Lectionary Calendar
Thursday, April 9th, 2026
Thursday in Easter Week
Attention!
Take your personal ministry to the Next Level by helping StudyLight build churches and supporting pastors in Uganda.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

Complete Jewish Bible

Numbers 31:28

From the portion of the soldiers who went out to battle, levy a tax for Adonai consisting of one-five-hundredth of the persons, cattle, donkeys and sheep;

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Armies;   Priest;   Servant;   Spoils;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Desert, Journey of Israel through the;   Heave-Offering;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Midianites;   Spoil;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Beeves;   Booty;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Priest;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Levy;   Nethinim;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Beeves,;   Eleazar ;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Booty;   Priest;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Booty;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Priesthood, the;   On to Canaan;   Moses, the Man of God;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Person;   Slave;   Tax;   Tribute;   War;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Priestly Code;   Sidra;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
Levy a tribute to the LORD of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, [both] of the persons, and of the oxen, and of the donkeys, and of the flocks:
King James Version
And levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:
Lexham English Bible
Exact a tribute for Yahweh from the men of the war, those who went out to the battle, one from five hundred persons, and from the cattle and from the male donkeys and from the flock;
English Standard Version
And levy for the Lord a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one out of five hundred, of the people and of the oxen and of the donkeys and of the flocks.
New Century Version
From the soldiers who went to war, take a tax for the Lord of one item out of every five hundred. This includes people, cattle, donkeys, or sheep.
New English Translation
"You must exact a tribute for the Lord from the fighting men who went out to battle: one life out of five hundred, from the people, the cattle, and from the donkeys and the sheep.
Amplified Bible
"Levy a tax for the LORD from the warriors who went to battle, one in five hundred of the persons, the oxen, the donkeys, and the flocks.
New American Standard Bible
"Also, collect a tribute tax for the LORD from the men of war who went to battle, one in five hundred of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the sheep;
Geneva Bible (1587)
And thou shalt take a tribute vnto ye Lord of the men of warre, which went out to battel: one person of fiue hundreth, both of the persons, and of the beeues, & of the asses, & of the sheepe.
Legacy Standard Bible
And you shall exact a levy for Yahweh from the men of war who went out to battle, one in five hundred of the persons and of the cattle and of the donkeys and of the sheep;
Contemporary English Version
From the half that belongs to the soldiers, set aside for the Lord one out of every five hundred people or animals and give these to Eleazar.
Darby Translation
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.
Easy-to-Read Version
Take part of these things from the soldiers who went to war. That part will belong to the Lord . His share is one from every 500 items. This includes people, cattle, donkeys, and sheep.
George Lamsa Translation
And levy a tribute for the LORD from the men of war who went out to battle; out of all the congregation, one person of every five hundred, both of the persons and of the oxen and of the asses and of the sheep;
Good News Translation
From the part that belongs to the soldiers, withhold as a tax for the Lord one out of every five hundred prisoners and the same proportion of the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.
Christian Standard Bible®
Set aside a tribute for the Lord from what belongs to the fighting men who went out to war: one out of every five hundred people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.
Literal Translation
And you shall levy a tribute to Jehovah from the men of war who went out to the battle: one body out of five hundred, of men, and of the herd, and of the asses, and of the flock,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And of the men of warre that wente out to ye battayll, thou shalt heue vnto the LORDE one soule of fyue hundreth, both of the wemen, oxen, Asses and shepe:
American Standard Version
And levy a tribute unto Jehovah of the men of war that went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the oxen, and of the asses, and of the flocks:
Bible in Basic English
And from the men of war who went out let there be offered to the Lord one out of every five hundred, from the persons, and from the oxen and asses and sheep:
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And take a tribute vnto the Lorde of the men of warre which went out to battayle: one soule of fiue hundred, both of the persons, and of the beefes, and of the asses, and of the sheepe.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
and levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war that went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the flocks;
King James Version (1611)
And leuie a tribute vnto the Lord of the men of warre which went out to battell: one soule of fiue hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeues, and of the asses, and of the sheepe.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And ye shall take a tribute for the Lord from the warriors that went out to battle; one soul out of five hundred, from the men, and from the cattle, even from the oxen, and from the sheep, and from the asses; and ye shall take from their half.
English Revised Version
and levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war that went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the flocks:
Berean Standard Bible
Set 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.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And thou schalt departe a part to the Lord, of hem that fouyten, and weren in batel, `o soule of fiue hundrid, as wel of men, as of oxun, and of assis, and of scheep.
Young's Literal Translation
and thou hast raised a tribute to Jehovah from the men of war, who go out to the host, one body out of five hundred, of man, and of the herd, and of the asses, and of the flock;
Update Bible Version
And levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war that went out to battle: one soul of five hundred of man, and of the oxen, and of the donkeys, and of the flocks:
Webster's Bible Translation
And levy a tribute to the LORD of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, [both] of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:
World English Bible
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 oxen, and of the donkeys, and of the flocks:
New King James Version
And levy a tribute for the LORD on the men of war who went out to battle: one of every five hundred of the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep;
New Living Translation
From the army's portion, first give the Lord his share of the plunder—one of every 500 of the prisoners and of the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.
New Life Bible
Then take a tax for the Lord from the men of war who went out to battle. Take one out of 500 of the persons and the cattle and the donkeys and the sheep.
New Revised Standard
From the share of the warriors who went out to battle, set aside as tribute for the Lord , one item out of every five hundred, whether persons, oxen, donkeys, sheep, or goats.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then shalt thou levy a tribute unto Yahweh - from the men of war, who went forth in the host, one living thing, out of five hundred, - of the human beings, and of the herd, and of the asses and of the flock:
Douay-Rheims Bible
And thou shalt separate a portion to the Lord from them that fought and were in the battle, one soul of five hundred as well of persons as of oxen and asses and sheep.
Revised Standard Version
And levy for the LORD a tribute from the men of war who went out to battle, one out of five hundred, of the persons and of the oxen and of the asses and of the flocks;
THE MESSAGE
"Then tax the booty that goes to the soldiers at the rate of one life out of five hundred, whether humans, cattle, donkeys, or sheep. It's a God -tax taken from their half-share to be turned over to Eleazar the priest on behalf of God . Tax the congregation's half-share at the rate of one life out of fifty, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats, or other animals. Give this to the Levites who are in charge of the care of God 's Dwelling."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Levy a tax for the LORD from the men of war who went out to battle, one in five hundred of the persons and of the cattle and of the donkeys and of the sheep;

