Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, July 9th, 2025
the Week of Proper 9 / Ordinary 14
Attention!
Take your personal ministry to the Next Level by helping StudyLight build churches and supporting pastors in Uganda.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Numbers 31:21

Eleazar the priest then spoke to the soldiers who had fought in the battle: "This is the ruling from the Revelation that God gave Moses: Gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—and anything else that can survive fire—must be passed through the fire; then it will be ritually purified. It must also be ritually washed in the Water-of-Cleansing. Further, whatever cannot survive fire must be put through that water. On the seventh day scrub your clothes; you will be ritually clean. Then you can return to camp."

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Armies;   Purification;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Armies of Israel, the;   Brass, or Copper;   Desert, Journey of Israel through the;   Iron;   Metals;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Midianites;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Clean, Unclean;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Eleazar;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Clean and Unclean;   Red Heifer;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Eleazar ;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - On to Canaan;   Moses, the Man of God;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Priest, High;   Slave;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Anger;   Priestly Code;   Red Heifer;   Sidra;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
El`azar the Kohen said to the men of war who went to the battle, This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moshe:
King James Version
And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which went to the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord commanded Moses;
Lexham English Bible
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of the battle who came from the war, "This is the decree of the law that Yahweh commanded Moses.
English Standard Version
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men in the army who had gone to battle: "This is the statute of the law that the Lord has commanded Moses:
New Century Version
Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone to war, "These are the teachings that the Lord gave to Moses:
New English Translation
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone into the battle, "This is the ordinance of the law that the Lord commanded Moses:
Amplified Bible
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:
New American Standard Bible
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the statute of the Law which the LORD has commanded Moses:
Geneva Bible (1587)
And Eleazar ye Priest sayd vnto the men of warre, which went to the battel, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lorde commanded Moses,
Legacy Standard Bible
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the statute of the law which Yahweh has commanded Moses:
Contemporary English Version
Eleazar then explained, "If you need to purify something that won't burn, such as gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, or lead, you must first place it in a hot fire. After you take it out, sprinkle it with the water that purifies. Everything else should only be sprinkled with the water. Do all of this, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
Complete Jewish Bible
El‘azar the cohen said to the soldiers who had gone to the front, "This is the regulation from the Torah which Adonai has ordered Moshe.
Darby Translation
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war that had gone to the battle, This is the statute of the law which Jehovah hath commanded Moses.
Easy-to-Read Version
Then Eleazar the priest spoke to the soldiers. He said, "These are the rules that the Lord gave to Moses for soldiers coming back from war.
George Lamsa Translation
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had returned from the battle, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses:
Good News Translation
Eleazar the priest said to the men who had returned from battle, "These are the regulations that the Lord has given to Moses.
Christian Standard Bible®
Then the priest Eleazar said to the soldiers who had gone to battle, “This is the legal statute the Lord commanded Moses:
Literal Translation
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who went to battle, This is the statute of the law which Jehovah has commanded Moses:
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Eleasar the prest sayde vnto ye captaynes of the hoost, yt wente out to the battayll: This is the statute of the lawe, which the LORDE comaunded Moses:
American Standard Version
And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war that went to the battle, This is the statute of the law which Jehovah hath commanded Moses:
Bible in Basic English
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had been to the fight, This is the rule of the law which the Lord has given to Moses:
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Eleazar the priest sayde vnto the men of warre which went to the battayle: This is the ordinauce of the lawe which the Lorde comaunded Moyses:
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war that went to the battle: 'This is the statute of the law which the LORD hath commanded Moses:
King James Version (1611)
And Eleazar the Priest said vnto the men of warre which went to the battell, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord commaunded Moses.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of the host that came from the battle-array, This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord has commanded Moses.
English Revised Version
And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war which went to the battle, This is the statute of the law which the LORD hath commanded Moses:
Berean Standard Bible
Then Eleazar the priest said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, "This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Eleazar, preest, spak thus to the men of the oost that fouyten, This is the comaundement of the lawe, which the Lord comaundide to Moises,
Young's Literal Translation
And Eleazar the priest saith unto the men of the host who go in to battle, `This [is] the statute of the law which Jehovah hath commanded Moses:
Update Bible Version
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to the battle, This is the statute of the law which Yahweh has commanded Moses:
Webster's Bible Translation
And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who went to the battle, This [is] the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses;
World English Bible
Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who went to the battle, This is the statute of the law which Yahweh has commanded Moses:
New King James Version
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to the battle, "This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD commanded Moses:
New Living Translation
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men who were in the battle, "The Lord has given Moses this legal requirement:
New Life Bible
Then Eleazar the religious leader said to the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the Law which the Lord has told Moses.
New Revised Standard
Eleazar the priest said to the troops who had gone to battle: "This is the statute of the law that the Lord has commanded Moses:
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then said Eleazar the priest unto the men of the host, who had been to the war: This, is the statute of the law, which Yahweh hath commanded Moses:
Douay-Rheims Bible
Eleazar also the priest spoke to the men of the army, that had fought, in this manner: This is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord hath commanded Moses:
Revised Standard Version
And Elea'zar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle: "This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to battle, "This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded Moses:

