Numbers 3:50

He collected the money from the firstborn of the Israelites: 1,365 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — Moses executes a divine command to finalize the redemption transaction following the census of the firstborn and the Levites. He records the exact silver weight required for the surplus individuals.

The words — לָקַ֣ח (la.Kach) literally means he took or collected, while חֲמִשָּׁ֨ה (cha.mi.Shah) denotes the number five, anchoring the specific tally within the sanctuary valuation.

The thread — The redemption of firstborns and the principle of substitutionary ransom appear in Numbers 3:46, Matthew 20:28, and 1 Timothy 2:5.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine redemption requires precise accounting and completed transfer, not symbolic gesture. Readers must acknowledge the concrete cost of release before considering its theological implications.

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

מֵאֵ֗תme./'Etfrom/ with בְּכ֛וֹרbe.Khor[the] firstborn of בְּנֵ֥יbe.Nei[the] people of יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לYis.ra.'ElIsrael לָקַ֣חla.Kachhe took אֶת־'et-<obj.>הַכָּ֑סֶףha./Ka.sefthe/ money חֲמִשָּׁ֨הcha.mi.Shahfive וְשִׁשִּׁ֜יםve./shi.Shimand/ sixty וּשְׁלֹ֥שׁu./she.Loshand/ three מֵא֛וֹתme.'othundred<s>וָאֶ֖לֶףva./'E.lefand/ one thousand בְּשֶׁ֥קֶלbe./She.kelby/ [the] shekel of הַקֹּֽדֶשׁ׃ha./Ko.deshthe/ holy place

King James Version

Of the firstborn of the children of Israel took he the money; a thousand three hundred and threescore and five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary:

Cross-references

Numbers 3:46 To redeem the 273 firstborn Israelites who outnumber the Levites,
Matthew 20:28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
Titus 2:14 He gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.
Hebrews 9:12 He did not enter by the blood of goats and calves, but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, thus securing eternal redemption.
1 Peter 1:18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life you inherited from your forefathers,
1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit,