3 You and Aaron are to register, company by company, every man who is twenty years and older who is able to fight in the army. 4 Pick one man from each tribe who is head of his family to help you. 5 These are the names of the men who will help you: from Reuben: Elizur son of Shedeur 6 from Simeon: Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai 7 from Judah: Nahshon son of Amminadab 8 from Issachar: Nethanel son of Zuar 9 from Zebulun: Eliab son of Helon 10 from the sons of Joseph, from Ephraim: Elishama son of Ammihud from Manasseh: Gamaliel son of Pedahzur 11 from Benjamin: Abidan son of Gideoni 12 from Dan: Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai 13 from Asher: Pagiel son of Ocran 14 from Gad: Eliasaph son of Deuel 15 from Naphtali: Ahira son of Enan." 16 These were the men chosen from the congregation, leaders of their ancestral tribes, heads of Israel's military divisions.
17 Moses and Aaron took these men who had been named to help 18 and gathered the whole congregation together on the first day of the second month. The people registered themselves in their tribes according to their ancestral families, putting down the names of those who were twenty years old and older, 19 just as God commanded Moses. He numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai. 20 The line of Reuben, Israel's firstborn: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by tribes according to their ancestral families. 21 The tribe of Reuben numbered 46,500. 22 The line of Simeon: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 23 The tribe of Simeon numbered 59,300. 24 The line of Gad: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 25 The tribe of Gad numbered 45,650. 26 The line of Judah: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 27 The tribe of Judah numbered 74,600. 28 The line of Issachar: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 29 The tribe of Issachar numbered 54,400. 30 The line of Zebulun: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 31 The tribe of Zebulun numbered 57,400. 32 The line of Joseph: From son Ephraim the men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 33 The tribe of Ephraim numbered 40,500. 34 And from son Manasseh the men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 35 The tribe of Manasseh numbered 32,200. 36 The line of Benjamin: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 37 The tribe of Benjamin numbered 35,400. 38 The line of Dan: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 39 The tribe of Dan numbered 62,700. 40 The line of Asher: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 41 The tribe of Asher numbered 41,500. 42 The line of Naphtali: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by clans and families. 43 The tribe of Naphtali numbered 53,400.
44 These are the numbers of those registered by Moses and Aaron, registered with the help of the leaders of Israel, twelve men, each representing his ancestral family. 45 The sum total of the People of Israel twenty years old and over who were able to fight in the army, counted by ancestral family, was 603,550. 46
47 The Levites, however, were not counted by their ancestral family along with the others. 48 God had told Moses, 49 "The tribe of Levi is an exception: Don't register them. Don't count the tribe of Levi; don't include them in the general census of the People of Israel.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 1:3-49
Commentary on Numbers 1:1-43
(Read Numbers 1:1-43)
The people were numbered to show God's faithfulness in thus increasing the seed of Jacob, that they might be the better trained for the wars and conquest of Canaan, and to ascertain their families in order to the division of the land. It is said of each tribe, that those were numbered who were able to go forth to war; they had wars before them, though now they met with no opposition. Let the believer be prepared to withstand the enemies of his soul, though all may appear to be peace.
Commentary on Numbers 1:44-46
(Read Numbers 1:44-46)
We have here the sum total. How much was required to maintain all these in the wilderness! They were all provided for by God every day. When we observe the faithfulness of God, however unlikely the performance of his promise may appear, we may take courage as to those which yet remain to be fulfilled to the church of God.
Commentary on Numbers 1:47-54
(Read Numbers 1:47-54)
Care is here taken to distinguish the tribe of Levi, which, in the matter of the golden calf, had distinguished itself. Singular services shall be recompensed by singular honours. It was to the honour of the Levites, that to them was committed the care of the tabernacle and its treasures, in their camps and in their marches. It was for the honour of the holy things that none should see them, or touch them, but those who were called of God to the service. We all are unfit and unworthy to have fellowship with God, till called by his grace into the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and so, being the spiritual seed of that great High Priest, we are made priests to our God. Great care must be taken to prevent sin, for preventing sin is preventing wrath. Being a holy tribe, they were not reckoned among other Israelites. They that minister about holy things, should neither entangle themselves, nor be entangled, in worldly affairs. And let every believer seek to do what the Lord has commanded.