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Selected Verse: Numbers 31:32 - King James
| Verse |
Translation |
Text |
| Nu 31:32 |
King James |
And the booty, being the rest of the prey which the men of war had caught, was six hundred thousand and seventy thousand and five thousand sheep, |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
| A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
the booty, being the rest of the prey which the men of war had caught--Some of the captives having been killed (Num 31:17) and part of the cattle taken for the support of the army, the total amount of the booty remaining was in the following proportions:
Prey Total Amount Half to Soldiers Deducted to God Half to Congregation Deducted to Levites
Sheep 675,000 337,500 675 337,500 6,750
Beeves 72,000 36,000 72 36,000 720
Asses 61,000 30,500 61 30,500 610
Persons 32,000 16,000 32 16,000 320 |
| Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834] |
Compare Num 31:11, and render "And the prey" (i. e., the live prey) "in addition to the spoil which the men of war seized, etc." The "spoil" is described in Num 31:50.
The number of sheep, beeves, asses, and persons taken is given in this and following verses in round thousands. Hence, the Lord's tribute (Num 31:29, Num 31:37-38, etc.), being the 500th part of the half, comes out also in round numbers. The enormous amount both of live stock and of personal ornament was characteristic of the Midianites. When they invaded Israel in the days of the Judges, their wealth was still of the same kind (Jdg 6:5; Jdg 8:24 ff). The Bedouins, notwithstanding their wild nomadic life, retain their ancestral love of finery to the present day. |
| Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
The booty - It appears from the enumeration here that the Israelites, in this war against the Midianites, took 32,000 female prisoners, 61,000 asses, 72,000 beeves, 675,000 sheep and small cattle; besides the immense number of males who fell in battle, and the women and children who were slain by the Divine command, Num 31:17. And it does not appear that in this expedition, a single man of Israel fell! This was naturally to be expected, because the battle was the Lord's, Num 31:49.
As the booty was divided into two equal parts, Num 31:22, one for the soldiers employed in the expedition, and the other for those who, being equally willing to be employed, were ordered to stay in the camp; so each of the parties in this booty was to give a certain proportion to the Lord. The soldiers to give to the Lord one out of every five hundred persons, beeves, asses, and sheep, Num 31:28. The people, who by staying at home risked nothing, and had no fatigue, were to give one out of fifty of the above, Num 31:30. The booty, its divisions among the soldiers and people, the proportion given by each to the Lord and to the Levites, will be seen in one view by the following table, which I copy from Houbigant.
Total of sheep - 675,000
To the soldiers - 337,500
To the Lord from the soldiers - 675
To the people - 337,500
To the Levites from the people - 6,750
Total of beeves - 72, 00
To the soldiers - 36,000
To the Lord from the soldiers - 72
To the people - 36,000
To the Levites from the people - 720
Total of asses - 1,000
To the soldiers - 30,500
To the Lord from the soldiers - 61
To the people - 30,500
To the Levites from the people - 610
Total of persons - 32,000
To the soldiers.. 16,000
To the Lord from the soldiers - 32
To the Levites from the people - 320
To the people - 16,000
In this table the booty is equally divided between the people and the soldiers; a five-hundredth part being given to the Lord, and a fiftieth part to the Levites. |
17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
24 And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.)
5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came as grasshoppers for multitude; for both they and their camels were without number: and they entered into the land to destroy it.
37 And the LORD'S tribute of the sheep was six hundred and threescore and fifteen.
38 And the beeves were thirty and six thousand; of which the LORD'S tribute was threescore and twelve.
29 Take it of their half, and give it unto Eleazar the priest, for an heave offering of the LORD.
50 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.
11 And they took all the spoil, and all the prey, both of men and of beasts.
30 And of the children of Israel's half, thou shalt take one portion of fifty, of the persons, of the beeves, of the asses, and of the flocks, of all manner of beasts, and give them unto the Levites, which keep the charge of the tabernacle of the LORD.
28 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:
22 Only the gold, and the silver, the brass, the iron, the tin, and the lead,
49 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.
17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.