Numbers 26:34

Study note

Setting — The narrator records the census results for Manasseh during the second Israelite count at the plains of Moab, immediately after noting Zelophehad’s daughters and before listing Ephraim’s clans. This moment captures the administrative tally of tribal households prior to territorial inheritance.

The words — The text employs אֵ֖לֶּה ('E.leh) meaning "these" and שְׁנַ֧יִם (she.Na.yim) meaning "two" to frame the specific enumeration. These terms anchor the literal count of 52,700 enrolled men belonging to Manasseh’s clans.

The thread — This registration parallels the first tribal count in Numbers 1:34 and establishes Manasseh’s designated camp position in Numbers 2:20. The verse continues the structural pattern of tribal enumeration that runs through the book.

Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to acknowledge the exact numerical and genealogical record of a tribe before inheritance distribution. It demands attention to the documented count without assigning theological meaning beyond the administrative fact.

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.