Eleazar

48Then the army officers came to Moses. They led the groups of a thousand and the groups of a hundred.

And the officers which were over thousands of the host, the captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, came near unto Moses:

49They said, "We counted the soldiers under us. Not one man is missing."

And they said unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war which are under our charge, and there lacketh not one man of us.

50"So we have brought a gift for the LORD. It is the gold each man took: armbands, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces. We bring it to make things right with the LORD for our lives."

We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD.

NoteArmbands were bands of gold worn high on the arm. Soldiers often took jewelry like this after a battle.

51Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold from them. It was all made into fine jewelry.

And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of them, even all wrought jewels.

52All the gold given to the LORD by the officers weighed 16,750 shekels.

And all the gold of the offering that they offered up to the LORD, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels.

NoteA shekel was a weight, not a coin. One shekel weighed about as much as four pennies.

53Each soldier had also kept things he took for himself.

(For the men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself.)

54Moses and Eleazar the priest took the officers' gold into the worship tent. It was kept there as a reminder about Israel before the LORD.

And Moses and Eleazar the priest took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the tabernacle of the congregation, for a memorial for the children of Israel before the LORD.

NoteThe worship tent was also called the tent of meeting. Keeping the gold there was a way to remember what had happened.

28So Moses gave orders about them. He told Eleazar the priest, Joshua the son of Nun, and the family leaders of Israel.

So concerning them Moses commanded Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the chief fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel:

NoteJoshua would be the leader after Moses died. So Moses tells him the plan too.

29Moses said to them, "The men of Gad and Reuben may cross the Jordan with you. Every man of them must be armed for battle before the LORD. If they do, and the land is won, give them Gilead to keep.

And Moses said unto them, If the children of Gad and the children of Reuben will pass with you over Jordan, every man armed to battle, before the LORD, and the land shall be subdued before you; then ye shall give them the land of Gilead for a possession:

30But if they will not cross over armed with you, they get no land here. They must take their share with you inside Canaan."

But if they will not pass over with you armed, they shall have possessions among you in the land of Canaan.

NoteCanaan was the land God promised, west of the Jordan River.

31The men of Gad and Reuben answered, "We will do what the LORD has said.

And the children of Gad and the children of Reuben answered, saying, As the LORD hath said unto thy servants, so will we do.

32We will cross into Canaan with our weapons, before the LORD. Then the land here, on this side of the river, will be ours."

We will pass over armed before the LORD into the land of Canaan, that the possession of our inheritance on this side Jordan may be ours.

33So Moses gave them the land. He gave it to Gad, to Reuben, and to half of Manasseh's family group. Manasseh was a son of Joseph. This land had belonged to Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan. It included the towns and the country around them.

And Moses gave unto them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and unto half the 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, with the cities thereof in the coasts, even the cities of the country round about.

NoteSihon and Og were two kings Israel had already beaten in battle. The Amorites were one of the peoples living in that land. Bashan was the land Og ruled. Manasseh's family group was so big that half of it stayed here.

16The LORD spoke to Moses again. He said this to him.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

17"Here are the names of the men who will divide the land for you. They are Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun.

These are the names of the men which shall divide the land unto you: Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun.

NoteA priest was a man whose job was to help people worship God. Eleazar was the son of Aaron, the first priest. Joshua was Moses' helper. He would lead the people after Moses died.

18Also pick one leader from each tribe. They will share out the land.

And ye shall take one prince of every tribe, to divide the land by inheritance.

NoteA leader here means the head man of one big family group.

19Here are the names of those men. From the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

And the names of the men are these: Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

NoteCaleb had gone to look at this land many years before, when he was young.

20From the tribe of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud.

And of the tribe of the children of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud.

21From the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon.

Of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon.

22The leader from the tribe of Dan is Bukki the son of Jogli.

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Dan, Bukki the son of Jogli.

23From Joseph's family, for the tribe of Manasseh, the leader is Hanniel the son of Ephod.

The prince of the children of Joseph, for the tribe of the children of Manasseh, Hanniel the son of Ephod.

NoteJoseph was one of Jacob's sons. His two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, each became a tribe.

24The leader from the tribe of Ephraim is Kemuel the son of Shiphtan.

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Ephraim, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan.

25The leader from the tribe of Zebulun is Elizaphan the son of Parnach.

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Zebulun, Elizaphan the son of Parnach.

26The leader from the tribe of Issachar is Paltiel the son of Azzan.

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Issachar, Paltiel the son of Azzan.

27The leader from the tribe of Asher is Ahihud the son of Shelomi.

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Asher, Ahihud the son of Shelomi.

28The leader from the tribe of Naphtali is Pedahel the son of Ammihud."

And the prince of the tribe of the children of Naphtali, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.

29These are the men the LORD picked. They were to share out the land of Canaan among the people of Israel.

These are they whom the LORD commanded to divide the inheritance unto the children of Israel in the land of Canaan.

6The people of Israel traveled from Beeroth of the sons of Jaakan to Mosera. Aaron died there, and they buried him there. His son Eleazar took his place as priest, the man who served God for the people.

And the children of Israel took their journey from Beeroth of the children of Jaakan to Mosera: there Aaron died, and there he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered in the priest’s office in his stead.

NoteAaron was the brother of Moses and the first priest. A priest led the people when they worshiped God. Beeroth and Mosera were places where the people camped as they traveled.

7From there they traveled to Gudgodah. From Gudgodah they went to Jotbath, a land with streams of water.

From thence they journeyed unto Gudgodah; and from Gudgodah to Jotbath, a land of rivers of waters.

8At that time the LORD chose one family group, the tribe of Levi, for special work. They carry the ark, the box that holds God's agreement with his people. They stand before the LORD to serve him. They also bless people in his name. They still do this today.

