Numbers 25–27

1Israel stayed in Shittim; and the people began to play the prostitute with the daughters of Moab;

2for they called the people to the sacrifices of their gods. The people ate and bowed down to their gods.

3Israel joined himself to Baal Peor, and Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel.

4Yahweh said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people, and hang them up to Yahweh before the sun, that the fierce anger of Yahweh may turn away from Israel.”

5Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Everyone kill his men who have joined themselves to Baal Peor.”

6Behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought to his brothers a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, while they were weeping at the door of the Tent of Meeting.

7When Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from the middle of the congregation, and took a spear in his hand.

8He went after the man of Israel into the pavilion, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her body. So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel.

9Those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.

10Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

11“Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned my wrath away from the children of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I didn’t consume the children of Israel in my jealousy.

12Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace.

13It shall be to him, and to his offspring after him, the covenant of an everlasting priesthood, because he was jealous for his God, and made atonement for the children of Israel.’”

14Now the name of the man of Israel that was slain, who was slain with the Midianite woman, was Zimri, the son of Salu, a prince of a fathers’ house among the Simeonites.

15The name of the Midianite woman who was slain was Cozbi, the daughter of Zur. He was head of the people of a fathers’ house in Midian.

16Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

17“Harass the Midianites, and strike them;

18for they harassed you with their wiles, wherein they have deceived you in the matter of Peor, and in the incident regarding Cozbi, the daughter of the prince of Midian, their sister, who was slain on the day of the plague in the matter of Peor.”

1After the plague, Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying,

2“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers’ houses, all who are able to go out to war in Israel.”

3Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,

4“Take a census, from twenty years old and upward, as Yahweh commanded Moses and the children of Israel.” These are those who came out of the land of Egypt.

5Reuben, the firstborn of Israel; the sons of Reuben: of Hanoch, the family of the Hanochites; of Pallu, the family of the Palluites;

6of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Carmi, the family of the Carmites.

7These are the families of the Reubenites; and those who were counted of them were forty-three thousand seven hundred thirty.

8The son of Pallu: Eliab.

9The sons of Eliab: Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. These are that Dathan and Abiram who were called by the congregation, who rebelled against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah when they rebelled against Yahweh;

10and the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah when that company died; at the time the fire devoured two hundred fifty men, and they became a sign.

11Notwithstanding, the sons of Korah didn’t die.

12The sons of Simeon after their families: of Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites; of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites; of Jachin, the family of the Jachinites;

13of Zerah, the family of the Zerahites; of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites.

14These are the families of the Simeonites, twenty-two thousand two hundred.

15The sons of Gad after their families: of Zephon, the family of the Zephonites; of Haggi, the family of the Haggites; of Shuni, the family of the Shunites;

16of Ozni, the family of the Oznites; of Eri, the family of the Erites;

17of Arod, the family of the Arodites; of Areli, the family of the Arelites.

18These are the families of the sons of Gad according to those who were counted of them, forty thousand and five hundred.

19The sons of Judah: Er and Onan. Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.

20The sons of Judah after their families were: of Shelah, the family of the Shelanites; of Perez, the family of the Perezites; of Zerah, the family of the Zerahites.

21The sons of Perez were: of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites.

22These are the families of Judah according to those who were counted of them, seventy-six thousand five hundred.

23The sons of Issachar after their families: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites; of Puvah, the family of the Punites;

24of Jashub, the family of the Jashubites; of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites.

25These are the families of Issachar according to those who were counted of them, sixty-four thousand three hundred.

26The sons of Zebulun after their families: of Sered, the family of the Seredites; of Elon, the family of the Elonites; of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites.

27These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those who were counted of them, sixty thousand five hundred.

28The sons of Joseph after their families: Manasseh and Ephraim.

29The sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the family of the Machirites; and Machir became the father of Gilead; of Gilead, the family of the Gileadites.

