Bible Strands
Numbers 1:47
The Levites, however, were not numbered along with them by the tribe of their fathers.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses records the national census at Sinai immediately after reporting the total of 603,550 men (Numbers 1:46). The narrator notes the Levites' exclusion right before the Lord gives the next command regarding their placement (Numbers 1:48).
The words — The Hebrew לֹ֥א הָתְפָּקְד֖וּ (lo' hat.pak.Du) translates literally as "they were not enrolled." This verb specifically denotes official muster or registration within an administrative ledger.
The thread — The same exclusion pattern appears in Numbers 2:33, where the Levites are again omitted from the tribal counts, and in Numbers 26:57, which lists them separately by clan rather than by military muster.
Why it lands — The text establishes a clear administrative boundary that separates the priestly tribe from the military census. A reader must recognize that this distinction dictates how Levite resources and responsibilities are tracked independently of national defense.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered among them.
Cross-references
- Numbers 2:33 But the Levites were not counted among the other Israelites, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
- Numbers 3:1 This is the account of Aaron and Moses at the time the LORD spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai.
- Numbers 26:57 Now these were the Levites numbered by their clans: The Gershonite clan from Gershon, the Kohathite clan from Kohath, and the Merarite clan from Merari.
- 1 Chronicles 6:1 The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
- 1 Chronicles 21:6 But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the count, because the king’s command was detestable to him.
- Numbers 1:3 You and Aaron are to number those who are twenty years of age or older by their divisions—everyone who can serve in Israel’s army.
- Numbers 1:50 Instead, you are to appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, all its furnishings, and everything in it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its articles, care for it, and camp around it.
- Numbers 8:1 Then the LORD said to Moses,