Numbers – Chapter 26

Old Testament65 Verses

Chapter Summary

Numbers 26 opens with the words: "After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:" The chapter centers on Moses, Aaron and Eleazar. Across its 65 verses, two threads run through the text: family and covenant relationships and God's protection and deliverance. Taken as a whole, the chapter forms one movement in the account, preparing what follows and completing what came before.

1After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:

2Number the whole sum of the children of Israel from twenty years old and upward, by their houses and kindreds, all that are able to go forth to war.

3Moses therefore and Eleazar the priest, being in the plains of Moab upon the Jordan over against Jericho, spoke to them that were

4From twenty years old and upward, as the Lord had commanded: and this is the number of them:

5Ruben the firstborn of Israel. His sons were Henoch, of whom is the family of the Henochites: and Phallu, of whom is the family of the Phalluites:

6And Hesron, of whom is the family of the Hesronites: and Charmi, of whom is the family of the Charmites.

7These are the families of the stock of Ruben: whose number was found to be forty-three thousand seven hundred and thirty.

8The son of Phallu was Eliab.

9His sons, were Namuel and Dathan and Abiron. These are Dathan and Abiron the princes of the people, that rose against Moses and Aaron in the sedition of Core, when they rebelled against the Lord:

10And the earth opening her mouth swallowed up Core, many others dying, when the fire burned two hundred and fifty men. And there was a great miracle wrought,

11That when Core perished, his sons did not perish.

12The sons of Simeon by their kindreds: Namuel, of him is the family of the Namuelites: Jamin, of him is the family of the Jaminites: Jachim, of him is the family of the Jachimites:

13Zare, of him is the family of the Zarites: Saul, of him is the family of the Saulites.

14These are the families of the stock of Simeon, of which the whole number was twenty-two thousand two hundred.

15The sons of Gad by their kindreds: Sephon, of him is the family of the Sephonites: Aggi, of him is the family of the Aggites: Suni, of him is the family of the Sunites:

16Ozni, of him is the family of the Oznites: Her, of him is the family of the Herites:

17Arod, of him is the family of the Arodites: Ariel, of him is the family of the Arielites.

18These are the families of Gad, of which the whole number was forty thousand five hundred.

19The sons of Juda, Her and Onan, who both died in the land of Chanaan.

20And the sons of Juda by their kindreds were: Sela, of whom is the family of the Selaites: Phares, of whom is the family of the Pharesites: Zare, of whom is the family of the Zarites.

21Moreover the sons of Phares were: Hesron, of whom is the family of the Hesronites: and Hamul, of whom is the family of the Hamulites.

22These are the families of Juda, of which the whole number was seventy-six thousand five hundred.

23The sons of Issachar, by their kindreds: Thola of whom is the family of the Tholaites: Phua, of whom is the family of the Phuaites:

24Jasub, of whom is the family of the Jasubites: Semran, of whom is the family of the Semranites.

25These are the kindreds of Issachar, whose number was sixty-four thousand three hundred.

26The sons of Zabulon by their kindreds: Sared, of whom is the family of the Saredites: Elon, of whom is the family of the Elonites: Jalel, of whom is the family of the Jalelites.

27These are the kindreds of Zabulon, whose number was sixty thousand five hundred.

28The sons of Joseph by their kindred, Manasses and Ephraim.

29Of Manasses was born Machir, of whom is the family of the Machirites. Machir begot Galaad, of whom is the family of the Galaadites.

30Galaad had sons: Jezer, of whom is the family of the Jezerites: and Helec, of whom is the family of the Helecites:

31And Asriel, of whom is the family of the Asrielites: and Sechem, of whom is the family of the Sechemites:

32And Semida, of whom is the family of the Semidaites: and Hepher, of whom is the family of the Hepherites.

33And Hepher was the father of Salphaad, who had no sons, but only daughters, whose names are these: Maala, and Noa, and Hegla, and Melcha, and Thersa.

34These are the families of Manasses, and the number of them fifty-two thousand seven hundred.

35And the sons of Ephraim by their kindreds were these: Suthala, of whom is the family of the Suthalaites: Becher, of whom is the family of the Becherites: Thehen, of whom is the family of the Thehenites.

36Now the son of Suthala was Heran, of whom is the family of the Heranites.

37These are the kindreds of the sons of Ephraim: whose number was thirty-two thousand five hundred.

38These are the sons of Joseph by their families. The sons of Benjamin in their kindreds: Bela, of whom is the family of the Belaites: Asbel, of whom is the family of the Asbelites: Ahiram, of whom is the family of the Ahiramites:

39Supham, of whom is the family of the Suphamites: Hupham, of whom is the family of the Huphamites.

40The sons of Bela: Hered, and Noeman. Of Hered, is the family of the Heredites: of Noeman, the family of the Noemanites.

41These are the sons of Benjamin by their kindreds, whose number was forty-five thousand six hundred.

42The sons of Dan by their kindreds: Suham, of whom is the family of the Suhamites: These are the kindreds of Dan by their families.

43All were Suhamites, whose number was sixty-four thousand four hundred.

44The sons of Aser by their kindreds: Jemna, of whom is the family of the Jemnaites: Jessui, of whom is the family of the Jessuites: Brie, of whom is the family of the Brieites.

45The sons of Brie: Heber, of whom is the family of the Heberites: and Melchiel, of whom is the family of the Melchielites.

46And the name of the daughter of Aser, was Sara.

47These are the kindreds of the sons of Aser, and their number fifty-three thousand four hundred.

48The sons of Nephtali by their kindreds: Jesiel, of whom is the family of the Jesielites: Guni, of whom is the family of the Gunites:

49Jeser, of whom is the family of the Jeserites: Sellem, of whom is the family of the Sellemites.

