offered in sacrifice to the Lord! but this is abominable. When God chose to have the life of a man, he took it in the way of justice, as in the case of Midianites above, but never in the way of sacrifice.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 Num 31:27. Two parts — The congregation was to…
Num 31:27. Two parts — The congregation was to have some share, because the warriors went in the name of all, and because all having been injured by the Midianites, all were to have some share in the reparations: but the warriors, who were but twelve thousand, were to have a far greater share than their brethren, because they underwent greater pains and dangers.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On v29 An heave-offering - Render simply an offering, and compare…
An heave-offering - Render simply an offering, and compare Num 18:24. The verb from which the word here rendered “heave-offering” is derived, is rightly translated “levy” in Num 31:28.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v27 Equally. Those who had been in battle, had about…
Equally. Those who had been in battle, had about a 50th part more than the rest. They gave the first-fruits to the priests, while those in the camp presented theirs to the Levites. Other rules were afterwards observed. See 1 Kings xxx. 24., and 2 Machabees viii. 28. The Rabbins assign the greatest share to the king, (Selden, Jur. vi. 16,) and Homer gives the largest portion to the general; after which the rest was equally divided, and even the absent partook. The gods were not forgotten. So also among the Hebrews, Syrians, &c., the general make an equal division. David assigns a part of the booty for sacred uses, 1 Paralipomenon xxvi. 26. See Exodus xv. 9. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv26–29 THE ALLOTMENT OF THE SPOILS, Num_31:25-47.
THE ALLOTMENT OF THE SPOILS, Num_31:25-47.
26. Chief fathers — This means heads of the fathers’ houses. See full form, Exo_6:14.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On v28 28. levy a tribute] lit. ‘lift off a fixed…
28. levy a tribute] lit. ‘lift off a fixed proportion.’ The verb has the technical sense which is more often found in the corresponding subst. terûmâh (Num_31:29); see on Num_31:9.
one soul out of (every) five hundred] The word nephesh (‘soul’) denotes the life or animating principle of every living creature, man or beast, and here stands for an ‘individual’ person or a ‘head’ of cattle.
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the beeves] an archaic plural of ‘beef,’ used for the live animals; cf. Shakespeare, Merch. of Venice, 1. iii. 68, ‘flesh of muttons, beefs or goats.’ The word occurs in R.V. and A.V. five times in this chapter, and in Lev_22:19; Lev_22:21 (R.V. in the latter verse ‘herd’).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv27–28 (27) And divide the prey into two parts .…
(27) And divide the prey into two parts . . . —It was reasonable that those who had encountered the perils and hardships of the war should receive a larger share of the spoil than those who had remained in the camp. It was equally reasonable that the latter should not be left without some substantial benefit from the victory miraculously achieved over the enemies of the Lord and of His people. A similar direction is found in Jos_22:8 in regard to the division of spoil taken from enemies, but no general ordinance appears to have been made in regard to the division of the spoils of war until the time of David. (See 1Sa_30:24-25.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv26, 27, 29 Take the sum of the prey. No notice is…
Take the sum of the prey. No notice is taken here of the spoil (see on verse 11), but only of the captured children and cattle. And the chief fathers. Perhaps twOba (fathers) stands here for twObaAtyBe (fathers" houses). So the Septuagint, oi arcontev twn patriwn .
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v28 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues speaking to Moses.
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General Information:
"me" refers to Yahweh.
Then levy a tax to be given to me from the soldiers who went out to battle
This can be stated in active form. AT: "Collect a tax from the soldiers' plunder and give it to me" (See: Active or Passive)
every five hundred
"every 500" (See: Numbers)
from their half
"from the soldiers' half"
to be presented to me
This can be stated in active form. AT: "which he will present to me" (See: Active or Passive)
translationWords
tax
cow
donkey
ewe
goat
Eleazar
sacrifice
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.