At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

NoteA tribe is one big family group, all from the same great-grandfather. Levi was one of Jacob's twelve sons. To bless someone means to ask God to do good for them.

1These are the lands that the people of Israel received in Canaan. Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the tribe leaders handed them out.

And these are the countries which the children of Israel inherited in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance to them.

NoteCanaan was the land God promised to give the people of Israel. The people of Israel were split into big family groups called tribes. A priest was a man who helped people worship God.

2They chose each tribe's share by casting lots. The LORD had told Moses to do it this way. Nine and a half tribes got land here.

By lot was their inheritance, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses, for the nine tribes, and for the half tribe.

NoteThere were twelve tribes in all. Some tribes had already been given land on the other side of the river. Casting lots was a bit like drawing straws. People used it to settle a choice without arguing about it.

3Moses had already given land east of the Jordan River to two and a half tribes. He gave no land to the Levites.

For Moses had given the inheritance of two tribes and an half tribe on the other side Jordan: but unto the Levites he gave none inheritance among them.

NoteThe Jordan is the river Israel crossed to get into Canaan. The Levites were the tribe who worked at God's tent, so they were given towns instead of farmland.

4Joseph's family had grown into two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. So the Levites got no share of the land. They only got towns to live in, with fields around them for their animals.

For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim: therefore they gave no part unto the Levites in the land, save cities to dwell in, with their suburbs for their cattle and for their substance.

NoteJoseph was one of Israel's sons long ago. His two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, each grew into a whole tribe.

5The people of Israel did just what the LORD had told Moses. They divided up the land.

As the LORD commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land.

3But Zelophehad had no sons. He was the son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh. He had only daughters. Their names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters: and these are the names of his daughters, Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

NoteIn those days land was usually passed down to sons only. A man with no sons had no one to leave his fields to. So these five sisters had a problem, and they went and asked about it.

4The five sisters came to Eleazar the priest. They came to Joshua and the leaders too. They said, "The LORD told Moses to give us land, like our brothers get." So Joshua gave them land, just as the LORD had said.

And they came near before Eleazar the priest, and before Joshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying, The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brethren. Therefore according to the commandment of the LORD he gave them an inheritance among the brethren of their father.

NoteMoses was the leader who guided Israel before Joshua did. When you see LORD in big letters, it stands for God's own name. The land a family got was called an inheritance. That means a gift handed down from parents to children. A priest was a man who served God for the people.

5So Manasseh got ten pieces of land. That was not counting Gilead and Bashan, which were across the Jordan River.

And there fell ten portions to Manasseh, beside the land of Gilead and Bashan, which were on the other side Jordan;

NoteThe Jordan River ran down the middle of the land. Some of the tribes settled on the east side of it.

6This was because the daughters of Manasseh got land along with the sons. The land of Gilead went to the rest of Manasseh's sons.

Because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons: and the rest of Manasseh’s sons had the land of Gilead.

49When they had finished dividing the land into shares, the people of Israel gave Joshua son of Nun a share too.

When they had made an end of dividing the land for inheritance by their coasts, the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun among them:

50The LORD had said to do this. So they gave him the town he asked for, Timnathserah, in the hills of Ephraim. Joshua built up the town and lived there.

According to the word of the LORD they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnathserah in mount Ephraim: and he built the city, and dwelt therein.

NoteJoshua was the leader who brought Israel into this land. Built up the town means he fixed it and made it stronger. When LORD is written in capital letters, it stands for God's own name.

51These are the shares of land that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the family leaders of Israel handed out. They did it by drawing lots at Shiloh, before the LORD, at the door of the tent where the people met with God. So the work of dividing the land was done.

These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the LORD, at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. So they made an end of dividing the country.

NoteA priest was a man whose job was to lead the people in worship. Shiloh was the town where Israel set up their special tent. That tent was the place where people came to meet with God.

1The leaders of the Levite families came to Eleazar the priest. They also came to Joshua son of Nun and to the other tribe leaders.

Then came near the heads of the fathers of the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel;

NoteA priest was a man who helped people worship God. Eleazar was the head priest. A tribe was one big family group in Israel. The Levites were the tribe who did God's work at the holy tent.

2They spoke to them at Shiloh, in the land of Canaan. They said, "The LORD told Moses to give us towns to live in. He also said to give us open land for our animals."

And they spake unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying, The LORD commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the suburbs thereof for our cattle.

NoteMoses was the leader who brought Israel out of Egypt long ago. Shiloh was the town where Israel kept God's special tent. The King James says "suburbs" here. Back then that word meant grassy land for animals, not streets of houses.

3So the people of Israel obeyed what the LORD said. They gave the Levites these towns and open land out of their own land.

And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, at the commandment of the LORD, these cities and their suburbs.

4They drew lots to decide who got what. The first lot picked the families of Kohath. Some of these Levites came from Aaron the priest. They got thirteen towns from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.

And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, which were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of Simeon, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.

NoteDrawing lots was a little like drawing straws. People believed God picked the answer that way. Aaron was Moses' brother. He was the first priest in Israel.

5The rest of Kohath's families got ten towns. These came from the tribes of Ephraim and Dan, and from half of the tribe of Manasseh.

And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.

NoteManasseh's family was so big that it split in two. Half of them lived on one side of the Jordan River. The other half lived across the river.

6Gershon's families got thirteen towns. These came from the tribes of Issachar, Asher, and Naphtali. Some came from the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan.

And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.

NoteBashan was land on the far side of the Jordan River. It had wide, grassy fields that were good for animals.

7Merari's families got twelve towns. These came from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.

The children of Merari by their families had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.

8So the people of Israel drew lots and gave the Levites these towns. They gave the open land around them too. This is just what the LORD had told Moses.

And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.