Bird's-eye view
This passage details the division of the spoils of war after Israel's holy vengeance against the Midianites. The central action here is not merely about accounting for plunder, but about the public, formal, and mathematical recognition of God's sovereignty over every aspect of Israel's life, including their warfare. The spoils are meticulously divided into two equal halves: one for the soldiers who fought and one for the congregation that remained behind. This establishes a principle of communal solidarity; the victory and its benefits belong to all of God's people, not just the warriors. Following this, a "tribute" or "tax" is levied from both halves for the Lord. The soldiers' portion is taxed for the priests, and the congregation's portion is taxed for the Levites. This demonstrates that both the active participants in the battle and the supportive community are equally obligated to honor God with the fruits of victory. The entire procedure is a concrete lesson in applied theology, teaching that God is the ultimate victor, that the ministry of worship is to be supported by the people, and that all of life, down to the last sheep and donkey, is to be ordered according to God's command.
What we are seeing is the establishment of a righteous economy, a system of distribution that flows from God's victory, through His people, and back to the support of His worship. It is a picture of the gospel economy. Christ is our warrior who wins the decisive victory. The spoils of His triumph, forgiveness and eternal life, are distributed to all His people, not on the basis of merit, but by grace. And out of this grace, we are then called to render back to Him our tribute, supporting the work of His kingdom. This is not a dry accounting ledger; it is a schematic of covenant life.
Outline
- 1. The Division of God's Spoil (Num 31:42-47)
- a. The Congregation's Half Accounted (Num 31:42-46)
- b. The Lord's Levy from the Congregation (Num 31:47)
- i. The Rate of the Levy: One in Fifty (Num 31:47a)
- ii. The Recipients of the Levy: The Levites (Num 31:47b)
- iii. The Rationale for the Levy: The Service of the Tabernacle (Num 31:47c)
- iv. The Authority for the Levy: The Command of Yahweh (Num 31:47d)
Context In Numbers
This section comes at the end of a significant narrative in Numbers. Israel is on the plains of Moab, poised to enter the Promised Land. The previous generation has perished in the wilderness, and a new census has been taken (Numbers 26). The war against Midian (Numbers 31:1-24) was a direct act of divine judgment commanded by God for Midian's role in seducing Israel into idolatry and sexual immorality at Baal Peor (Numbers 25). This was not a war of conquest for territory, but a holy war of vengeance. The passage immediately preceding our text (Numbers 31:25-41) details the first half of the division: the accounting of the total plunder, the division between the warriors and the congregation, and the tribute taken from the warriors' half for Eleazar the priest. Our text is the necessary counterpart to that, dealing with the congregation's half and the tribute owed to the Levites. This entire chapter serves as a crucial lesson for the new generation on how to conduct themselves as God's holy people in the land, particularly in matters of war, purity, and the support of the priesthood.
Key Issues
- The Principle of Equitable Distribution
- The Nature of the Lord's Tribute (Tithe)
- The Distinction between Priests and Levites
- The Relationship Between Worship and Warfare
- God's Sovereignty Over the Spoils of War
The Lord's Portion
It is crucial that we understand what is happening with this tribute. This is not simply a tax to fund the government. This is a recognition that the victory, and therefore all the spoils, belong entirely to God. He is the one who fought for Israel. By commanding a portion to be set aside for His service, He is teaching them a fundamental principle of stewardship. We do not give God a percentage so that we can have guilt-free enjoyment of the rest. We give God a representative portion, a tribute, that acknowledges His ownership of the whole amount. The tithe is not giving God His ten percent; it is the tribute we pay that acknowledges His ownership of the one hundred percent.
Notice the structure. The warriors, who risked their lives, give one out of five hundred to the priests, who minister in the holiest places. The congregation, who stayed back and supported the effort, gives one out of fifty to the Levites, who perform the broader duties of the tabernacle service. The rate is different, but the principle is the same. Both halves of the covenant community, the active and the supportive, are responsible for sustaining the institutions of worship. This is a pattern for the New Covenant church. Those who are ministered to in spiritual things have a responsibility to support those who minister (Gal. 6:6). This is not a matter of charity, but of commanded tribute. It is God's system for funding His kingdom work.