30These are the sons of Gilead: of Iezer, the family of the Iezerites; of Helek, the family of the Helekites;

31and Asriel, the family of the Asrielites; and Shechem, the family of the Shechemites;

32and Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites; and Hepher, the family of the Hepherites.

33Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

34These are the families of Manasseh. Those who were counted of them were fifty-two thousand seven hundred.

35These are the sons of Ephraim after their families: of Shuthelah, the family of the Shuthelahites; of Becher, the family of the Becherites; of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites.

36These are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites.

37These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those who were counted of them, thirty-two thousand five hundred. These are the sons of Joseph after their families.

38The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites; of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites; of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites;

39of Shephupham, the family of the Shuphamites; of Hupham, the family of the Huphamites.

40The sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: the family of the Ardites; and of Naaman, the family of the Naamites.

41These are the sons of Benjamin after their families; and those who were counted of them were forty-five thousand six hundred.

42These are the sons of Dan after their families: of Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan after their families.

43All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those who were counted of them, were sixty-four thousand four hundred.

44The sons of Asher after their families: of Imnah, the family of the Imnites; of Ishvi, the family of the Ishvites; of Beriah, the family of the Berites.

45Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites; of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites.

46The name of the daughter of Asher was Serah.

47These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those who were counted of them, fifty-three thousand four hundred.

48The sons of Naphtali after their families: of Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites; of Guni, the family of the Gunites;

49of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites; of Shillem, the family of the Shillemites.

50These are the families of Naphtali according to their families; and those who were counted of them were forty-five thousand four hundred.

51These are those who were counted of the children of Israel, six hundred one thousand seven hundred thirty.

52Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

53“To these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names.

54To the more you shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer you shall give the less inheritance. To everyone according to those who were counted of him shall his inheritance be given.

55Notwithstanding, the land shall be divided by lot. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.

56According to the lot shall their inheritance be divided between the more and the fewer.”

57These are those who were counted of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites; of Merari, the family of the Merarites.

58These are the families of Levi: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, and the family of the Korahites. Kohath became the father of Amram.

59The name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt. She bore to Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister.

60To Aaron were born Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.

61Nadab and Abihu died when they offered strange fire before Yahweh.

62Those who were counted of them were twenty-three thousand, every male from a month old and upward; for they were not counted among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel.

63These are those who were counted by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who counted the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho.

64But among these there was not a man of them who were counted by Moses and Aaron the priest, who counted the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.

65For Yahweh had said of them, “They shall surely die in the wilderness.” There was not a man left of them, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

1Then the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph came near. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

2They stood before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, at the door of the Tent of Meeting, saying,

3“Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together against Yahweh in the company of Korah, but he died in his own sin. He had no sons.

4Why should the name of our father be taken away from among his family, because he had no son? Give to us a possession among the brothers of our father.”

5Moses brought their cause before Yahweh.

6Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

7“The daughters of Zelophehad speak right. You shall surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers. You shall cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them.

8You shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘If a man dies, and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter.

9If he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers.

10If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father’s brothers.

11If his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his kinsman who is next to him of his family, and he shall possess it. This shall be a statute and ordinance for the children of Israel, as Yahweh commanded Moses.’”

12Yahweh said to Moses, “Go up into this mountain of Abarim, and see the land which I have given to the children of Israel.

13When you have seen it, you also shall be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother was gathered;

14because in the strife of the congregation, you rebelled against my word in the wilderness of Zin, to honor me as holy at the waters before their eyes.” (These are the waters of Meribah of Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.)

15Moses spoke to Yahweh, saying,

16“Let Yahweh, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation,

17who may go out before them, and who may come in before them, and who may lead them out, and who may bring them in, that the congregation of Yahweh may not be as sheep which have no shepherd.”

18Yahweh said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him.

19Set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and commission him in their sight.

20You shall give authority to him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may obey.

21He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before Yahweh. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.”

22Moses did as Yahweh commanded him. He took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation.

23He laid his hands on him and commissioned him, as Yahweh spoke by Moses.