Israel Takes Vengeance on Midian

311 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Avenge the children of Israel for the Midianites. Afterward you shall be gathered to your people.” 3 Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for the war, that they may go against Midian, to execute Yahweh’s vengeance on Midian. 4 Of every tribe one thousand, throughout all the tribes of Israel, you shall send to the war.” 5 So there were delivered, out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand of every tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. 6 Moses sent them, one thousand of every tribe, to the war, them and Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, to the war, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the trumpets for the alarm in his hand.

7 They warred against Midian, as Yahweh commanded Moses; and they killed every male. 8 They killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their slain: Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they killed with the sword. 9 The children of Israel took captive the women of Midian and their little ones; and all their livestock, and all their flocks, and all their goods, they took for a prey. 10 All their cities in the places in which they lived, and all their encampments, they burnt with fire. 11 They took all the spoil, and all the prey, both of man and of animal. 12 They brought the captives, and the prey, and the spoil, to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the congregation of the children of Israel, to the camp at the plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan at Jericho.

13 Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the princes of the congregation, went forth to meet them outside of the camp. 14 Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, who came from the service of the war. 15 Moses said to them, “Have you saved all the women alive? 16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, and so the plague was among the congregation of Yahweh. 17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man by lying with him. 18 But all the girls, who have not known man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves. 19 “Encamp outside of the camp seven days: whoever has killed any person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves on the third day and on the seventh day, you and your captives. 20 As to every garment, and all that is made of skin, and all work of goats’ hair, and all things made of wood, you shall purify yourselves.”

The Division of the Booty

21 Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who went to the battle, “This is the statute of the law which Yahweh has commanded Moses: 22 however the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead, 23 everything that may abide the fire, you shall make to go through the fire, and it shall be clean; nevertheless it shall be purified with the water for impurity: and all that doesn’t withstand the fire you shall make to go through the water. 24 You shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be clean; and afterward you shall come into the camp.”

25 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 26 “Take the sum of the prey that was taken, both of man and of animal, you, and Eleazar the priest, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the congregation; 27 and divide the prey into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the congregation. 28 Levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the cattle, and of the donkeys, and of the flocks: 29 take it of their half, and give it to Eleazar the priest, for Yahweh’s wave offering. 30 Of the children of Israel’s half, you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, even of all the livestock, and give them to the Levites, who perform the duty of the tabernacle of Yahweh.” 31 Moses and Eleazar the priest did as Yahweh commanded Moses. 32 Now the prey, over and above the booty which the men of war took, was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep, 33 and seventy-two thousand head of cattle, 34 and sixty-one thousand donkeys, 35 and thirty-two thousand persons in all, of the women who had not known man by lying with him. 36 The half, which was the portion of those who went out to war, was in number three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep: 37 and Yahweh’s tribute of the sheep was six hundred seventy-five. 38 The cattle were thirty-six thousand; of which Yahweh’s tribute was seventy-two. 39 The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred; of which Yahweh’s tribute was sixty-one. 40 The persons were sixteen thousand; of whom Yahweh’s tribute was thirty-two persons. 41 Moses gave the tribute, which was Yahweh’s wave offering, to Eleazar the priest, as Yahweh commanded Moses. 42 Of the children of Israel’s half, which Moses divided off from the men who warred 43 (now the congregation’s half was three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 44 and thirty-six thousand head of cattle, 45 and thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, 46 and sixteen thousand persons), 47 even of the children of Israel’s half, Moses took one drawn out of every fifty, both of man and of animal, and gave them to the Levites, who performed the duty of the tabernacle of Yahweh; as Yahweh commanded Moses.

48 The officers who were over the thousands of the army, the captains of thousands, and the captains of hundreds, came near to Moses; 49 and they said to Moses, “Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war who are under our command, and there lacks not one man of us. 50 We have brought Yahweh’s offering, what every man has gotten, of jewels of gold, armlets, and bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and necklaces, to make atonement for our souls before Yahweh.” 51 Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them, even all worked jewels. 52 All the gold of the wave offering that they offered up to Yahweh, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels. 53 (For the men of war had taken booty, every man for himself.) 54 Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the Tent of Meeting, for a memorial for the children of Israel before Yahweh.

