1The Lord spoke to Moses,

2“Execute vengeance for the Israelites against the Midianites. After that, you will be gathered to your people.” Nm 20:24-26; 27:13; Dt 32:50

3So Moses spoke to the people, “Equip some of your men for war. They will go against Midian to inflict the Lord’s vengeance Ps 18:47; 79:10; 94:1; Jr 11:20 on them.

4Send 1,000 men to war from each Israelite tribe.”

5So 1,000 were recruited from each Israelite tribe out of the thousands Or clans in Israel — 12,000 equipped for war.

6Moses sent 1,000 from each tribe to war. They went with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, in whose care were the holy objects and signal trumpets.

7They waged war against Midian, as the Lord had commanded Moses, and killed every male. Gn 34:25; 1Kg 11:16

8Along with the others slain by them, they killed the Midianite kings — Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. Jos 13:21-22; Jdg 8:5,12,26 They also killed Balaam son of Beor Nm 22:5–24:25 with the sword.

9The Israelites took the Midianite women and their children captive, and they plundered all their cattle, flocks, and property. Gn 34:28-29; Dt 20:13-14

10Then they burned all the cities where the Midianites lived, as well as all their encampments,

11and took away all the spoils of war and the captives, both man and beast.

12They brought the prisoners, animals, and spoils of war to Moses, Eleazar the priest, and the Israelite community at the camp on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.

13Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the community went to meet them outside the camp.

14But Moses became furious with the officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, who were returning from the military campaign.

15“Have Sam, LXX, Syr, Vg read Why have you let every female live? ” he asked them.

16“Yet they are the ones who, at Balaam’s advice, incited the Israelites to unfaithfulness against the Lord in the Peor incident, so that the plague came against the Lord’s community. Nm 25; Dt 20:18; 2Pt 2:15; Rv 2:14

17So now, kill all the male children and kill every woman who has had sexual relations with a man, Jdg 21:11-12

18but keep alive for yourselves all the young females who have not had sexual relations. Dt 21:10-14

19“You are to remain outside the camp for seven days. All of you and your prisoners who have killed a person or touched the dead are to purify yourselves on the third day and the seventh day. Lv 11:31; 22:4; Nm 5:2; 19:11,18; Hg 2:13

20Also purify everything: garments, leather goods, things made of goat hair, and every article of wood.” Lv 11:32; Nm 19:11-20

21Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone to battle, “This is the legal statute the Lord commanded Moses:

22Only the gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead —

23everything that can withstand fire — you are to pass through fire, and it will be clean. It must still be purified with the purification water. Nm 19:1-9,17-20 Anything that cannot withstand fire, pass through the water.

24On the seventh day wash your clothes, and you will be clean. Ex 19:10; Lv 11:25,28,40; 13:6,34; 14:8; 15:5; 16:26; 17:15; Nm 8:7; 19:7 After that you may enter the camp.”

25The Lord told Moses,

26“You, Eleazar the priest, and the family leaders of the community are to take a count of what was captured, man and beast.

27Then divide the captives between the troops who went out to war and the entire community. Jos 22:8; 1Sm 30:24

28Set aside a tribute for the Lord from what belongs to the fighting men who went out to war: one out of every 500 humans, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.

29Take the tribute from their half and give it to Eleazar the priest as a contribution to the Lord.

30From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every 50 from the people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats, all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who perform the duties of Or who protect the Lord’s tabernacle.”

31So Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the Lord commanded Moses.

32The captives remaining from the plunder the army had taken totaled:

36The half portion for those who went out to war numbered:

42From the Israelites’ half, which Moses separated from the men who fought,

43the community’s half was:

48The officers who were over the thousands of the army, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, approached Moses

49and told him, “Your servants have taken a census of the fighting men under our command, and not one of us is missing.

50So we have presented to the Lord an offering of the gold articles each man found — armlets, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces — to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord.” Ex 30:12-16

51Moses and Eleazar the priest received from them all the articles made out of gold.

52All the gold of the contribution they offered to the Lord, from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, was 420 pounds. Lit 16,750 shekels

53Each of the soldiers had taken plunder for himself. Dt 20:14

54Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from the commanders of thousands and of hundreds and brought it into the tent of meeting as a memorial for the Israelites before the Lord.