The Census of Israel’s Warriors

1Now the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 2“Take a [a]census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, every male, head by head 3from twenty years old and upward, whoever is able to go to war in Israel. You and Aaron shall [b]count them by their armies. 4With you, moreover, there shall be a man of each tribe, each one head of his father’s household. 5These then are the names of the men who shall stand with you: of the tribe of Reuben, Elizur the son of Shedeur; 6of the tribe of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai; 7of the tribe of Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab; 8of Issachar, Nethanel the son of Zuar; 9of Zebulun, Eliab the son of Helon; 10of the sons of Joseph: of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur; 11of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni; 12of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai; 13of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran; 14of Gad, Eliasaph the son of Deuel; 15of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan. 16These are the men who were called from the congregation, the leaders of their fathers’ tribes; they were the heads of [c]divisions of Israel.”

17So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name, 18and they assembled all the congregation on the first day of the second month. Then they registered by ancestry in their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, head by head, 19just as the LORD had commanded Moses. So he counted them in the wilderness of Sinai.

20Now the sons of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 21their numbered men of the tribe of Reuben were 46,500.

22Of the sons of Simeon, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, their numbered men, according to the number of names, head by head, every male from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 23their numbered men of the tribe of Simeon were 59,300.

24Of the sons of Gad, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 25their numbered men of the tribe of Gad were 45,650.

26Of the sons of Judah, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 27their numbered men of the tribe of Judah were 74,600.

28Of the sons of Issachar, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 29their numbered men of the tribe of Issachar were 54,400.

30Of the sons of Zebulun, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 31their numbered men of the tribe of Zebulun were 57,400.

32Of the sons of Joseph, namely, of the sons of Ephraim, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 33their numbered men of the tribe of Ephraim were 40,500.

34Of the sons of Manasseh, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 35their numbered men of the tribe of Manasseh were 32,200.

36Of the sons of Benjamin, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 37their numbered men of the tribe of Benjamin were 35,400.

38Of the sons of Dan, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 39their numbered men of the tribe of Dan were 62,700.

40Of the sons of Asher, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 41their numbered men of the tribe of Asher were 41,500.

42Of the sons of Naphtali, their descendants by their families, by their fathers’ households, according to the number of names, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war, 43their numbered men of the tribe of Naphtali were 53,400.

44These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron counted, with the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each of whom was of his father’s household. 45So all the numbered men of the sons of Israel by their fathers’ households, from twenty years old and upward, whoever was able to go to war in Israel, 46all the numbered men were 603,550.

Levites Exempted

47The Levites, however, were not counted among them by their fathers’ tribe. 48For the LORD had spoken to Moses, saying, 49“Only the tribe of Levi you shall not count, nor shall you take their [d]census among the sons of Israel. 50And you shall appoint the Levites over the [e]tabernacle of the testimony, and over all its furnishings and over everything that belongs to it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall take care of it; they shall also camp around the [f]tabernacle. 51So when the tabernacle is to move on, the Levites shall take it down; and when the tabernacle encamps, the Levites shall set it up. But the [g]layman who comes near it shall be put to death. 52So the sons of Israel shall camp, each man by his own camp, and each man by his own [h]flag, according to their armies. 53But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that there will be no divine wrath against the congregation of the sons of Israel. So the Levites shall be responsible for service to the tabernacle of the testimony.” 54And the sons of Israel did so; in accordance with all that the LORD had commanded Moses, so they did.