Numbers 26-27

New King James Version

The Second Census of Israel

26 And it came to pass, after the ^(A)plague, that the Lord spoke to Moses and Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying: ^2 (B)“Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel ^(C)from twenty years old and above, by their fathers’ houses, all who are able to go to war in Israel.” ³ So Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them ^(D)in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho, saying: ⁴ “Take a census of the people from twenty years old and above, just as the Lord ^(E)commanded Moses and the children of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt.”

^5 (F)Reuben was the firstborn of Israel. The children of Reuben were: of Hanoch, the family of the Hanochites; of Pallu, the family of the Palluites; ⁶ of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Carmi, the family of the Carmites. ⁷ These are the families of the Reubenites: those who were numbered of them were forty-three thousand seven hundred and thirty. ⁸ And the son of Pallu was Eliab. ⁹ The sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. These are the Dathan and Abiram, ^(G)representatives of the congregation, who contended against Moses and Aaron in the company of Korah, when they contended against the Lord; ^10 (H)and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with Korah when that company died, when the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men; ^(I)and they became a sign. ¹¹ Nevertheless ^(J)the children of Korah did not die.

¹² The sons of Simeon according to their families were: of ^[a]Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites; of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites; of ^[b]Jachin, the family of the Jachinites; ¹³ of ^[c]Zerah, the family of the Zarhites; of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites. ¹⁴ These are the families of the Simeonites: twenty-two thousand two hundred.

¹⁵ The sons of Gad according to their families were: of ^[d]Zephon, the family of the Zephonites; of Haggi, the family of the Haggites; of Shuni, the family of the Shunites; ¹⁶ of ^[e]Ozni, the family of the Oznites; of Eri, the family of the Erites; ¹⁷ of ^[f]Arod, the family of the Arodites; of Areli, the family of the Arelites. ¹⁸ These are the families of the sons of Gad according to those who were numbered of them: forty thousand five hundred.

^19 (K)The sons of Judah were Er and Onan; and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. ²⁰ And ^(L)the sons of Judah according to their families were: of Shelah, the family of the Shelanites; of Perez, the family of the Parzites; of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites. ²¹ And the sons of Perez were: of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites; of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites. ²² These are the families of Judah according to those who were numbered of them: seventy-six thousand five hundred.

²³ The sons of Issachar according to their families were: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites; of ^[g]Puah, the family of the ^[h]Punites; ²⁴ of ^[i]Jashub, the family of the Jashubites; of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites. ²⁵ These are the families of Issachar according to those who were numbered of them: sixty-four thousand three hundred.

^26 (M)The sons of Zebulun according to their families were: of Sered, the family of the Sardites; of Elon, the family of the Elonites; of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites. ²⁷ These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those who were numbered of them: sixty thousand five hundred.

^28 (N)The sons of Joseph according to their families, by Manasseh and Ephraim, were: ²⁹ The sons of ^(O)Manasseh: of ^(P)Machir, the family of the Machirites; and Machir begot Gilead; of Gilead, the family of the Gileadites. ³⁰ These are the sons of Gilead: of ^[j]Jeezer, the family of the Jeezerites; of Helek, the family of the Helekites; ³¹ of Asriel, the family of the Asrielites; of Shechem, the family of the Shechemites; ³² of Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites; of Hepher, the family of the Hepherites. ³³ Now ^(Q)Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters; and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ³⁴ These are the families of Manasseh; and those who were numbered of them were fifty-two thousand seven hundred.

³⁵ These are the sons of Ephraim according to their families: of Shuthelah, the family of the Shuthalhites; of ^[k]Becher, the family of the Bachrites; of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites. ³⁶ And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites. ³⁷ These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those who were numbered of them: thirty-two thousand five hundred.

These are the sons of Joseph according to their families.

^38 (R)The sons of Benjamin according to their families were: of Bela, the family of the Belaites; of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites; of ^(S)Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites; ³⁹ of ^(T)Shupham,^[l] the family of the Shuphamites; of ^[m]Hupham, the family of the Huphamites. ⁴⁰ And the sons of Bela were ^[n]Ard and Naaman: ^(U)of Ard, the family of the Ardites; of Naaman, the family of the Naamites. ⁴¹ These are the sons of Benjamin according to their families; and those who were numbered of them were forty-five thousand six hundred.

⁴² These are the sons of Dan according to their families: of ^[o]Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan according to their families. ⁴³ All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those who were numbered of them, were sixty-four thousand four hundred.