50These are the kindreds of the sons of Nephtali by their families: whose number was forty-five thousand four hundred.

51This is the sum of the children of Israel, that were reckoned up, six hundred and one thousand seven hundred and thirty.

52And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

53To these shall the land be divided for their possessions according to the number of names.

54To the greater number thou shalt give a greater portion, and to the fewer a less: to every one, as they have now been reckoned up, shall a possession be delivered:

55Yet so that by lot the land be divided to the tribe and families.

56Whatsoever shall fall by lot, that shall be taken by the more, or the fewer.

57This also is the number of the sons of Levi by their families: Gerson, of whom is the family of the Gersonites: Caath, of whom is the family of the Caathites: Merari, of whom is the family of the Merarites.

58These are the families of Levi: The family of Lobni, the family of Hebroni, the family of Core. Now Caath begot Amram:

59Who had to wife Jochabed the daughter of Levi, who was born to him in Egypt. She bore to her husband Amram sons, Aaron and Moses, and Mary their sister.

60Of Aaron were born Nadab and Abiu, and Eleazar and Ithamar:

61Of whom Nadab and Abiu died, when they had offered the strange fire before the Lord.

62And all that were numbered, were twenty-three thousand males from one month old and upward: for they were not reckoned up among the children of Israel, neither was a possession given to them with the rest.

63This is the number of the children of Israel, that were enrolled by Moses and Eleazar the priest, in the plains of Moab upon the Jordan, over against Jericho.

64Among whom there was not one of them that were numbered before by Moses and Aaron in the desert of Sinai.

65For the Lord had foretold that they should die in the wilderness. And none remained of them, but Caleb the son of Jephone, and Josue the son of Nun.

Important Verses in Numbers 26

After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:

Numbers 26:1

From twenty years old and upward, as the Lord had commanded: and this is the number of them:

Numbers 26:4

His sons, were Namuel and Dathan and Abiron. These are Dathan and Abiron the princes of the people, that rose against Moses and Aaron in the sedition of Core, when they rebelled against the Lord:

Numbers 26:9

For the Lord had foretold that they should die in the wilderness. And none remained of them, but Caleb the son of Jephone, and Josue the son of Nun.

Numbers 26:65

Historical Context

As a Old Testament book, Numbers was written with israel on the threshold of the Promised Land, warned by the failures of the wilderness generation in view. Chapter 26 of 36 moves toward the climax of the book as earlier promises and conflicts converge. It is a genealogical record linking earlier promises to later generations with 65 verses in the Douay-Rheims translation. Historical attention falls on Moses, Aaron, Eleazar and Manasses, the principal figures named in this chapter. The passage starts with these words: "After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:" The chapter ends with: "For the Lord had foretold that they should die in the wilderness. And none remained of them, but Caleb the son of…" Read against its original backdrop, Numbers takes its name from the two censuses of Israel and covers nearly forty years of wandering between Sinai and the plains of Moab. The book's material reflects the era summarized as follows: Wilderness traditions of the 13th century BC; final form by the 5th century BC.

Who Wrote It

Traditionally attributed to Moses, with priestly editing

When It Was Written

Wilderness traditions of the 13th century BC; final form by the 5th century BC

Catholic Commentary

This chapter traces lines of descent that connect earlier promises to later figures in salvation history. A pivotal line is verse 1: "After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:" The passage repeatedly touches on family and covenant relationships.

According to Catholic interpretation, this chapter contributes to the book's portrait of wilderness journey and God's faithfulness. the Church sees Israel's journey as an image of our pilgrimage to heaven (CIC 2119). The Catechism and the liturgy frequently draw on such passages to nourish faith and moral life (CIC 958).

The moral and spiritual import remains timely: The family is the first school of faith, where love, obedience, and forgiveness are learned.. St. Jerome insisted that ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ; this chapter offers material for meditation, examination of conscience, and deeper love of God.

Main Teachings

  • The family is the first school of faith, where love, obedience, and forgiveness are learned.
  • The Lord is a refuge and deliverer for all who call upon Him in trouble.
  • Sin has real consequences, but God's judgment always aims at conversion and restoration.

People in This Chapter

Moses7 mentionsAaron5 mentionsEleazar4 mentionsManasses3 mentions

Reflection for Today

Sacred Scripture presents Numbers Chapter 26 as a unique stage in salvation history, not merely as background to other books.

St. Irenaeus and other Fathers of the Church meditated on texts like this one, seeing in them instruction for the spiritual life. the Church sees Israel's journey as an image of our pilgrimage to heaven (CIC 2119). The passage calls believers to grasp that God guides His people through the desert.

May your reading of Numbers Chapter 26 become true lectio divina: read the words, meditate on their meaning, respond in prayer, and rest in God's presence. Ask the Holy Spirit to show how God guides His people through the desert applies to your life today.

💡Catholic Reflection • Church Teachings

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Numbers Chapter 26 about?

Numbers 26 contains 65 verses. It opens with "After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:" and closes with "For the Lord had foretold that they should die in the wilderness. And none remained of them, but Caleb the son of…". The book as a whole is narrative, census lists, and law.

What is a key verse in Numbers 26?

One of the most significant verses is verse 1: "After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses and to Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest:" It is often cited in Catholic teaching and preaching.

Who appears in Numbers Chapter 26?

This chapter mentions Moses, Aaron, Eleazar, Manasses.

Who wrote Numbers and when?

Traditionally attributed to Moses, with priestly editing. Wilderness traditions of the 13th century BC; final form by the 5th century BC.

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