The Numbers Don't Lie

The Second Census 

The United States conducts a census every 10 years. I use this data to teach my upper elementary kids how to create formulas in Excel. Today we are going to look at a census of Israel conducted toward the end of the wilderness journey. After the plague of chapter 25, the Lord called Moses to take a second census.  

I like numbers, so I have always enjoyed comparing the two censuses in Numbers.  A comparison leads us to investigating why some tribes had much lower counts than others. Laying chapter 26 alongside chapter 1 gives us some information. The first thing I notice is that in chapter 1, leaders were chosen to conduct the census. Numbers 26 does not mention having leaders take the census, but they probably did or it would have taken much longer to count.  Also, both censuses counted men age 20 or older, but chapter 26 adds that these men were able to serve in the army. Israel is getting ready to take over the Promised Land.  

Let’s look closer at the numbers and additional information given in these censuses. The tribe of Reuben has 4 clans, but Dathan and Abiram’s descendants were wiped out Korah’s rebellion found in chapter 16. However, Reuben’s tribe has only lost less than 3,000 people in the time since the last census. This shows that the other clans of Reuben were very fruitful and compensated for the loss incurred at the rebellion. Simeon is the next tribe listed and he is the second son of Jacob’s wife Leah. Simeon’s tribe had the sharpest decline in numbers. No information is given in this chapter to give the reader an idea why, but in chapter 25, the man slain by Phinehas for bringing a Moabite woman into camp was Zimri, from the tribe of Simeon. Therefore, we might conclude that the tribe of Simeon was deeply involved with this sin and idolatry and greatly decimated by the plague which resulted. 

Out of Order 

The next son in birth order is Levi but the Levites are again counted separately from the other tribes. The interesting thing to me is that Gad is listed next. Gad is the son of Zilpah. Zilpah was Leah’s maidservant. Gad was Jacob’s 10th son but now he is being listed third. Gad was part of the Southern division camped around the tabernacle, according to Numbers 2:10-16. Gad had 7 sons and those clans were not as large as most of the others. Although Judah had only 3 sons surviving to carry on his name, his was the largest tribe in the second census. Judah is a very important tribe because most of the kings of Israel and Judah would come from this tribe. Judah is also the tribe the King of kings would call His own (Luke 3:33). 

The last of Leah’s sons to be listed, Issachar and Zebulun, had no additional information given. They both showed an increase in numbers (Issachar 19,000). Manasseh had a very large increase in numbers. He is the first tribe to list grandsons in addition to sons. This would help account for the large increase in numbers, I believe. Ephraim had a 20% decrease in descendants. He was supposed to be greater than the firstborn of Joseph (Genesis 48:1-12), but Manasseh increased by 2/3 from the first census. Matthew Henry conjectures that perhaps Ephraim was too prideful at being chosen to be greater and thus trampled over Manasseh and then the Lord came to his rescue and made him fruitful. “[F]or it is his glory to help the weakest, and raise up those that are cast down.” (Henry) Finally, Zelophehad is mentioned in Manasseh’s line because his daughters were going to make history by changing the laws of inheritance in our next chapter. 

Benjamin is listed before the other 3 servants’ sons as a son of Rachel, Jacob’s beloved wife. Dan, Asher and Naphtali are also not listed in their birth order according the Genesis 30, but this is not viewed as significant by any commentators consulted. 

Levi is the final tribe to be counted because they will not inherit land nor serve as soldiers. They are the Lord’s firstborn and the Lord is their inheritance.  We have seen many possible reasons for the large fluctuations in numbers per tribe, but the overall number of Israelites counted went from 603,550 to 601,730.  The number of Levites went from 22,000 to 23,000.  So the difference overall is very minimal.  I understand that these people were someone’s father, mother, sister or brother, but this is the book of Numbers after all. 

Faithful 

None of the men counted in this census was counted in the first census with the exceptions of Joshua and Caleb. These two spies were faithful men who followed the Lord and would be given an inheritance in the Promised Land. This is a whole new group of men except for these two. Ask God to increase your faith so that when you are faced with a situation that calls for a strong belief system, you will be able to stand firm.  Let us all become like Joshua and Caleb, exhorting our peers to go in and take what God has given them even if it is difficult. 

We want to survive the desert wanderings and we can only do so by faith. Jesus said we could have faith that moves mountains.  What is your mountain today?  What needs to change in your life?  What are you praying for earnestly?  Believe that you will receive it and walk in faith, my friend.