1. The Lord said to Moses,
2. “Punish the Midianites for what they did to the people of Israel. After you have done that, you will die.”
3. So Moses said to the people, “Get ready for war, so that you can attack Midian and punish them for what they did to the Lord.
4. From each tribe of Israel send a thousand men to war.”
5. So a thousand men were chosen from each tribe, a total of 12,000 men ready for battle.
6. Moses sent them to war under the command of Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, who took charge of the sacred objects and the trumpets for giving signals.
7. They attacked Midian, as the Lord had commanded Moses, and killed all the men,
8. including the five kings of Midian: Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. They also killed Balaam son of Beor.
9. The people of Israel captured the Midianite women and children, took their cattle and their flocks, plundered all their wealth,
22-23. Everything that will not burn, such as gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, or lead, is to be purified by passing it through fire. Everything else is to be purified by the water for purification.
32-35. The following is a list of what was captured by the soldiers, in addition to what they kept for themselves: 675,000 sheep and goats, 72,000 cattle, 61,000 donkeys, and 32,000 virgins.
36-40. The half-share of the soldiers was 337,500 sheep and goats, of which 675 were the tax for the Lord; 36,000 cattle for the soldiers, of which 72 were the tax for the Lord; 30,500 donkeys for the soldiers, of which 61 were the tax for the Lord; and 16,000 virgins for the soldiers, of which 32 were the tax for the Lord.
42-46. The share of the community was the same as that for the soldiers: 337,500 sheep and goats, 36,000 cattle, 30,500 donkeys, and 16,000 virgins.