Contextual Overview

13Moses, Eleazar, and all the leaders of the congregation went to meet the returning army outside the camp. Moses was furious with the army officers—the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds—as they came back from the battlefield: "What's this! You've let these women live! They're the ones who, under Balaam's direction, seduced the People of Israel away from God in that mess at Peor, causing the plague that hit God 's people. Finish your job: kill all the boys. Kill every woman who has slept with a man. The younger women who are virgins you can keep alive for yourselves. 19"Now here's what you are to do: Pitch tents outside the camp. All who have killed anyone or touched a corpse must stay outside the camp for seven days. Purify yourselves and your captives on the third and seventh days. Purify every piece of clothing and every utensil—everything made of leather, goat hair, or wood." 21Eleazar the priest then spoke to the soldiers who had fought in the battle: "This is the ruling from the Revelation that God gave Moses: Gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, and lead—and anything else that can survive fire—must be passed through the fire; then it will be ritually purified. It must also be ritually washed in the Water-of-Cleansing. Further, whatever cannot survive fire must be put through that water. On the seventh day scrub your clothes; you will be ritually clean. Then you can return to camp."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Numbers 30:16

Reciprocal: Numbers 19:2 - the ordinance

Cross-References

Genesis 31:3
That's when God said to Jacob, "Go back home where you were born. I'll go with you."
Genesis 31:51
Laban continued to Jacob, "This monument of stones and this stone pillar that I have set up is a witness, a witness that I won't cross this line to hurt you and you won't cross this line to hurt me. The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor (the God of their ancestor) will keep things straight between us." Jacob promised, swearing by the Fear, the God of his father Isaac. Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and worshiped, calling in all his family members to the meal. They ate and slept that night on the mountain. Laban got up early the next morning, kissed his grandchildren and his daughters, blessed them, and then set off for home.
Genesis 37:25
Then they sat down to eat their supper. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites on their way from Gilead, their camels loaded with spices, ointments, and perfumes to sell in Egypt. Judah said, "Brothers, what are we going to get out of killing our brother and concealing the evidence? Let's sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let's not kill him—he is, after all, our brother, our own flesh and blood." His brothers agreed.
Genesis 46:28
Jacob sent Judah on ahead to get directions to Goshen from Joseph. When they got to Goshen, Joseph gave orders for his chariot and went to Goshen to meet his father Israel. The moment Joseph saw him, he threw himself on his neck and wept. He wept a long time.
Numbers 24:1
By now Balaam realized that God wanted to bless Israel. So he didn't work in any sorcery as he had done earlier. He turned and looked out over the wilderness. As Balaam looked, he saw Israel camped tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came on him, and he spoke his oracle-message: Decree of Balaam son of Beor, yes, decree of a man with 20/20 vision; Decree of a man who hears God speak, who sees what The Strong God shows him, Who falls on his face in worship, who sees what's really going on. What beautiful tents, Jacob, oh, your homes, Israel! Like valleys stretching out in the distance, like gardens planted by rivers, Like sweet herbs planted by the gardener God , like red cedars by pools and springs, Their buckets will brim with water, their seed will spread life everywhere. Their king will tower over Agag and his ilk, their kingdom surpassingly majestic. God brought them out of Egypt, rampaging like a wild