Numbers 31:25-47·~1 min

Division of the Spoils

The LORD tells Moses, Eleazar, and the family heads to count the captives and animals, divide them between the soldiers and the congregation, and set apart tribute from each share. Moses and Eleazar carry out these commands.

T²⁵he LORD said to Moses, ²⁶“You and Eleazar the priest and the family heads of the congregation are to take a count of what was captured, both of man and beast. ²⁷Then divide the captives between the troops who went out to battle and the rest of the congregation. ²⁸Set aside a tribute for the LORD from what belongs to the soldiers who went into battle: one out of every five hundred, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, or sheep. ²⁹Take it from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as an offering to the LORD. ³⁰From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every fifty, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, or other animals, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the LORD.” ³¹So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the LORD had commanded Moses,

The text lists the spoil taken by the soldiers and then records the warriors’ half with the LORD’s tribute taken from it. Moses gives that tribute to Eleazar as commanded.

³²and this plunder remained from the spoils the soldiers had taken: ³³72,000 cattle, ³⁴61,000 donkeys, ³⁵and 32,000 women who had not slept with a man. ³⁶This was the half portion for those who had gone to war: ³⁷337,500 sheep, including a tribute to the LORD of 675, ³⁸36,000 cattle, including a tribute to the LORD of 72, ³⁹30,500 donkeys, including a tribute to the LORD of 61, ⁴⁰and 16,000 people, including a tribute to the LORD of 32. ⁴¹Moses gave the tribute to Eleazar the priest as an offering for the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The narrative then records the congregation’s half of the spoil. From that portion Moses takes one out of every fifty persons and animals and gives them to the Levites who serve at the tabernacle.

⁴²From the Israelites’ half, which Moses had set apart from the men who had gone to war, ⁴³this half belonged to the congregation: ⁴⁴36,000 cattle, ⁴⁵30,500 donkeys, ⁴⁶and 16,000 people. ⁴⁷From the Israelites’ half, Moses took one out of every fifty persons and animals and gave them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of the LORD, as the LORD had commanded him.

Section summaryThe LORD orders the spoil to be counted and divided between the warriors and the congregation, with fixed portions set apart for Eleazar and for the Levites. The long inventory of people and animals shows the distribution being carried out exactly as commanded.

Role in the chapterThis middle section orders the aftermath of victory by turning captured wealth into measured tribute and shared possession. It shows that even spoil from war falls under the LORD’s claim and the needs of the tabernacle.