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Numbers [Numbers]
B'midbar [In the desert]
Context: Numbers has multifaceted purposes. Combination census record providing family trees and duties of the Levites (ch 1-4). Recounting year one with the Levites (ch 5-8). Then historical account of year two, month one into year forty at the Jordan River (ch 9-35). The records of choices and relationship between God and humans during the desert years.
Parashah 34: B'midbar ·In the desert· 1:1-4:20
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1 Adonai spoke to Moses [Drawn out] in the wilderness of Sinai [Thorn], in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt [Abode of slavery], saying, 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel [God prevails], by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, every male, one by one; 3 from twenty years old and upward, all who are able to go out to war in Israel [God prevails]. You and Aaron [Light-bringer] shall count them by their divisions. 4 With you there shall be a man of every tribe; everyone head of his fathers’ house. 5 These are the names of the men who shall stand with you:
Of Reuben [See, a son!]: Elizur the son of Shedeur.
6 Of Simeon [Hearing]: Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai [My rock almighty].
7 Of Judah [Praised]: Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
8 Of Issachar [Hire, Reward]: Nethanel the son of Zuar.
9 Of Zebulun [Living together]: Eliab the son of Helon.
10 Of the children of Joseph [May he add]:
Of Ephraim [Fruit]: Elishama the son of Ammihud.
Of Manasseh [Causing to forget]: Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.
11 Of Benjamin [Son of right hand, Son of south]: Abidan the son of Gideoni.
12 Of Dan [He judged]: Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
13 Of Asher [Happy]: Pagiel the son of Ochran.
14 Of Gad [Good fortune]: Eliasaph the son of Deuel.
15 Of Naphtali [My wrestling]: Ahira the son of Enan.”
16 These are those who were called of the congregation, the princes of the tribes of their fathers; they were the heads of the thousands of Israel [God prevails]. 17 Moses [Drawn out] and Aaron [Light-bringer] took these men who are mentioned by name. 18 They assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month; and they declared their ancestry by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, one by one. 19 As Adonai enjoined Moses [Drawn out], so he counted them in the wilderness of Sinai [Thorn].
(2) 20 The children of Reuben [See, a son!], Israel [God prevails]’s firstborn, their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, one by one, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 21 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Reuben [See, a son!], were forty-six thousand five hundred.
22 Of the children of Simeon [Hearing], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, those who were counted of it, according to the number of the names, one by one, every male from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 23 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Simeon [Hearing], were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
24 Of the children of Gad [Good fortune], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 25 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Gad [Good fortune], were forty-five thousand six hundred fifty.
26 Of the children of Judah [Praised], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 27 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Judah [Praised], were seventy-four thousand six hundred.
28 Of the children of Issachar [Hire, Reward], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 29 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Issachar [Hire, Reward], were fifty-four thousand four hundred.
30 Of the children of Zebulun [Living together], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 31 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Zebulun [Living together], were fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 32 Of the children of Joseph [May he add], of the children of Ephraim [Fruit], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 33 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Ephraim [Fruit], were forty thousand five hundred.
34 Of the children of Manasseh [Causing to forget], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 35 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Manasseh [Causing to forget], were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
36 Of the children of Benjamin [Son of right hand, Son of south], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 37 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Benjamin [Son of right hand, Son of south], were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
38 Of the children of Dan [He judged], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 39 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Dan [He judged], were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
40 Of the children of Asher [Happy], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 41 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Asher [Happy], were forty-one thousand five hundred.
42 Of the children of Naphtali [My wrestling], their generations, by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war; 43 those who were counted of them, of the tribe of Naphtali [My wrestling], were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
44 These are those who were counted, whom Moses [Drawn out] and Aaron [Light-bringer] counted, and the princes of Israel [God prevails], being twelve men: they were each one for his fathers’ house. 45 So all those who were counted of the children of Israel [God prevails] by their fathers’ houses, from twenty years old and upward, all who were able to go out to war in Israel [God prevails]; 46 even all those who were counted were six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty. 47 But the Levites [Descendants of United with] after the tribe of their fathers was not counted among them. 48 For Adonai spoke to Moses [Drawn out], saying, 49 “Only the tribe of Levi [United with] you shall not count, neither shall you take a census of them among the children of Israel [God prevails]; 50 but appoint the Levites [Descendants of United with] over the Tabernacle of the Testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all that belongs to it. They shall carry the tabernacle, and all its furnishings; and they shall take care of it, and shall encamp around it. 51 When the tabernacle is to move, the Levites [Descendants of United with] shall take it down; and when the tabernacle is to be set up, the Levites [Descendants of United with] shall set it up. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death. 52 The children of Israel [God prevails] shall pitch their tents, every man by his own camp, and every man by his own standard, according to their divisions. 53 But the Levites [Descendants of United with] shall encamp around the Tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel [God prevails]: and the Levites [Descendants of United with] shall be responsible for the Tabernacle of the Testimony.”
54 Thus the children of Israel [God prevails] did. According to all that Adonai enjoined Moses [Drawn out], so they did.

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© 2016 Thomas Robinson