ox, Gulping enemies like morsels of meat, crushing their bones, snapping their arrows. Israel crouches like a lion and naps, king-of-the-beasts—who dares disturb him? Whoever blesses you is blessed, whoever curses you is cursed. Balak lost his temper with Balaam. He shook his fist. He said to Balaam: "I got you in here to curse my enemies and what have you done? Blessed them! Blessed them three times! Get out of here! Go home! I told you I would pay you well, but you're getting nothing. You can blame God ." Balaam said to Balak, "Didn't I tell you up front when you sent your emissaries, ‘Even if Balak gave me his palace stuffed with silver and gold, I couldn't do anything on my own, whether good or bad, that went against God 's command'? I'm leaving for home and my people, but I warn you of what this people will do to your people in the days to come." Then he spoke his oracle-message: Decree of Balaam son of Beor, decree of the man with 20/20 vision, Decree of the man who hears godly speech, who knows what's going on with the High God, Who sees what The Strong God reveals, who bows in worship and sees what's real. I see him, but not right now, I perceive him, but not right here; A star rises from Jacob a scepter from Israel, Crushing the heads of Moab, the skulls of all the noisy windbags; I see Edom sold off at auction, enemy Seir marked down at the flea market, while Israel walks off with the trophies. A ruler is coming from Jacob who'll destroy what's left in the city. Then Balaam spotted Amalek and delivered an oracle-message. He said, Amalek, you're in first place among nations right now, but you're going to come in last, ruined. He saw the Kenites and delivered his oracle-message to them: Your home is in a nice secure place, like a nest high on the face of a cliff. Still, you Kenites will look stupid when Asshur takes you prisoner. Balaam spoke his final oracle-message: Doom! Who stands a chance when God starts in? Sea-Peoples, raiders from across the sea, will harass Asshur and Eber, But they'll also come to nothing, just like all the rest. Balaam got up and went home. Balak also went on his way.
Numbers 32:1
The families of Reuben and Gad had huge herds of livestock. They saw that the country of Jazer and Gilead was just the place for grazing livestock. And so they came, the families of Gad and of Reuben, and spoke to Moses and Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the congregation, saying, "Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon—the country that God laid low before the community of Israel—is a country just right for livestock, and we have livestock."
Deuteronomy 3:12
Of the land that we possessed at that time, I gave the Reubenites and the Gadites the territory north of Aroer along the Brook Arnon and half the hill country of Gilead with its towns.
1 Kings 17:1
And then this happened: Elijah the Tishbite, from among the settlers of Gilead, confronted Ahab: "As surely as God lives, the God of Israel before whom I stand in obedient service, the next years are going to see a total drought—not a drop of dew or rain unless I say otherwise."
2 Kings 12:17
Around this time Hazael king of Aram ventured out and attacked Gath, and he captured it. Then he decided to try for Jerusalem. Joash king of Judah countered by gathering up all the sacred memorials—gifts dedicated for holy use by his ancestors, the kings of Judah, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, along with the holy memorials he himself had received, plus all the gold that he could find in the temple and palace storerooms—and sent it to Hazael king of Aram. Appeased, Hazael went on his way and didn't bother Jerusalem.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Eleazar the priest said unto the men of war, which went to the battle,.... To all the soldiers, officers, and common men:

this is the ordinance of the law, which the Lord commanded Moses; concerning the purification of unclean persons and things, hereby confirming what Moses had said.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile