Section 104 of 14726:5–51Numbers

Go to another section

Jump to a verse

Jump to a verseOpen a verse without taking it out of context.

Try Numbers 6:24, Num 6:24, or Nu 6:24.

Choose book, chapter, and verse

BookChapterVerse

King James VersionNumbers 26:5–51

Reuben, the eldest son of Israel: the children of Reuben; Hanoch, of whom cometh the family of the Hanochites: of Pallu, the family of the Palluites:

Of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Carmi, the family of the Carmites.

These are the families of the Reubenites: and they that were numbered of them were forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty.

And the sons of Pallu; Eliab.

And the sons of Eliab; Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, which were famous in the congregation, who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah, when they strove against the LORD:

And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died, what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men: and they became a sign.

Notwithstanding the children of Korah died not.

The sons of Simeon after their families: of Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites: of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites: of Jachin, the family of the Jachinites:

Of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites: of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites.

These are the families of the Simeonites, twenty and two thousand and two hundred.

The children of Gad after their families: of Zephon, the family of the Zephonites: of Haggi, the family of the Haggites: of Shuni, the family of the Shunites:

Of Ozni, the family of the Oznites: of Eri, the family of the Erites:

Of Arod, the family of the Arodites: of Areli, the family of the Arelites.

These are the families of the children of Gad according to those that were numbered of them, forty thousand and five hundred.

The sons of Judah were Er and Onan: and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.

And the sons of Judah after their families were; of Shelah, the family of the Shelanites: of Pharez, the family of the Pharzites: of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites.

And the sons of Pharez were; of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites.

These are the families of Judah according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and sixteen thousand and five hundred.

Of the sons of Issachar after their families: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites: of Pua, the family of the Punites:

Of Jashub, the family of the Jashubites: of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites.

These are the families of Issachar according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and four thousand and three hundred.

Of the sons of Zebulun after their families: of Sered, the family of the Sardites: of Elon, the family of the Elonites: of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites.

These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those that were numbered of them, threescore thousand and five hundred.

The sons of Joseph after their families were Manasseh and Ephraim.

Of the sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the family of the Machirites: and Machir begat Gilead: of Gilead come the family of the Gileadites.

These are the sons of Gilead: of Jeezer, the family of the Jeezerites: of Helek, the family of the Helekites:

And of Asriel, the family of the Asrielites: and of Shechem, the family of the Shechemites:

And of Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites: and of Hepher, the family of the Hepherites.

And Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

These are the families of Manasseh, and those that were numbered of them, fifty and two thousand and seven hundred.

These are the sons of Ephraim after their families: of Shuthelah, the family of the Shuthalhites: of Becher, the family of the Bachrites: of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites.

And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites.

These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those that were numbered of them, thirty and two thousand and five hundred. These are the sons of Joseph after their families.

The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites: of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites: of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites:

Of Shupham, the family of the Shuphamites: of Hupham, the family of the Huphamites.

And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: of Ard, the family of the Ardites: and of Naaman, the family of the Naamites.

These are the sons of Benjamin after their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and six hundred.

These are the sons of Dan after their families: of Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan after their families.

All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those that were numbered of them, were threescore and four thousand and four hundred.

Of the children of Asher after their families: of Jimna, the family of the Jimnites: of Jesui, the family of the Jesuites: of Beriah, the family of the Beriites.

Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites: of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites.

And the name of the daughter of Asher was Sarah.

These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those that were numbered of them; who were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.

Of the sons of Naphtali after their families: of Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites: of Guni, the family of the Gunites:

Of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites: of Shillem, the family of the Shillemites.

These are the families of Naphtali according to their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and four hundred.

These were the numbered of the children of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty.

Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.

