Set aside a tribute for the LORD from what belongs to the soldiers who went into battle: one out of every five hundred, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, or sheep.
Parallel translations
- WEB Levy a tribute to Yahweh of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred; of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks.
- KJV 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:
- NKJV And levy a tribute for the Lord on the men of war who went out to battle: one of every five hundred of the persons, the cattle, the donkeys, and the sheep;
- NASB Also, collect a tribute tax for the Lord from the men of war who went to battle, one in five hundred of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the sheep;
- NLT From the army’s portion, first give the Lord his share of the plunder—one of every 500 of the prisoners and of the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.
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
From the soldiers' half, a tribute of one in five hundred was to be given to the Lord.
Overview
A small portion of the warriors' share was set apart as an offering to God, acknowledging Him as the giver of victory. Devoting the firstfruits of the spoil expressed gratitude and dependence. This pattern of returning to God a portion of what He provides remains a mark of faithful worship.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Num 18:26“Speak to the Levites and tell them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the LORD—a tithe of the tithe.
- Num 31:47From the Israelites’ half, Moses took one out of every fifty persons and animals and gave them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of the LORD, as the LORD had commanded him.
- Num 31:30From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every fifty, whether persons, cattle, donkeys, sheep, or other animals, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of the LORD.”
- Gen 14:20and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything.
- Prov 3:9–10Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your harvest;
- Isa 23:18Yet her profits and wages will be set apart to the LORD; they will not be stored or saved, for her profit will go to those who live before the LORD, for abundant food and fine clothing.
- 1 Chr 26:26–27This Shelomith and his brothers were in charge of all the treasuries for the things dedicated by King David, by the heads of families who were the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and by the army commanders.
- Isa 18:7At that time gifts will be brought to the LORD of Hosts—from a people tall and smooth-skinned, from a people widely feared, from a powerful nation of strange speech, whose land is divided by rivers—to Mount Zion, the place of the Name of the LORD of Hosts.
- Josh 6:24Then the Israelites burned up the city and everything in it. However, they put the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the LORD’s house.
- Num 18:21Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting.
- 1 Chr 18:11and King David dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold he had carried off from all these nations—from Edom and Moab, and from the Ammonites, Philistines, and Amalekites.
- Isa 60:9Surely the islands will wait for Me, with the ships of Tarshish in the lead, to bring your children from afar, with their silver and gold, to the honor of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you.
- 2 Sam 8:11–12and King David dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold he had dedicated from all the nations he had subdued—
- Matt 22:21“Caesar’s,” they answered. So Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
- Josh 6:19For all the silver and gold and all the articles of bronze and iron are holy to the LORD; they must go into His treasury.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 31:28 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
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