Author

Moses

Written

~1446–1406 BC

Testament

Old Testament

Chapters

36

Key Theme

Israel's wilderness journey, faithfulness tested, and God's patient provision.

Written For

The people of Israel

Introduction of Numbers

Numbers derives its English title from the censuses and tallies of the Israelite tribes taken in the wilderness. Traditionally attributed to Moses and written in the late 15th to 13th centuries BC, the book follows the generation that left Egypt as they journey between Sinai and the Promised Land. Key figures include Moses, his siblings Aaron and Miriam, and the twelve tribal leaders. What begins as an organized march toward inheritance quickly becomes a story of rebellion, judgment, and surprising mercy. In the tension between divine promise and human unfaithfulness lies one of the Bible’s most sobering and hopeful wilderness journeys.