Numbers 26:5-11·~1 min

The Tribe of Reuben

Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, is listed through his clans, and the total of his registered men is given. The tribe is presented in the standard census form.

R⁵euben was the firstborn of Israel. These were the descendants of Reuben: ⁶the Hezronite clan from Hezron, ⁷These were the clans of Reuben, and their registration numbered 43,730.

Verse 5Reuben is named as Israel’s firstborn, and his descendants begin to be listed.

It introduces the first tribal record.

Verse 6The Hezronite clan and other Reubenite lines are named from their ancestors.

It gives the clan structure within Reuben.

Verse 7The clans of Reuben are totaled at 43,730 registered men.

It supplies the tribe’s census number.

The genealogy narrows to Eliab’s sons and recalls Dathan and Abiram, whose rebellion brought catastrophic judgment. Yet the line of Korah is noted as surviving, even after that warning.

⁸Now the son of Pallu was Eliab, ⁹and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. ¹⁰It was Dathan and Abiram, chosen by the congregation, who rebelled against Moses and Aaron with the followers of Korah who rebelled against the LORD. And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire consumed 250 men. They serve as a warning sign. ¹¹However, the line of Korah did not die out.

Verse 8Pallu’s son is identified as Eliab.

It narrows the genealogy to a notable branch.

Verse 9Eliab’s sons are Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram.

It names the men tied to the coming recollection.

Verse 10Dathan and Abiram are identified as men who rebelled against Moses and Aaron with Korah’s company, and the earth swallowed them while fire consumed the rebels.

It recalls judgment as a warning within the genealogy.

Verse 11The line of Korah, however, does not die out.

It adds a brief note of survival within remembered judgment.

Passage shape

A quiet block diagram: each row is one authored paragraph movement, with verse numbers kept visible for scanning and deeper work.

vv. 5-7
Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, is listed through his clans, and the total of his registered men is given. The tribe is presented in the standard census form.
This paragraph establishes Reuben’s formal place in the census.
5 6 7
vv. 8-11
The genealogy narrows to Eliab’s sons and recalls Dathan and Abiram, whose rebellion brought catastrophic judgment. Yet the line of Korah is noted as surviving, even after that warning.
This paragraph interrupts the count with a remembered act of rebellion and its aftermath.
8 9 10 11

Section summaryReuben’s clans are listed and numbered, but the record pauses over Eliab’s line to recall Dathan and Abiram, whose rebellion ended in judgment. Even within a census, memory of defiance remains, though Korah’s line itself continues.

Role in the chapterThis section begins the tribal listings while tying the new numbering to the wilderness story already told. Reuben’s count is not only administrative; it is shadowed by remembered rebellion and preserved family lines.