Scripture text: King James Version, Standardized 1769 text. Public domain in the United States.About this Bible text

Numbers 26:5–51

The Second Tribal Census Totals 601,730

Clans are listed, and some names carry deaths

Reuben through Naphtali are counted by clans. The list is not only arithmetic. Er and Onan died in Canaan. Dathan and Abiram, famous in the congregation, strove against Moses and Aaron in Korah's company, and the earth swallowed them with Korah when the fire devoured two hundred and fifty. The sons of Korah did not die.

Between the two musters the book has already narrated rebellion and death. This chapter refuses to let those stories vanish inside a clean total. Ancestry here is clan and tribe, not a modern race science.

Five daughters are named inside Manasseh, then 601,730

Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters, and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. They are not a footnote to be swallowed by Manasseh's number. They will return as petitioners.

These are the numbered of the children of Israel: six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty. The total is near the first census while naming a generation that will enter the land. It does not prove a present population, and it does not hide that most of the first counted men are gone.

How this should shape us

Read a tribal list as memory of households, deaths, and five named women, not as a racial chart or a modern headcount. Do not let Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah disappear into their father's missing son.

Teach it back

Explain Numbers 26:5–51 in your own words. Include its place in Numbers' movement from Sinai to Moab, both movements within this thought unit, one material uncertainty, one affected person or group, and one use the complete context rules out.

Explain the section in your own words

Your explanation stays in this browser. It is not sent or saved.

Go deeper

The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.

Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties

Where do careful interpreters disagree?

Best judgment: Interpreters disagree about the figures' demographic force, the sense of eleph, military and household categories, compositional setting, archival memory, symbolism, and historical scale. The received totals are explicit; a modern headcount reconstruction is not. For “The Second Tribal Census Totals 601,730,” confidence is strongest in the received unit's stated sequence and literary function; source, date, demography, geography, mechanism, archaeology, and historical reconstruction remain probable, plausible, or uncertain as the evidence warrants.

How certain? probable

Research trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.

Numbers 26:5–51, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Numbers

Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, numbers, speeches, poems, legal clauses, older-English controls, and translation limits.

Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Num.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 26:5–51

NET Bible: Numbers with translators' notes

Supports: Unit-bounded translation, syntax, lexical, ritual, legal, number, name, poetic, and selected textual notes; silence is not evidence.

NET Bible Numbers PDF, complete 134-page PDF, translation and translator notes attached to 26:5–51

Numbers Part 2

Supports: Moab movement, law, leadership transition, land, war, women, refuge, and compositional framing.

Yale Bible Study, Numbers Part 2, complete two-page study guide sections on Balaam, Baal Peor, second census, women and inheritance, war with Midian, Transjordan, itinerary, boundaries, Levite and refuge cities, and final inheritance, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

The Message of the Non-Chronological Opening of Numbers

Supports: Nonchronological placement of Numbers 1 and 9, sanctuary-centered opening, and source-critical alternatives.

TheTorah, “The Message of the Non-Chronological Opening of Numbers,” complete sections “Tabernacle Chronology,” “Why Doesn't Numbers Begin with Passover?,” and proposed source-order discussion, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Recounting the Census: A Military Force of 5,500 (not 603,550) Men

Supports: Received census totals, terminology, scaling proposals, arithmetic limits, and uncertainty about historical demography.

TheTorah, “Recounting the Census: A Military Force of 5,500,” complete census tables and sections on eleph, totals, military counting, and demographic alternatives, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

The Story of the Anonymous Scouts, Modified by the Book of Numbers

Supports: Scout versus spy vocabulary, report layers, leadership roles, final-form crisis, and compositional alternatives.

TheTorah, “The Story of the Anonymous Scouts Modified by the Book of Numbers,” complete comparison of Numbers 13–14 with Deuteronomy 1 and source-compositional proposal, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Zelophehad's Daughters Challenge the Law and Moses Is Speechless

Supports: Women's successful legal petition, inheritance development, closing marriage restriction, agency, and patriarchal limits.

TheTorah, “Zelophehad's Daughters Challenge the Law—and Moses Is Speechless,” complete Numbers 27 and 36 discussion of petition, divine ruling, inheritance, tribal restriction, women, and later reception, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Sources for This Section

These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.

Biblical text

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society

USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.

Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.

Exact location: Numbers 26:5–51, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus

Open source ↗

hebrew text and morphology

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Numbers

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project

Open Scriptures, release 2.2, 2021

Supports: Hebrew wording, morphology, names, numbers, speeches, poems, legal clauses, older-English controls, and translation limits.

Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Num.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 26:5–51

Open source ↗

translation and translator notes

NET Bible: Numbers with translators' notes

Biblical Studies Press

eBible.org distribution of the NET Bible, source files dated 2026-08-08

Supports: Unit-bounded translation, syntax, lexical, ritual, legal, number, name, poetic, and selected textual notes; silence is not evidence.

Exact location: NET Bible Numbers PDF, complete 134-page PDF, translation and translator notes attached to 26:5–51

Open source ↗

modern critical open study guide

Numbers Part 2

Yale Bible Study

Yale Divinity School, 2023 course edition

Supports: Moab movement, law, leadership transition, land, war, women, refuge, and compositional framing.

Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Numbers Part 2, complete two-page study guide sections on Balaam, Baal Peor, second census, women and inheritance, war with Midian, Transjordan, itinerary, boundaries, Levite and refuge cities, and final inheritance, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Open source ↗

modern jewish scholarly open literary study

The Message of the Non-Chronological Opening of Numbers

TheTorah.com named scholarly contributor

TheTorah.com, 2017

Supports: Nonchronological placement of Numbers 1 and 9, sanctuary-centered opening, and source-critical alternatives.

Exact location: TheTorah, “The Message of the Non-Chronological Opening of Numbers,” complete sections “Tabernacle Chronology,” “Why Doesn't Numbers Begin with Passover?,” and proposed source-order discussion, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Open source ↗

modern jewish scholarly open demography and text study

Recounting the Census: A Military Force of 5,500 (not 603,550) Men

TheTorah.com named scholarly contributor

TheTorah.com, 2015

Supports: Received census totals, terminology, scaling proposals, arithmetic limits, and uncertainty about historical demography.

Exact location: TheTorah, “Recounting the Census: A Military Force of 5,500,” complete census tables and sections on eleph, totals, military counting, and demographic alternatives, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Open source ↗

modern jewish scholarly open compositional study

The Story of the Anonymous Scouts, Modified by the Book of Numbers

TheTorah.com named scholarly contributor

TheTorah.com, 2022

Supports: Scout versus spy vocabulary, report layers, leadership roles, final-form crisis, and compositional alternatives.

Exact location: TheTorah, “The Story of the Anonymous Scouts Modified by the Book of Numbers,” complete comparison of Numbers 13–14 with Deuteronomy 1 and source-compositional proposal, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Open source ↗

modern jewish scholarly open gender law and reception study

Zelophehad's Daughters Challenge the Law and Moses Is Speechless

Nehama Aschkenasy

TheTorah.com, 2024

Supports: Women's successful legal petition, inheritance development, closing marriage restriction, agency, and patriarchal limits.

Exact location: TheTorah, “Zelophehad's Daughters Challenge the Law—and Moses Is Speechless,” complete Numbers 27 and 36 discussion of petition, divine ruling, inheritance, tribal restriction, women, and later reception, applied to Numbers 26:5–51

Open source ↗

Numbers 26:5–51, King James Version

Clans are listed, and some names carry deaths

Five daughters are named inside Manasseh, then 601,730

How this should shape us

Teach it back

Go deeper

Where do careful interpreters disagree?

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Numbers

NET Bible: Numbers with translators' notes

Numbers Part 2

The Message of the Non-Chronological Opening of Numbers

Recounting the Census: A Military Force of 5,500 (not 603,550) Men

The Story of the Anonymous Scouts, Modified by the Book of Numbers

Zelophehad's Daughters Challenge the Law and Moses Is Speechless