Contextual Overview

25 (LY: iv) Adonai said to Moshe, 26 "Take all the booty, both people and animals, you, El‘azar the cohen and the leaders of clans in the community; 27 and divide the booty into two parts: half for the experienced soldiers who went out to battle, and half for the rest of the community. 28 From the portion of the soldiers who went out to battle, levy a tax for Adonai consisting of one-five-hundredth of the persons, cattle, donkeys and sheep; 29 take it from their half and give it to El‘azar the cohen as a portion set apart for Adonai . 30 From the half that goes to the people of Isra'el, you are to take one-fiftieth of the persons, and of the cattle, donkeys and sheep, that is, of all the livestock; and give them to the L'vi'im taking care of the tabernacle of Adonai ." 31 Moshe and El‘azar the cohen did as Adonai had ordered Moshe. 32 The booty, over and above the portion which the soldiers took, came to 675,000 sheep, 33 72,000 cattle, 34 61,000 donkeys,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

levy: Genesis 14:20, Joshua 6:19, Joshua 6:24, 2 Samuel 8:11, 2 Samuel 8:12, 1 Chronicles 18:11, 1 Chronicles 26:26, 1 Chronicles 26:27, Proverbs 3:9, Proverbs 3:10, Isaiah 18:7, Isaiah 23:18, Isaiah 60:9, Matthew 22:21

one soul: Numbers 31:30, Numbers 31:47, Numbers 18:26

Reciprocal: Numbers 31:32 - the booty Deuteronomy 16:10 - a tribute 2 Chronicles 15:11 - offered

