{31:1} And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, {31:2}
Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward
shalt thou be gathered unto thy people. {31:3} And Moses
spake unto the people, saying, Arm some of yourselves unto
the war, and let them go against the Midianites, and avenge
the LORD of Midian. {31:4} Of every tribe a thousand,
throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall ye send to the war.
{31:5} So there were delivered out of the thousands of
Israel, a thousand of [every] tribe, twelve thousand armed
for war. {31:6} And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand
of [every] tribe, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the
priest, to the war, with the holy instruments, and the
trumpets to blow in his hand. {31:7} And they warred
against the Midianites, as the LORD commanded Moses;
and they slew all the males. {31:8} And they slew the kings
of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; [namely,]
Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of
Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the
sword. {31:9} And the children of Israel took [all] the
women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took
the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their
goods. {31:10} And they burnt all their cities wherein they
dwelt, and all their goodly castles, with fire. {31:11} And
they took all the spoil, and all the prey, [both] of men and of
beasts. {31:12} And they brought the captives, and the prey,
and the spoil, unto Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and unto
the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the camp at
the plains of Moab, which [are] by Jordan [near] Jericho.
{31:13} And Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the
princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them
without the camp. {31:14} And Moses was wroth with the
officers of the host, [with] the captains over thousands, and
captains over hundreds, which came from the battle.
{31:15} And Moses said unto them, Have ye saved all the
women alive? {31:16} Behold, these caused the children of
Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass
against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a
plague among the congregation of the LORD. {31:17} Now
therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill
every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
{31:18} But all the women children, that have not known a
man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves. {31:19}
And do ye abide without the camp seven days: whosoever
hath killed any person, and whosoever hath touched any
slain, purify [both] yourselves and your captives on the third
day, and on the seventh day. {31:20} And purify all [your]
raiment, and all that is made of skins, and all work of goats’
[hair,] and all things made of wood.
{31:21} And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war
which went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law
which the LORD commanded Moses; {31:22} Only the
gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead,
{31:23} Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make
[it] go through the fire, and it shall be clean: nevertheless it
shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that
abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water.
{31:24} And ye shall wash your clothes on the seventh day,
and ye shall be clean, and afterward ye shall come into the
camp.
{31:25} And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
{31:26} 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: {31:27} 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:
{31:28} 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: {31:29} Take [it] of their half, and give
[it] unto Eleazar the priest, [for] an heave offering of the
LORD. {31:30} And of the children of Israel’s half, thou
shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beeves,
of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and
give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the
tabernacle of the LORD. {31:31} And Moses and Eleazar
the priest did as the LORD commanded Moses. {31:32}
And the booty, [being] the rest of the prey which the men of
war had caught, was six hundred thousand and seventy
thousand and five thousand sheep, {31:33} And threescore
and twelve thousand beeves, {31:34} And threescore and
one thousand asses, {31:35} And thirty and two thousand
persons in all, of women that had not known man by lying
with him. {31:36} And the half, [which was] the portion of
them that went out to war, was in number three hundred
thousand and seven and thirty thousand and five hundred
sheep: {31:37} And the LORD’S tribute of the sheep was
six hundred and threescore and fifteen. {31:38} And the
beeves [were] thirty and six thousand; of which the
LORD’S tribute [was] threescore and twelve. {31:39} And
the asses [were] thirty thousand and five hundred; of which
the LORD’S tribute [was] threescore and one. {31:40} And
the persons [were] sixteen thousand; of which the LORD’S
tribute [was] thirty and two persons. {31:41} And Moses
gave the tribute, [which was] the LORD’S heave offering,
unto Eleazar the priest, as the LORD commanded Moses.
{31:42} And of the children of Israel’s half, which Moses
divided from the men that warred, {31:43} (Now the half
[that pertained unto] the congregation was three hundred
thousand and thirty thousand [and] seven thousand and five
hundred sheep, {31:44} And thirty and six thousand beeves,
{31:45} And thirty thousand asses and five hundred,
{31:46} And sixteen thousand persons;) {31:47} Even of
the children of Israel’s half, Moses took one portion of fifty,
[both] of man and of beast, and gave them unto the Levites,
which kept the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD; as the
LORD commanded Moses.
{31:48} And the officers which [were] over thousands of
the host, the captains of thousands, and captains of
hundreds, came near unto Moses: {31:49} And they said
unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of
war which [are] under our charge, and there lacketh not one
man of us. {31:50} We have therefore brought an oblation
for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of
gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to
make an atonement for our souls before the LORD. {31:51}
And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them,
[even] all wrought jewels. {31:52} And all the gold of the
offering that they offered up to the LORD, of the captains of
thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen
thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels. {31:53} ([For]
the men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.)
{31:54} And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of
the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it
into the tabernacle of the congregation, [for] a memorial for
the children of Israel before the LORD.
