Charles Ellicott Commentary Numbers 26
Charles Ellicott Commentary
Numbers 26
Charles Ellicott Commentary
Numbers 26
"And it came to pass after the plague, that Jehovah spake unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying," — Numbers 26:1 (ASV)
And it came to pass after the plague ... — The plague probably destroyed the remnant of the generation which had come out of Egypt, and which had been numbered in the wilderness of Sinai.
"Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their fathers` houses, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel." — Numbers 26:2 (ASV)
Take the sum ... — The same command had been given to Moses and Aaron (Numbers 1:2–3). In that case a man taken out of every tribe, the head of his father’s house, was appointed to assist Moses and Aaron in taking the census. It is probable that the same arrangement was made in the present instance, though it is not recorded.
"[Take the sum of the people], from twenty years old and upward; as Jehovah commanded Moses and the children of Israel, that came forth out of the land of Egypt. Reuben, the first-born of Israel; the sons of Reuben: [of] Hanoch, the family of the Hanochites; of Pallu, the family of the Palluites;" — Numbers 26:4-5 (ASV)
Take the sum of the people ... — The verses may be rendered as follows: From twenty years old and upward, as the Lord commanded Moses. And the children of Israel which went forth out of the land of Egypt were these: Reuben, the eldest son of Israel, etc.
The expression “as the Lord commanded Moses” is one of very frequent occurrence in this book. The command was given to Moses, not to the children of Israel generally.
The form of enumeration is concise. The omissions may be supplied as follows:—Reuben—he was the eldest son of Israel. The sons of Reuben were—Hanoch—from him, the family of the Hanochites, etc. (Exodus 6:14; 1 Chronicles 5:3.)
"These are the families of the Reubenites; and they that were numbered of them were forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty." — Numbers 26:7 (ASV)
Forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty. —As compared with the former census, the tribe of Reuben had decreased by 2,770. (See Numbers 1:21.) Dathan and Abiram had probably enlisted many of the tribe to which they belonged in their rebellion against Moses and Aaron. (See Numbers 26:9-10 and Numbers 16:1.)
"and the earth opened its 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." — Numbers 26:10 (ASV)
And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah ... — Hebrew, and Korah. It would appear from this verse that Korah perished in the earthquake with Dathan and Abiram.
The Samaritan Pentateuch, however, has a different reading here. It transposes the words "and Korah," and combines them with the words "and the two hundred and fifty men": thus—when the fire devoured Korah and the two hundred and fifty men. (See Notes on Numbers 16:32; Numbers 16:35).
It is possible that there may have been an omission here of the words which are found in Numbers 16:32, all the men that pertained to, or of words denoting all the goods belonging to.
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