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Numbers 1
EasyEnglish Bible
Numbers 1
EasyEnglish Bible
Moses counts the people
1 The Israelites were in the Sinai desert. It was the first day of the second month of the second year after they left Egypt. Moses was in the Tent of Meeting.[a]
The Lord said to Moses, 2 ‘Put the people into clans and families and count them.[b] Make a list. Write the name of each man on the list. 3 You and Aaron must record the names of all the men in each group who can fight in the army. Record the names of men who are 20 years old or older. 4 A man from each tribe must help you. Each of them will be the leader of his family.
5 These are the men from each tribe who must help you:
Reuben: Elizur, the son of Shedeur.
6 Simeon: Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai.
7 Judah: Nahshon, the son of Amminadab.
8 Issachar: Nethanel, the son of Zuar.
9 Zebulun: Eliab, the son of Helon.
10 Ephraim (Joseph's son): Elishama, the son of Ammihud.
Manasseh (Joseph's son): Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur.
11 Benjamin: Abidan, the son of Gideoni.
12 Dan: Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.
13 Asher: Pagiel, the son of Ocran.
14 Gad: Eliasaph, the son of Deuel.
15 Naphtali: Ahira, the son of Enan.’
16 These were the men that they chose from among the people. They were leaders of their clans. Each of them worked on behalf of the tribe of their ancestor. 17 Moses and Aaron told these leaders to come. 18 On the first day of the second month, they said that all the Israelite people must come together. The people were in clans and in families. They made a list of all the men who were 20 years old or older. 19 They did the things that the Lord had told Moses to do. So Moses recorded the names there in the Sinai desert.
20-43 They recorded the names of all the men who were 20 years old or older. Those men could fight in the army. They recorded the names of the men in each clan and family. Reuben was the firstborn son of Israel, so they recorded his tribe first. These were the numbers of the men from each tribe:
Reuben: 46,500 men.
Simeon: 59,300 men.
Gad: 45,650 men.
Judah: 74,600 men.
Issachar: 54,400 men.
Zebulun: 57,400 men.
Ephraim (Joseph's son): 40,500 men.
Manasseh (Joseph's son): 32,200 men.
Benjamin: 35,400 men.
Dan: 62,700 men.
Asher: 41,500 men.
Naphtali: 53,400 men.
44 Moses and Aaron counted the numbers of the men in each tribe. The 12 leaders of the Israelites helped them to do it. That was one man from each tribe. 45 They recorded the names of all the men in each family. All the men who were 20 years old or older were on the list. Those men could fight in the army. 46 The number of all the men was 603,550.
The tribe of Levi
47 But Moses and Aaron did not count the descendants of Levi among the other tribes. 48 The Lord had said to Moses, 49 ‘You must not count the tribe of Levi. You must not put the Levites on the list with the other Israelites. 50 The Levites' work will be in the special Tent of Meeting. They must take care of the Tent and everything that is in it. They must carry it everywhere. Their work is with all those things. They must put their own tents round the special Tent. 51 When the people move to another place, the Levites must pack the Tent. When the people arrive at a new place, the Levites must put the Tent up again. If any other person, not a Levite, comes near to the special Tent, they must die.
52 All the other Israelites must put up their tents in groups. Each man must live among his own group. Each group must put up its own flag. 53 But the Levites must put up their tents around the Tent of Meeting. They must take care of it. Then I, the Lord, will not be angry with the people.’
54 The Israelites did everything that the Lord had told Moses to do.
Footnotes
- 1:1 The Tent of Meeting was a special tent where God came to meet his people. It was also called the tabernacle. God told Moses how to make it. See Exodus 25:8.
- 1:2 When we write Lord like this, it is a special name for God. Sometimes people write it as ‘Yahweh’, or as ‘Jehovah’. It is his own name that he told Moses. See Exodus 3:14. It means ‘I am who I am’. This shows that God has always been there and he always will be there.
Numbers 1
New International Version
Numbers 1
New International Version
The Census
1 The Lord spoke to Moses in the tent of meeting(A) in the Desert of Sinai(B) on the first day of the second month(C) of the second year after the Israelites came out of Egypt.(D) He said: 2 “Take a census(E) of the whole Israelite community by their clans and families,(F) listing every man by name,(G) one by one. 3 You and Aaron(H) are to count according to their divisions all the men in Israel who are twenty years old or more(I) and able to serve in the army.(J) 4 One man from each tribe,(K) each of them the head of his family,(L) is to help you.(M) 5 These are the names(N) of the men who are to assist you:
from Reuben,(O) Elizur son of Shedeur;(P)
6 from Simeon,(Q) Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai;(R)
7 from Judah,(S) Nahshon son of Amminadab;(T)
8 from Issachar,(U) Nethanel son of Zuar;(V)
9 from Zebulun,(W) Eliab son of Helon;(X)
10 from the sons of Joseph:
from Ephraim,(Y) Elishama son of Ammihud;(Z)
from Manasseh,(AA) Gamaliel son of Pedahzur;(AB)
11 from Benjamin,(AC) Abidan son of Gideoni;(AD)
12 from Dan,(AE) Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai;(AF)
13 from Asher,(AG) Pagiel son of Okran;(AH)
16 These were the men appointed from the community, the leaders(AM) of their ancestral tribes.(AN) They were the heads of the clans of Israel.(AO)
17 Moses and Aaron took these men whose names had been specified, 18 and they called the whole community together on the first day of the second month.(AP) The people registered their ancestry(AQ) by their clans and families,(AR) and the men twenty years old or more(AS) were listed by name, one by one, 19 as the Lord commanded Moses. And so he counted(AT) them in the Desert of Sinai:
20 From the descendants of Reuben(AU) the firstborn son(AV) of Israel:
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, one by one, according to the records of their clans and families. 21 The number from the tribe of Reuben(AW) was 46,500.
22 From the descendants of Simeon:(AX)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were counted and listed by name, one by one, according to the records of their clans and families. 23 The number from the tribe of Simeon was 59,300.(AY)
24 From the descendants of Gad:(AZ)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 25 The number from the tribe of Gad(BA) was 45,650.
26 From the descendants of Judah:(BB)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 27 The number from the tribe of Judah(BC) was 74,600.
28 From the descendants of Issachar:(BD)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 29 The number from the tribe of Issachar(BE) was 54,400.(BF)
30 From the descendants of Zebulun:(BG)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 31 The number from the tribe of Zebulun was 57,400.(BH)
32 From the sons of Joseph:(BI)
From the descendants of Ephraim:(BJ)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 33 The number from the tribe of Ephraim(BK) was 40,500.
34 From the descendants of Manasseh:(BL)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 35 The number from the tribe of Manasseh was 32,200.
36 From the descendants of Benjamin:(BM)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 37 The number from the tribe of Benjamin(BN) was 35,400.
38 From the descendants of Dan:(BO)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 39 The number from the tribe of Dan was 62,700.(BP)
40 From the descendants of Asher:(BQ)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 41 The number from the tribe of Asher(BR) was 41,500.
42 From the descendants of Naphtali:(BS)
All the men twenty years old or more who were able to serve in the army were listed by name, according to the records of their clans and families. 43 The number from the tribe of Naphtali(BT) was 53,400.(BU)
44 These were the men counted by Moses and Aaron(BV) and the twelve leaders of Israel, each one representing his family. 45 All the Israelites twenty years old or more(BW) who were able to serve in Israel’s army were counted according to their families.(BX) 46 The total number was 603,550.(BY)
47 The ancestral tribe of the Levites,(BZ) however, was not counted(CA) along with the others. 48 The Lord had said to Moses: 49 “You must not count the tribe of Levi or include them in the census of the other Israelites. 50 Instead, appoint the Levites to be in charge of the tabernacle(CB) of the covenant law(CC)—over all its furnishings(CD) and everything belonging to it. They are to carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings; they are to take care of it and encamp around it. 51 Whenever the tabernacle(CE) is to move,(CF) the Levites are to take it down, and whenever the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites shall do it.(CG) Anyone else who approaches it is to be put to death.(CH) 52 The Israelites are to set up their tents by divisions, each of them in their own camp under their standard.(CI) 53 The Levites, however, are to set up their tents around the tabernacle(CJ) of the covenant law so that my wrath will not fall(CK) on the Israelite community. The Levites are to be responsible for the care of the tabernacle of the covenant law.(CL)”
54 The Israelites did all this just as the Lord commanded Moses.
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