26:1 Eleazar The high priest after Aaron. See 20:25–28.

26:2 those twenty years old and above At age 20, a man was eligible to serve in the army. See 2 Chr 25:5.

26:3 Moab A region east of the Dead Sea and the Jordan River. Israel encamped here in the plains of Moab until Joshua led them across the Jordan to conquer Canaan (Num 22:1; Josh 4).

26:5 the descendants of Reuben The four clans of Reuben listed here are identical to those in Gen 46:9; Exod 6:14; and 1 Chr 5:3.

26:9 Dathan and Abiram For most tribes, the only information given in this chapter relates to their clans and the size of the tribe. For Reuben, the involvement of Reubenites in the rebellion against Moses in Num 16 is singled out for comment.

26:11 The children of Korah, however, did not die The Korahites survived (compare v. 58) and became temple singers and guards (1 Chr 9:19). Their name appears in the titles of Pss 42; 44–49; 84; 85, and Psa 87.

26:12 Simeon, according to their clans One clan of Simeon found in Gen 46:10 and Exod 6:15 is missing here and in 1 Chr 4:24. That clan may have died out by the time this passage was written. In later Israelite history, the tribe of Simeon lost many soldiers and was assimilated into the tribe of Judah (Judg 1:3; Josh 19:1), suggesting this chapter and its census may postdate the time of Moses and Joshua.

26:15 The descendants of Gad The order of the tribes varies in the Septuagint, which lists Gad after Zebulun. That order follows Gen 46:16, which records the sons of Leah, Zilpah, Rachel, and Bilhah in matriarchal order.

26:19 Judah Jacob’s fourth son. See note on Gen 29:35 and note on Gen 49:8.

Er and Onan died See Gen 38:6–10 for the circumstances of their deaths.

26:20 the Perezites The three clans of Judah are Shelah, Perez, and Zerah. The line of Perez is highlighted because his second generation sons, Hezron and Hamul, were in the blessing of Jacob (compare Gen 46:12). The kings of Israel would come through this line (Ruth 4:18–21; 1 Chr 2:4–17), culminating with Jesus of Nazareth (Luke 3:23–33; Matt 1:3–16).

26:23 The descendants of Issachar Issachar’s four sons are consistently identified as Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron (Gen 46:13; 1 Chr 7:1).

26:24 the clan of the Shimronites Both clans are the basis for two place names in the hill country of Ephraim. They are mentioned in one of the Samaria ostraca dating to around 850 bc. See Num 26:29.

26:26 The descendants of Zebulun Unlike the other tribes, the Zebulunites are not mentioned in the genealogies outlined in 1 Chr 2–8. The reason for this is unknown.

26:28 Manasseh and Ephraim Manasseh and Ephraim are listed by birth order, not the order in which they were blessed (see Gen 48:13–20)

26:29 The descendants of Manasseh Four generations are described in Num 26:29–34 in association with the sons of Manasseh.

26:33 Zelophehad This reference anticipates the legal case to come in 27:1–11 where Zelophehad’s daughters make a case for inheriting their father’s land.

26:35 Ephraim Joseph’s second son. See note on Gen 41:52.

Beker According to Gen 46:21, Becher was a Benjaminite—not an Ephraimite—clan. Ephraim and Benjamin shared a common border, so the clan may have had ties to both tribes.

26:38 according to their clans Lists of the Benjaminite clans in various ot passages vary in many regards, including omissions, deletions, name spellings, and names. Some of the differences are due to simple issues, such as the confusion of letters nearly identical in appearance. In addition, the loss of 25,100 Benjaminites in the civil war during the period of the Judges (Judg 20) may have resulted in the loss of entire clans and clan restructuring, creating some confusion of relationships.

26:42 the descendants of Dan The tribe of Dan is composed of one clan, indicating the tribe was small, despite the large numerical total.

26:44 The descendants of Asher Genesis 46:17 and 1 Chr 7:30 list four sons for Asher—Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, and Beriah. However, this verse lists only three clans—Imnites, Ishvites, and Beriites. It is possible that Asher had only three sons and that Ishvah and Ishvi are variant spellings of one name.

26:46 Serah Also mentioned in Gen 46:17 and 1 Chr 7:30.

26:48 The descendants of Naphtali Jacob’s son Naphtali was his second son by Bilhah (Gen 30:8). The same four sons of Naphtali are named in Gen 46:24–25 and 1 Chr 7:13.

26:50 forty-five thousand four hundred Naphtali lost about 15 percent of its population in the wilderness wanderings (compare Num 1:43).

26:51 six hundred and one thousand seven hundred and thirty See note on 1:46.

26:54 you must increase their inheritance The land was allotted according to tribal size but the process also involved drawing lots (vv. 53–56). The area assigned to a tribe was likely determined by lot, but the overall size of their allotment was tied to population.

26:57 the Levites according to their clans The descendants of Levi were in charge of the tabernacle (and later the temple). Each clan was assigned a specific area of responsibility. They served Yahweh in place of the firstborn of all Israel (see 3:41).

the Gershonites The duties assigned to the Gershonites involved care and maintenance of the tent coverings, screens, and other cloth materials (3:21–26; 4:24–28).

the Kohathites They were assigned the care of the furnishings of the tabernacle including the altars and the ark of the covenant (3:27–31; 4:34–37; 10:21).

the Merarites Their duties involved the structural components of the tabernacle—the frames, pillars, tent pegs, and cords (3:33–37; 4:29–33; 10:17).

26:58 the clans of Levi The five clans listed here are each part of the larger clans of Gershon, Kohath, or Merari (3:21, 27, 33). Overall, there were two clans of Gershonites (Libnites and Shimeites), two clans of Merarites (Mahlites and Mushites), and four clans of Kohathites (Amramites, Izharites, Hebronites, and Uzzielites).

the Korahites A clan of the Izharites (see Exod 6:21, 24). Even though their ancestor Korah rebelled against Moses and was destroyed, all of his descendants did not perish (Num 16:1–35). See note on v. 11.

Kohath fathered Amram The genealogy of Levi concludes in vv. 58–61 with the priests descended from Kohath through Aaron. See Exod 6:18, 20, 23.

26:59 their sister Miriam The only women mentioned in this Levitical genealogy appear in this verse—Jochebed and Miriam.

26:60 Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar See Exod 6:23; Num 3:2–4.

26:61 strange fire before Yahweh The fate of Nadab and Abihu (3:4; Lev 10:1–2) serves as a warning to future generations of priests.

26:65 They will surely die in the desert The first generation of Israelites with Moses in the wilderness all died for their lack of faith except for Caleb and Joshua (14:28–30).