But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.
Parallel translations
- WEB But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not counted among them.
- BSB The Levites, however, were not numbered along with them by the tribe of their fathers.
- ESV But the Levites were not listed along with them by their ancestral tribe.
- NKJV But the Levites were not numbered among them by their fathers’ tribe;
- NASB The Levites, however, were not counted among them by their fathers’ tribe.
- NLT But this total did not include the Levites.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Levites are not counted with the other tribes. They are set apart for a special, sacred service rather than for war.
Overview
The exclusion of Levi marks the tribe's unique calling to serve the tabernacle rather than fight in Israel's army. This distinction reflects God's design that some be consecrated wholly to His worship. It points toward the priesthood of Christ and the spiritual service of all His people (1 Pet. 2:9).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Num 2:33But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses.
- Num 3:1These also are the generations of Aaron and Moses in the day that the LORD spake with Moses in mount Sinai.
- Num 26:57–62And these are they that were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites: of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites: of Merari, the family of the Merarites.
- 1 Chr 21:6But Levi and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the king’s word was abominable to Joab.
- 1 Chr 6:1–81The sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
- Num 1:3From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.
- Num 1:50But thou shalt appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of testimony, and over all the vessels thereof, and over all things that belong to it: they shall bear the tabernacle, and all the vessels thereof; and they shall minister unto it, and shall encamp round about the tabernacle.
- Num 8:1–26And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 1:47 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.