Cross-References

Genesis 29:13
When Lavan heard the news of Ya‘akov his sister's son, he ran to meet him, hugged him and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Ya‘akov told Lavan all that had happened.
Genesis 31:3
Adonai said to Ya‘akov, "Return to the land of your ancestors, to your kinsmen; I will be with you."
Genesis 31:13
I am the God of Beit-El, where you anointed a standing-stone with oil, where you vowed your vow to me. Now get up, get out of this land, and return to the land where you were born.'"
Genesis 31:24
But God came to Lavan the Arami in a dream that night and said to him, "Be careful that you don't say anything to Ya‘akov, either good or bad."
Genesis 31:55
But then he heard what Lavan's sons were saying: "Ya‘akov has taken away everything that our father once had. It's from what used to belong to our father that he has gotten so rich." He also saw that Lavan regarded him differently than before. Adonai said to Ya‘akov, "Return to the land of your ancestors, to your kinsmen; I will be with you." So Ya‘akov sent for Rachel and Le'ah and had them come to the field where his flock was. He said to them, "I see by the way your father looks that he feels differently toward me than before; but the God of my father has been with me. You know that I have served your father with all my strength, and that your father has belittled me and has changed my wages ten times; but God did not allow him to do me any damage. If he said, ‘The speckled will be your wages,' then all the animals gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked will be your wages,' then all the animals gave birth to streaked young. This is how God has taken away your father's animals and given them to me. Once, when the animals were mating, I had a dream: I looked up and there in front of me the male goats which mated with the females were streaked, speckled and mottled. Then, in the dream, the angel of God said to me, ‘Ya‘akov!' and I replied, ‘Here I am.' He continued, ‘Raise your eyes now, and look: all the male goats mating with the females are streaked, speckled and mottled; for I have seen everything Lavan has been doing to you. I am the God of Beit-El, where you anointed a standing-stone with oil, where you vowed your vow to me. Now get up, get out of this land, and return to the land where you were born.'" Rachel and Le'ah answered him, "We no longer have any inheritance from our father's possessions; and he considers us foreigners, since he has sold us; moreover, he has consumed everything he received in exchange for us. Nevertheless, the wealth which God has taken away from our father has become ours and our children's anyway; so whatever God has told you to do, do." (vi) Then Ya‘akov got up, put his sons and wives on the camels, and carried off all his livestock, along with all the riches he had accumulated, the livestock in his possession which he had acquired in Paddan-Aram, to go to Yitz'chak his father in the land of Kena‘an. Now Lavan had gone to shear his sheep, so Rachel stole the household idols that belonged to her father, and Ya‘akov outwitted Lavan the Arami by not telling him of his intended flight. So he fled with everything he had: he departed, crossed the [Euphrates] River and set out for the hill-country of Gil‘ad. Not until the third day was Lavan told that Ya‘akov had fled. Lavan took his kinsmen with him and spent the next seven days pursuing Ya‘akov, overtaking him in the hill-country of Gil‘ad. But God came to Lavan the Arami in a dream that night and said to him, "Be careful that you don't say anything to Ya‘akov, either good or bad." When Lavan caught up with Ya‘akov, Ya‘akov had set up camp in the hill-country; so Lavan and his kinsmen set up camp in the hill-country of Gil‘ad. Lavan said to Ya‘akov, "What do you mean by deceiving me and carrying off my daughters as if they were captives taken in war? Why did you flee in secret and deceive me and not tell me? I would have sent you off with joy and singing to the music of tambourines and lyres. You didn't even let me kiss my sons and daughters good-bye! What a stupid thing to do! I have it in my power to do you harm; but the God of your father spoke to me last night and said, ‘Be careful that you don't say anything to Ya‘akov, either good or bad.' Granted that you had to leave, because you longed so deeply for your father's house; but why did you steal my gods?" Ya‘akov answered Lavan, "Because I was afraid. I said, ‘Suppose you take your daughters away from me by force?' But if you find your gods with someone, that person will not remain alive. So with our kinsmen to witness, if you spot anything that I have which belongs to you, take it back." Ya‘akov did not know that Rachel had stolen them. Lavan went into Ya‘akov's tent, then into Le'ah's tent and into the tent of the two slave-girls; but he did not find them. He left Le'ah's tent and entered Rachel's tent. Now Rachel had taken the