Numbers

Numbers is the fourth book of the Bible, traditionally attributed to Moses, and it covers the Israelites' forty years in the wilderness between Mount Sinai and the edge of the Promised Land. The English name comes from the two censuses the book records, one at the start and one near the end. The Hebrew name means "In the wilderness," which describes the book's actual setting.

The book opens with the Israelites still camped at Sinai. God commands a census of the men of fighting age, then organizes the camp tribe by tribe around the tabernacle. Levitical duties are assigned, vows and offerings are explained, and the Israelites set out for Canaan.

The middle of the book is mostly trouble. The people complain about food, about leadership, about the difficulty of the journey. Twelve spies are sent into Canaan; ten return with a fearful report, and the people refuse to enter. God sentences that generation to wander in the wilderness until they die. The book records that wandering: rebellions by Korah and others, plagues, the bronze serpent, the talking donkey of Balaam, and military campaigns against neighboring kingdoms.

The book ends with the second census, taken of the new generation now camped on the plains of Moab across the Jordan from the Promised Land. They are ready to enter; the events of Deuteronomy follow.