25 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, 26 Take the sum of the prey that was taken, of man and of cattle, thou, and Eleazar the priest, and the chief fathers of the assembly; 27 and divide the prey into halves, between them that conducted the war, who went out to the battle, and the whole assembly. 28 And thou shalt levy a tribute for Jehovah of the men of war who went out to the army, one soul of five hundred of the persons, and of the oxen, and of the asses, and of the small cattle. 29 Of their half shall ye take it, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for a heave-offering of Jehovah. 30 And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the oxen, of the asses, and of the small cattle, of every [kind of] beasts, and thou shalt give them unto the Levites, who keep the charge of the tabernacle of Jehovah. 31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as Jehovah had commanded Moses. 32 And the prey, the rest of the spoil, which the men of war had taken, was six hundred and seventy-five thousand sheep, 33 and seventy-two thousand oxen, 34 and sixty-one thousand asses, 35 and of human persons, of the women that had not known lying with a man, all the persons were thirty-two thousand. 36 And the half, the portion of them that had gone out to the war, was in number three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 37 and the tribute for Jehovah of the sheep was six hundred and seventy-five; 38 and the oxen were thirty-six thousand, and the tribute thereof for Jehovah, seventy-two; 39 and the asses were thirty thousand five hundred, and the tribute thereof for Jehovah, sixty-one; 40 and the human persons were sixteen thousand, of whom the tribute for Jehovah was thirty-two persons. 41 And Moses gave the tribute of Jehovah's heave-offering to Eleazar the priest, as Jehovah had commanded Moses. 42 And of the children of Israel's half, which Moses had divided, [taking it] from the men that served in the war, 43 (now the half belonging to the assembly was of the sheep, three hundred and thirty-seven thousand five hundred, 44 and thirty-six thousand oxen, 45 and thirty thousand five hundred asses, 46 and sixteen thousand human persons,) 47 ... of the children of Israel's half, Moses took one portion of fifty, of man and of cattle, and gave them to the Levites who kept the charge of the tabernacle of Jehovah; as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 31:25-47

Commentary on Numbers 31:25-47

(Read Numbers 31:25-47)

Whatever we have, God justly claims a part. Out of the people's share God required one in fifty, but out of the soldiers' share only one in five hundred. The less opportunity we have of honouring God with personal services, the more should we give in money or value.