Alastair's Adversaria - Biblical Reading and Reflection: Numbers 26

Episode Date: May 15, 2022

The second census. My reflections are searchable by Bible chapter here: https://audio.alastairadversaria.com/explore/. If you are interested in supporting this project, please consider supporting my work on Patreon (https://www.patreon.com/zugzwanged), using my PayPal account (https://bit.ly/2RLaUcB), or buying books for my research on Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/36WVSWCK4X33O?ref_=wl_share). You can also listen to the audio of these episodes on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/alastairs-adversaria/id1416351035?mt=2.

Numbers chapter 26. After the plague, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel from 20 years old and upward by their father's houses, all in Israel who are able to go to war. And Moses and Eliezer the priest spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying, take a census of the people from 20 years old and upward, as the Lord commanded Moses. The people of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt were, Rubin, the first born, of Israel. The sons of Ruben, of Hainok, the clan of the Hainokites, of Palu, the clan of the Paluites, of Hezran, of Hezranites, of Karmai, the clan of the Karmites. These are the clans of the Rubinites, and those listed were 43,730, and the sons of Palu, Eliab, the sons of Eliab,

Nemuel, Dathan, and Abiram. These are the Dathan and Abiram chosen from the congregation, who contended against Moses and Aaron in the company of Cora, when they contended against against the Lord, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with Cora, when that company died, when the fire devoured 250 men, and they became a warning. But the sons of Cora did not die. The sons of Simeon, according to their clans, of Nemuelites, of Nemuelites, of Jamin, the clan of the Jamanites, of Jain, the clan of the Jainites, of the Jain, the Cainites, of Zerah, the clan of the Shorlites. These are the clans of the Simeonites, 22,200. The sons of Gad, according to their clans, of Ziphanites, of Hagi, the clan of the

Zephanites, of Hagi, the clan of the Hagites, of Shunai, the clan of the Shunites, of Osnai, the clan of the Ereites, of Ereid, of Ereides, of Ereli, these are the clans of the Sons of Gad, as they were listed, 40,500. The sons of Judah were Er and Onan, and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Judah, according to their clans were, Of Sheila, the clan of the Shelaites. Of Perez, the clan of the Peresites. Of Zara, the clan of the Zerahites. And the sons of Perez were, of Hezron, the clan of the Hezranites. Of Hamel, the clan of the Hamelites. These are the clans of Judah as they were listed. 76,500. The sons of Issaqa, according to their clans,

Of Tola, the clan of the Tolaites. Of Poover, the clan of the Poonites. Of Jashab, the clan of the Jashabites. Of Shimran, the clan of the Shimranites. These are the clans of Issaica as they were listed. 64,300. The sons of Zebulon, according to their clans. Of Cered, the clan of the Cerodites.

Of Elon, the clan of the Elonites. Of Jal, the clan of the Jalelites. These are the clans of the Zebulonites as they were listed. Sixty thousand five hundred. The sons of Joseph, according to their clans. Manasseh and Ephraim, the sons of Manasa, of Maccae, of Macirites, and Macir was the father of Gilead, of Gilead, of Gilead. Of Gilead, the clan of the Gileadites.

These are the sons of Gilead, of Eazar, the clan of the Eazarites, of Helech, the clan of the Helicites, and of Asrael, the clan of the Asreites, and of Shachemite, and of Shemida, the clan of the Heiferites. Now Zalofahad, the son of Heifer, had no sons but daughters, and the names of the daughters of Zulofahad were Mela, Noah, Hogler, Milka, and Terza. These are the clans of Manasseh, and those listed were 52,700. These are the sons of Ephraim according to their clans. Of Shuthela, the clan of the Shuthelaites.

Of Beka, the clan of the Beakerites. Of Tehan, the clan of the Tehanites. And these are the sons of Shutala. Of Iran, the clan of the Iranites. These are the clans of the sons of Ephraim as they were listed, 32,500. These are the sons of Joseph according to their clans. The sons of Benjamin according to their clans. Of Beela, the clan of the Bealites. Of Aschbel, the clan of the Ashbelites. Of Ahiram, the clan of the Ehyramites. Of Hefam, the clan of the Hewfamites. And the

the sons of Beelah were Ard and Naimon. Of Ard, the clan of the Ardites. Of Nehman, the clan of the Nehites. These are the sons of Benjamin, according to their clan of the and those listed were 45,600. These are the sons of Dan according to their clans. Of Shuhamai, the clan of the Shuhamites. These are the clans of Dan according to their clans. All the clans of the Shuhamites, as they were listed, were 64,400. The sons of Asha, according to their clans, of Imna, the clan of the Imnites, of Ishvi, the clan of the Ishvites, of Bariah, the clan of the Bariites, of the Sons of Bariah, of Heber, the clan of the Heberites, of Malkiel, the clan of the Malkyolites, and the name of the daughter of Asher was Sera.

These are the clans of the sons of Asha as they were listed, 53,400. The sons of Naftoli, according to their clans. Of Jazeel, the clan of the Jazealites. Of Gunai, the clan of the Ghanisarites. Of Jaze, the clan of the Shilamites. Of Shillam, the clan of the Shillamites. These are the clans of Naftolite according to their clans, and those listed were 45,400. This was the list of the people of the people of the people of the Shalites.

Israel, 601,730. The Lord spoke to Moses saying, among these the land shall be divided for inheritance according to the number of names. To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance. Every tribe shall be given its inheritance in proportion to its list. But the land shall be divided by lot. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. Their inheritance shall be divided according to lot between the larger and the smaller. This was the list of the Levites, according to their clans. Of Gershen, the clan of the Gershenites.