Verse by Verse Commentary
42 As for the sons of Israel’s half, which Moses separated from the men who had gone to war,
The accounting begins. Moses is the mediator, acting on God's instructions. The first critical action was the separation, the division of the plunder into two equal shares. This establishes a profound equity. Those who go to the front lines and those who hold the ropes, as David would later formalize (1 Sam. 30:24), share equally in the fruit of the victory. This prevents pride on the part of the warriors and envy on the part of the congregation. It binds the community together, showing that the victory is a corporate blessing, not an individual achievement. The church would do well to remember this. The celebrated preacher and the quiet woman who prays for him in the nursery are partners in the same work and will share in the same reward.
43-46 now the congregation’s half was 337,500 sheep, and 36,000 cattle, and 30,500 donkeys, and the human beings were 16,000,
The numbers are laid out with bureaucratic precision. This is not a vague, "they got a lot of stuff." God is a God of order, not of chaos, and this extends to accounting. The numbers are staggering, indicating a total and devastating victory over the Midianites. The congregation's half is itemized: sheep, cattle, donkeys, and human beings. The inclusion of people, specifically the virgin girls mentioned earlier in the chapter, is jarring to us, but it was a standard feature of ancient warfare. In this context, they are being incorporated into the households of Israel, not as chattel in a modern sense, but as servants and potential wives, which, in that world, was a rescue from the utter destruction that befell their nation. The point here is the sheer scale of the blessing. God did not give a meager victory; He gave an overwhelming one. The plunder is a tangible sign of His favor and power.
47 and from the sons of Israel’s half, Moses took one drawn out of every fifty, both of man and of animals, and gave them to the Levites, who kept the responsibility of the tabernacle of Yahweh, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses.
This is the theological climax of the passage. From the people's half, a levy is taken for the Lord. The rate is specified: "one drawn out of every fifty," which is two percent. This is a different rate than the one taken from the soldiers' half for the priests (one in five hundred, or 0.2 percent). The Levites, who were far more numerous than the priests, received a larger portion overall. This tax was applied across the board, to "both of man and of animals," showing that God's claim is comprehensive.
The recipients are the Levites. Why? Because they "kept the responsibility of the tabernacle of Yahweh." The Levites were the tribe set apart for the practical service of worship. They did not have a territorial inheritance in the land like the other tribes, because, as God said, He was their inheritance. Their livelihood was to come from the tithes and offerings of the people. This tribute from the spoils of war is a direct application of that principle. The work of ministry is real work, and it is to be supported by the people of God from the blessings God provides.
And the final clause anchors the entire transaction in divine authority: "just as Yahweh had commanded Moses." This was not Moses's clever idea for funding the tabernacle. This was not a suggestion from the finance committee. This was a direct command from God. The support of the ministry is not optional. It is a matter of obedience, woven into the very fabric of the covenant. When God's people obey Him in this, the machinery of worship runs smoothly, and the blessings of God continue to flow.
Application
The principles laid out in this ancient accounting exercise are timeless. First, we learn about equity and unity in the body of Christ. There is no room for a caste system that elevates one form of service over another. The person on the front lines of ministry and the person supporting them from home are partners in the same gospel enterprise. The victory belongs to all, and the rewards will be shared.
Second, we are reminded that God claims the firstfruits of all our increase. Whether our "plunder" comes from a dramatic victory or the slow and steady work of our hands, the principle is the same. Acknowledging God's ownership of everything by giving a dedicated portion back to Him for the work of His kingdom is not an elective; it is basic discipleship. This tribute, what we call the tithe, is the tangible expression of the truth that all we have is from Him.
Finally, this passage teaches us that the work of the ministry is worthy of support. The Levites were given their portion because they were dedicated to the service of the tabernacle. In the New Covenant, those who labor in the word and doctrine are worthy of their wages (1 Tim. 5:17-18). Supporting the church and her ministers is not throwing money into a black hole. It is the divinely ordained method for fueling the engine of gospel proclamation and worship. It is investing in the very institution Christ established to do His work in the world. When we give as God has commanded, we are not just paying bills; we are participating in the administration of the spoils of Christ's victory over sin and death.