^44 (V)The sons of Asher according to their families were: of Jimna, the family of the Jimnites; of Jesui, the family of the Jesuites; of Beriah, the family of the Beriites. ⁴⁵ Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites; of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites. ⁴⁶ And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah. ⁴⁷ These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those who were numbered of them: fifty-three thousand four hundred.

^48 (W)The sons of Naphtali according to their families were: of ^[p]Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites; of Guni, the family of the Gunites; ⁴⁹ of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites; of ^(X)Shillem, the family of the Shillemites. ⁵⁰ These are the families of Naphtali according to their families; and those who were numbered of them were forty-five thousand four hundred.

^51 (Y)These are those who were numbered of the children of Israel: six hundred and one thousand seven hundred and thirty.

⁵² Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ^53 (Z)“To these the land shall be ^(AA)divided as an inheritance, according to the number of names. ^54 (AB)To a large tribe you shall give a larger inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a smaller inheritance. Each shall be given its inheritance according to those who were numbered of them. ⁵⁵ But the land shall be ^(AC)divided by lot; they shall inherit according to the names of the tribes of their fathers. ⁵⁶ According to the lot their inheritance shall be divided between the larger and the smaller.”

^57 (AD)And these are those who were numbered of the Levites according to their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites; of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites; of Merari, the family of the Merarites. ⁵⁸ These are the families of the Levites: 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 Korathites. And Kohath begot Amram. ⁵⁹ The name of Amram’s wife was ^(AE)Jochebed the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and to Amram she bore Aaron and Moses and their sister Miriam. ^60 (AF)To Aaron were born Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ⁶¹ And ^(AG)Nadab and Abihu died when they offered profane fire before the Lord.

^62 (AH)Now those who were numbered of them were twenty-three thousand, every male from a month old and above; ^(AI)for they were not numbered among the other children of Israel, because there was ^(AJ)no inheritance given to them among the children of Israel.

⁶³ These are those who were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel ^(AK)in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho. ^64 (AL)But among these there was not a man of those who were numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest when they numbered the children of Israel in the ^(AM)Wilderness of Sinai. ⁶⁵ For the Lord had said of them, “They ^(AN)shall surely die in the wilderness.” So there was not left a man of them, ^(AO)except Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.

Inheritance Laws

27 Then came the daughters of ^(AP)Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these were the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ² And they stood before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, by the doorway of the tabernacle of meeting, saying: ³ “Our father ^(AQ)died in the wilderness; but he was not in the company of those who gathered together against the Lord, ^(AR)in company with Korah, but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. ⁴ Why should the name of our father be ^(AS)removed^[q] from among his family because he had no son? ^(AT)Give us a ^[r]possession among our father’s brothers.”

⁵ So Moses ^(AU)brought their case before the Lord.

⁶ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ⁷ “The daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; ^(AV)you shall surely give them a possession of inheritance among their father’s brothers, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them. ⁸ And you 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. ⁹ If he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. ¹⁰ If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. ¹¹ And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the relative closest to him in his family, and he shall possess it.’ ” And it shall be to the children of Israel ^(AW)a statute of judgment, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

Joshua the Next Leader of Israel^(AX)

¹² Now the Lord said to Moses: ^(AY)“Go up into this Mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given to the children of Israel. ¹³ And when you have seen it, you also ^(AZ)shall ^[s]be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother was gathered. ¹⁴ For in the Wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, you ^(BA)rebelled against My command to hallow Me at the waters before their eyes.” (These are the ^(BB)waters of Meribah, at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.)

¹⁵ Then Moses spoke to the Lord, saying: ¹⁶ “Let the Lord, ^(BC)the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, ^17 (BD)who may go out before them and go in before them, who may lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be ^(BE)like sheep which have no shepherd.”

¹⁸ And the Lord said to Moses: “Take Joshua the son of Nun with you, a man ^(BF)in whom is the Spirit, and ^(BG)lay your hand on him; ¹⁹ set him before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation, and ^(BH)inaugurate^[t] him in their sight. ²⁰ And ^(BI)you shall give some of your authority to him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel ^(BJ)may be obedient. ^21 (BK)He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire before the Lord for him ^(BL)by the judgment of the Urim. ^(BM)At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, he and all the children of Israel with him—all the congregation.”

²² So Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and set him before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation. ²³ And he laid his hands on him ^(BN)and ^[u]inaugurated him, just as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.