Of Kohath, the clan of the Kohathites. A Marari, the clan of the Morarites. These are the clans of Levi, the clan of the Libnites, the clan of the Hebronites, the clan of the Mujahites, the clan of the Quraites. And Kohath was the father of Amram. The name of Amram's wife was Jochobed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt, and she bore to Amram Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister. And to Aaron were born Nadab Abihu, Eliyza and Ithamar,

but Nadab and Abayhu died when they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord. And those listed were 23,000, every male from a month old and upward, for they were not listed among the people of Israel, because there was no inheritance given to them among the people of Israel. These were those listed by Moses and Eliazir the priest, who listed the people of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho. But among these there was not one of those listed by Moses and Aaron the priest, who had listed the people of Israel in the wilderness of Sarni, for the Lord had said of them, they shall die in the wilderness. Not one of them was left, except Caleb, the son of Jifana, and Joshua the son of Nann.

Numbers chapter 26 records the second census of the book, here taken before they were to enter into the promised land. This census was for the purpose of military preparation, and also for the purpose of the equitable division of the land among the tribes. It occurs after the plague of Chapter 25, in which 24,000 people were killed. The number of Israel then is greatly reduced from what it would have been. In Chapter 25, Phineas had killed an Israelite man and a Midianite woman. The Israelite man was Zimri, one of the sons of the chiefs of the father's houses of Simeon. In the census of Numbers Chapter 1, the number of Simeon was 59,300. In Numbers' However, their numbers are greatly depleted. They are down to 22,200. It seems reasonable to speculate

that the 24,000 killed in the plague were mostly of the tribe of Simeon. Over the period of time between the two censuses, the tribe of Manasseh had greatly increased in number by over 20,000. Asha, Issaqa and Benjamin had also greatly increased, while Naftolian Ebrahim had seen a significant drop in their numbers. The sum total of Israel's number is much the same as it was in Numbers Chapter 1. There it was 603,550. Now it is 601,730. The difference between the two numbers is 1,820, perhaps significant because the number 182 is half the number of days in a year. The tribes are numbered in the same order as they were back in Chapter 1. Here is there, the numbering starts with the tribe of Rubin, the first born of Jacob, however while senior in 8,

age, Ruben does not enjoy the preeminence among the brothers. Judah is the leading brother and tribe. The tribes are also numbered in the clusters that they appear in their camps around the tabernacle, though here it starts with the southern camp of Rubin, Simeon and Gad, then moves to the eastern of Judah, Isika, and Zebulan, then to the west, Ephrae, Manasseh, and Benjamin. And then finally to the north, Dan, Asher, and Naftoli. Of the four different sections of Israel's camp, the camp to the east, Judah is. Issaica and Zebulon, was by far the most numerous, with 201,300 persons within it.

Dan, Asher, and Naftoli to the north was the second largest, with 163,200, then Ephraim Mnasser and Benjamin to the west, with 130,800. Finally, the least numerous part of the camp was Rubin, Simeon and Gad to the south, with 106,430 men. Both the tribes of Rubin and Simeon had lost significant numbers of persons through judgments of the Lord upon them. In numbering the tribes here, the tribes are broken down into various clans. These subdivisions would be more important for the division of the land that would later occur, enlisting the sons of Jacob, their sons, and the tribes that arose from them with their various clans within them. The text also recalls earlier parts of the

story, particularly related to unfaithful acts of the people that led to judgment. The people being numbered here are the survivors and descendants of persons who have been judged on account of their unfaithfulness, and they need to learn relevant lessons from their forefathers' bad examples. Dathan and Bairam, for instance, descended from Rubin, were leaders of the rebellion of Cora, perishing along with their company, with the Lord's fire of judgment devouring 250 men. Judah had lost two sons, Err and Onan, on account of their unfaithfulness in the land of Canaan. A fact recalled in verse 19, the two sons of Aaron. who were killed by the Lord for offering strange fire in Leviticus chapter 10,

Nadab and Abayhu are mentioned in verse 61. Finally, in verses 64 and 65 of the chapter, we are told that not one of those numbered in the census had been among the people of Israel listed in the wilderness of Sinai. Like Dathan and Abiram and their company, Er and Onan, and Nadav and Abayhu, they had all died on account of their sin, save for Caleb the son of Jifana and Joshua the son of Nun. Besides preparing for war, the numbering of the tribes is for the purpose of the division of the inheritance of the land.

Larger tribes like Judah would be given a large inheritance, but smaller tribes like Simeon would be given a smaller one. The land itself would be divided by lot. This does not make the manner in which the land was apportioned immediately obvious. How was it actually divided, according to Lot, or according to the size of the tribe? The text says it was both, but we might struggle to understand how both could be the case. This division of the land is also described in places like Numbers chapter 33, verse 54. You shall inherit the land by lot according to your clans. To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance.

Wherever the lot falls for anyone, that shall be his. According to the tribes of your fathers, you shall inherit. The answer to the problem, it seems to me, is that the location of the tribe's land was determined by lot, and the size of the tribe's land, was determined according to the tribe's land. their relative population. This division of the land among the tribes can be seen later on in the Book of Joshua. The tribes in the main census are numbered according to their males from 20 years and upward. In the case of the Levites, they're numbered according to their males from a month old and upward. The number of the Levites increased by 1,000 over the period of the Exodus.

They do not receive land with the rest of the tribes, but cities will be apportioned for them, cities about which we read in chapter 35. Moses, Aaron and Miriam are here all presented as the sons and daughter of Amram and Jacobet, the daughter of Levi. It seems quite unlikely that Jacobed was the direct daughter of Levi, rather she was a descendant of Levi, perhaps of uncertain tribal genealogy. A question to consider. What effect might the reminder of all of the unfaithful people who had died to that point have had upon Israel as they prepared to enter the promised land?