Reuben, Gad, and Half of Manasseh Settle East of the Jordan

321 Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of livestock: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that behold, the place was a place for livestock; 2 the children of Gad and the children of Reuben came and spoke to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the princes of the congregation, saying, 3 “Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Sebam, and Nebo, and Beon, 4 the land which Yahweh struck before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock; and your servants have livestock.” 5 They said, “If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants for a possession; don’t bring us over the Jordan.” 6 Moses said to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, “Shall your brothers go to the war, and shall you sit here? 7 Why do you discourage the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which Yahweh has given them? 8 Your fathers did so when I sent them from Kadesh Barnea to see the land. 9 For when they went up to the valley of Eshcol, and saw the land, they discouraged the heart of the children of Israel, that they should not go into the land which Yahweh had given them. 10 Yahweh’s anger was kindled in that day, and he swore, saying, 11 ‘Surely none of the men who came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me: 12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; because they have followed Yahweh completely.’ 13 Yahweh’s anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander back and forth in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation, who had done evil in the sight of Yahweh, was consumed. 14 “Behold, you have risen up in your fathers’ place, an increase of sinful men, to augment yet the fierce anger of Yahweh toward Israel. 15 For if you turn away from after him, he will yet again leave them in the wilderness; and you will destroy all this people.”

16 They came near to him, and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock, and cities for our little ones: 17 but we ourselves will be ready armed to go before the children of Israel, until we have brought them to their place: and our little ones shall dwell in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. 18 We will not return to our houses, until the children of Israel have inherited every man his inheritance. 19 For we will not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan, and forward; because our inheritance is fallen to us on this side of the Jordan eastward.” 20 Moses said to them, “If you will do this thing, if you will arm yourselves to go before Yahweh to the war, 21 and every armed man of you will pass over the Jordan before Yahweh, until he has driven out his enemies from before him, 22 and the land is subdued before Yahweh; then afterward you shall return, and be guiltless towards Yahweh, and towards Israel; and this land shall be to you for a possession before Yahweh. 23 “But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against Yahweh; and be sure your sin will find you out. 24 Build cities for your little ones, and folds for your sheep; and do that which has proceeded out of your mouth.” 25 The children of Gad and the children of Reuben spoke to Moses, saying, “Your servants will do as my lord commands. 26 Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our livestock, shall be there in the cities of Gilead; 27 but your servants will pass over, every man who is armed for war, before Yahweh to battle, as my lord says.”

28 So Moses commanded concerning them to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers’ houses of the tribes of the children of Israel. 29 Moses said to them, “If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over the Jordan, every man who is armed to battle, before Yahweh, and the land shall be subdued before you; then you shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession: 30 but if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.” 31 The children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, “As Yahweh has said to your servants, so will we do. 32 We will pass over armed before Yahweh into the land of Canaan, and the possession of our inheritance shall remain with us beyond the Jordan.” 33 Moses gave to them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, according to the cities of it with their borders, even the cities of the surrounding land. 34 The children of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer, 35 and Atrothshophan, and Jazer, and Jogbehah, 36 and Beth Nimrah, and Beth Haran: fortified cities, and folds for sheep. 37 The children of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kiriathaim, 38 and Nebo, and Baal Meon, (their names being changed), and Sibmah: and they gave other names to the cities which they built. 39 The children of Machir the son of Manasseh went to Gilead, and took it, and dispossessed the Amorites who were therein. 40 Moses gave Gilead to Machir the son of Manasseh; and he lived therein. 41 Jair the son of Manasseh went and took its towns, and called them Havvoth Jair. 42 Nobah went and took Kenath, and its villages, and called it Nobah, after his own name.