household gods, put them in the saddle of the camel and was sitting on them. Lavan felt all around the tent but did not find them. She said to her father, "Please don't be angry that I'm not getting up in your presence, but it's the time of my period." So he searched, but he didn't find the household gods. Then Ya‘akov became angry and started arguing with Lavan. "What have I done wrong?" he demanded. "What is my offense, that you have come after me in hot pursuit? You have felt around in all my stuff, but what have you found of all your household goods? Put it here, in front of my kinsmen and yours, so that they can render judgment between the two of us! I have been with you for these twenty years! Your female sheep and goats haven't aborted their young, and I haven't eaten the male animals in your flocks. If one of your flock was destroyed by a wild animal, I didn't bring the carcass to you but bore the loss myself. You demanded that I compensate you for any animal stolen, whether by day or by night. Here's how it was for me: during the day thirst consumed me, and at night the cold — my sleep fled from my eyes. These twenty years I've been in your house — I served you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flock; and you changed my wages ten times! If the God of my father, the God of Avraham, the one whom Yitz'chak fears, had not been on my side, by now you would certainly have already sent me away with nothing! God has seen how distressed I've been and how hard I've worked, and last night he passed judgment in my favor." (vii) Lavan answered Ya‘akov, "The daughters are mine, the children are mine, the flocks are mine, and everything you see is mine! But what can I do today about these daughters of mine or the children they have borne? So now, come, let's make a covenant, I and you; and let it stand as a testimony between me and you." Ya‘akov took a stone and set it upright as a standing-stone. Then Ya‘akov said to his kinsmen, "Gather some stones"; and they took stones, made a pile of them and ate there by the pile of stones. Lavan called it Y'gar-Sahaduta ["pile of witness" in Aramaic], while Ya‘akov called it Gal-‘Ed ["pile of witness" in Hebrew]. Lavan said, "This pile witnesses between me and you today." This is why it is called Gal-‘Ed and also HaMitzpah [the watchtower], because he said, "May Adonai watch between me and you when we are apart from each other. If you cause pain to my daughters, or if you take wives in addition to my daughters, then, even if no one is there with us, still God is witness between me and you." Lavan also said to Ya‘akov, "Here is this pile, and here is this standing-stone, which I have set up between me and you. May this pile be a witness, and may the standing-stone be a witness, that I will not pass beyond this pile to you, and you will not pass beyond this pile and this standing-stone to me, to cause harm. May the God of Avraham and also the god of Nachor, the god of their father, judge between us." But Ya‘akov swore by the One his father Yitz'chak feared. Ya‘akov offered a sacrifice on the mountain and invited his kinsmen to the meal. They ate the food and spent the whole night on the mountain.
Exodus 4:27
Adonai said to Aharon, "Go into the desert to meet Moshe." He went, met him at the mountain of God and kissed him.
Ruth 1:9
May Adonai grant you security in the home of a new husband." Then she kissed them, but they began weeping aloud.
Ruth 1:14
Again they wept aloud. Then ‘Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-bye. But Rut stuck with her.
1 Samuel 13:13
Sh'mu'el said to Sha'ul, "You did a foolish thing. You didn't observe the mitzvah of Adonai , which he gave you. If you had, Adonai would have set up your kingship over Isra'el forever.
1 Kings 19:20
He left the oxen, ran after Eliyahu and said, "Please let me kiss my father and mother good-bye; then I will follow you." He answered, "Go; but return, because of what I did to you."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war, which went out to battle,.... That is, out of the part of the prey which was divided to them:

one soul of five hundred, both "of the persons"; or one woman of five hundred, as the Targum of Jonathan:

and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep; that is, one out of five hundred, of each of them also.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Numbers 31:28. And levy a tribute unto the Lord - one soul of five hundred, &c. — The person to be employed in the Lord's service, under the Levites-the cattle either for sacrifice, or for the use of the Levites, Numbers 31:30. Some monsters have supposed that one out of every five hundred of the captives was offered in sacrifice to the Lord! but this is abominable. When God chose to have the life of a man, he took it in the way of justice, as in the case of Midianites above, but never in the way of sacrifice.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile