Numbers · Brenton's English Septuagint
Numbers 31 Brenton's English Septuagint
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (2)
- Square brackets mark words Brenton supplied for English sense.
- Old Testament only (no New Testament). First printed 1844; the 1851 edition added the deuterocanonical books.
1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
1 Yahweh 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.
2 “Avenge the children of Israel on the Midianites. Afterward you shall be gathered to your 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.
3 Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for war, that they may go against Midian, to execute Yahweh’s vengeance on Midian.
4 Send a thousand of each tribe from all the tribes of the children of Israel to set themselves in array.
4 You shall send one thousand out of every tribe, throughout all the tribes of Israel, to the war.”
5 And they numbered of the thousands of Israel a thousand of [each] tribe, twelve thousands; [these were] armed for war.
5 So there were delivered, out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand from every tribe, twelve thousand 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.
6 Moses sent them, one thousand of every tribe, to the war with Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand.
7 And they set themselves in array against Madian, as the Lord commanded Moses; and they slew every male.
7 They fought against Midian, as Yahweh commanded Moses. They killed every male.
8 And they slew the kings of Madian together with their slain [subjects]; even Evi and Rocon, and Sur, and Ur, and Roboc, five kings of Madian; and they slew with the sword Balaam the son of Beor with their [other] slain.
8 They killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their slain: Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword.
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.
9 The children of Israel took the women of Midian captive with their little ones; and all their livestock, all their flocks, and all their goods, they took as plunder.
10 And they burnt with fire all their cities in the places of their habitation, and they burnt their villages with fire.
10 All their cities in the places in which they lived, and all their encampments, they burned with fire.
11 And they took all their plunder, and all their spoils, both man and beast.
11 They took all the captives, and all the plunder, both of man and of animal.
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 to Araboth Moab, which is at Jordan by Jericho.
12 They brought the captives with the prey and the plunder, to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of the children of Israel, to the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan at Jericho.
13 And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the rulers of the synagogue went forth out of the camp to meet them.
13 Moses and Eleazar the priest, with all the princes of the congregation, went out to meet them outside of the camp.
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.
14 Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, who came from the service of the war.
15 And Moses said to them, Why have ye saved every female alive?
15 Moses said to them, “Have you saved all the women alive?
16 For they were [the occasion] to the children of Israel by the word of Balaam of their revolting and despising the word of the Lord, because of Phogor; and there was a plague in the congregation of the Lord.
16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, and so the plague was among the congregation of Yahweh.
17 Now then slay every male in all the spoil, slay every woman, who has known the lying with man.
17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man by lying with him.
18 And as for all the captivity of women, who have not known the lying with man, save ye them alive.
18 But all the girls, who have not known man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.
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.
19 “Encamp outside of the camp for seven days. Whoever has killed any person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves on the third day and on the seventh day, you and your captives.
20 And ye shall purify every garment and every leathern utensil, and all furniture of goat skin, and every wooden vessel.
20 You shall purify every garment, and all that is made of skin, and all work of goats’ hair, and all things made of wood.”
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 has commanded Moses.
21 Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who went to the battle, “This is the statute of the law which Yahweh has commanded Moses.
22 Beside the gold, and the silver, and the brass, and the iron, and lead, and tin,
22 However the gold, and the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead,
23 every thing 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 water.
23 everything that may withstand the fire, you shall make to go through the fire, and it shall be clean; nevertheless it shall be purified with the water for impurity. All that doesn’t withstand the fire you shall make to go 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.
24 You shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be clean. Afterward you shall come into the camp.”
25 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
25 Yahweh 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.
26 “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;
27 And ye shall divide the spoils between the warriors that went out to battle, and the whole congregation.
27 and divide the plunder into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the 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 the men, and from the cattle, even from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses; and ye shall take from their half.
28 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.
29 And thou shalt give [them] to Eleazar the priest [as] the first-fruits of the Lord.
29 Take it from their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest, for Yahweh’s wave offering.
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.
30 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.”
31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.
31 Moses and Eleazar the priest did as Yahweh commanded Moses.
32 And that which remained of the spoil which the warriors took, was—of the sheep, six hundred and seventy-five thousand:
32 Now the plunder, over and above the booty which the men of war took, was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep,
33 and oxen, seventy-two thousand:
33 seventy-two thousand head of cattle,
34 and asses, sixty-one thousand.
34 sixty-one thousand donkeys,
35 And persons of women who had not known lying with man, all the souls, thirty-two thousand.
35 and thirty-two thousand persons in all, of the women who had not known man by lying with him.
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.
36 The half, which was the portion of those who went out to war, was in number three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep;
37 And the tribute to the Lord from the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five.
37 and Yahweh’s tribute of the sheep was six hundred seventy-five.
38 And the oxen, six and thirty thousand, and the tribute to the Lord, seventy-two.
38 The cattle were thirty-six thousand, of which Yahweh’s tribute was seventy-two.
39 And asses, thirty thousand and five hundred, and the tribute to the Lord, sixty-one:
39 The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which Yahweh’s tribute was sixty-one.
40 and the persons, sixteen thousand, and the tribute of them to the Lord, thirty-two souls.
40 The persons were sixteen thousand, of whom Yahweh’s tribute was thirty-two persons.
41 And Moses gave the tribute to the Lord, the heave-offering of God, to Eleazar the priest, as the Lord commanded Moses;
41 Moses gave the tribute, which was Yahweh’s wave offering, to Eleazar the priest, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
42 from the half belonging to the children of Israel, whom Moses separated from the men of war.
42 Of the children of Israel’s half, which Moses divided off from the men who fought
43 And the half [taken] from the sheep, belonging to the congregation, was three hundred and thirty-seven thousand and five hundred.
43 (now the congregation’s half was three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,
44 And the oxen, thirty-six thousand;
44 thirty-six thousand head of cattle,
45 asses, thirty thousand and five hundred;
45 thirty thousand five hundred donkeys,
46 and persons, sixteen thousand.
46 and sixteen thousand persons),
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.
47 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, who performed the duty of Yahweh’s tabernacle, as Yahweh 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,
48 The officers who were over the thousands of the army, the captains of thousands, and the captains of hundreds, came near to Moses.
49 Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war with us, and not one is missing.
49 They said to Moses, “Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war who are under our command, and there lacks not one man of us.
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.
50 We have brought Yahweh’s offering, what every man found: gold ornaments, armlets, bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and necklaces, to make atonement for our souls before Yahweh.”
51 And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them, even every wrought article.
51 Moses and Eleazar the priest took their gold, even all worked jewels.
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.
52 All the gold of the wave offering that they offered up to Yahweh, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels.
53 For the men of war took plunder every one for himself.
53 The men of war had taken booty, every man 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.
54 Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the Tent of Meeting for a memorial for the children of Israel before Yahweh.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Evi
One of the five kings of Midian killed in Israel's war of vengeance against the Midianites.
Cited in the guide: Numbers 31:8; Joshua 13:21
Moses
Drawn from the Nile, he led Israel out of Egypt and received God's Law.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 2–Deuteronomy 34
Cross references (32)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 2 Numbers 27:13; Numbers 25:14–18; Judges 2:10; Revelation 6:10; Psalm 94:1–3
- 3 Leviticus 26:25; Numbers 25:13; Exodus 17:16; 2 Kings 10:30; Numbers 25:11
- 4 1 Samuel 14:6; Leviticus 26:8; Judges 7:2
- 6 Numbers 14:44; Numbers 10:8–9; 2 Chronicles 13:12–15; Joshua 6:4–6; Joshua 6:13–15
- 7 Judges 21:11; 1 Kings 11:15–16; 1 Samuel 27:9; Judges 6:1–2; Deuteronomy 20:13–14
- 8 Joshua 13:21–22; Numbers 25:15; Revelation 2:14; Jude 11; Numbers 25:18
- 9 2 Chronicles 28:8–10; Deuteronomy 20:14; 2 Chronicles 28:5; Numbers 31:15–16
- 10 Isaiah 1:7; 1 Samuel 30:1; Revelation 18:8; 1 Kings 9:16; Joshua 6:24
- 11 Deuteronomy 20:14; Joshua 8:2
- 12 Numbers 22:1
- 13 Numbers 31:12; Genesis 14:17; 1 Samuel 15:12; 1 Samuel 30:21; Numbers 31:22–24
- 14 Numbers 31:48; Exodus 32:19; Leviticus 10:16; Numbers 12:3; 1 Samuel 15:13–14
- 15 1 Samuel 15:3; Deuteronomy 2:34; Jeremiah 48:10; Psalm 137:8–9; Joshua 10:40
- 16 2 Peter 2:15; Numbers 25:1–9; Revelation 2:14; Deuteronomy 4:3; Joshua 22:17
- 17 Deuteronomy 20:16–18; Judges 21:11–12; Deuteronomy 7:2
- 18 Deuteronomy 21:10–14; Leviticus 25:44; Deuteronomy 20:14; 2 Chronicles 28:8–10; Isaiah 14:2
- 19 Numbers 5:2; Numbers 19:11–22; 1 Chronicles 22:8
- 20 Genesis 35:2; Exodus 19:10; Numbers 19:14–16; Numbers 19:22
- 21 Numbers 30:16
- 23 Numbers 19:9; 1 Corinthians 3:13; Numbers 19:17; Matthew 3:11; Isaiah 43:2
- 24 Leviticus 11:25; Numbers 19:19; Leviticus 15:13; Leviticus 14:9
- 27 Joshua 22:8; 1 Samuel 30:24–25; Psalm 68:12; 1 Samuel 30:4
- 28 Numbers 18:26; Numbers 31:47; Numbers 31:30; Proverbs 3:9–10; Genesis 14:20
- 29 Numbers 18:26; Deuteronomy 12:12; Deuteronomy 12:19; Exodus 29:27
- 30 Numbers 3:7–8; Numbers 3:31; Numbers 3:25; 1 Chronicles 26:20–27; Numbers 18:23–28
- 41 Numbers 18:8; Numbers 18:19; Numbers 31:29–31; Galatians 6:6; Matthew 10:10
- 47 Numbers 31:30; Luke 10:1–8; Deuteronomy 12:17–19; Numbers 18:21–24; Isaiah 56:10–11
- 49 John 18:9; 1 Samuel 30:18–19; Psalm 72:14
- 50 Exodus 30:12; Exodus 30:15–16; Psalm 116:12; Psalm 107:15; Psalm 116:17
- 51 Numbers 7:2–6
- 53 Deuteronomy 20:14; Numbers 31:32
- 54 Exodus 30:16; Zechariah 6:14; Numbers 16:40; Psalm 103:1–2; Joshua 4:7
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
You have a plain passage in Genesis, when Eve herself was first made, "He made her a woman." Scripture also in another place saith, that God ordered "the women" to be separated "which had not known man by lying with him." This then ought now to be well established, and should not detain us, that so we may be able …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 6 (1888)