God Commands Moses to Take a Census

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, in the tent of assembly, on the first of the month, in the second year ⌊after they came out⌋a of the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “⌊Take a census of⌋b the entire community of the ⌊Israelites⌋c according to their clans and ⌊their families⌋,d according to the number of names, every male individually 3 from ⌊twenty years old⌋e and above, everyone in Israel who is able to go to war. You and Aaron must muster themf for their wars. 4 A man from each tribe will be with you, each man the head of ⌊his family⌋.g 5 And these are the names of the men who will ⌊assist you⌋:h 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 descendants 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 and from Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan.” 16 These are the ones summoned from the community, the leaders of their ancestors’i tribes; they are the heads of Israel’s clans.

17 So Moses and Aaron took these men who had been designated by name, 18 and they summoned the entire community on the first day of the second month. And they registered themselves among their clans according to ⌊their families⌋,j according to the number of names from ⌊those twenty years old⌋k and above individually, 19 just as Yahweh commanded Moses. And he counted them in the desert of Sinai.