Only two men are included in both lists—the faithful octogenarians, Joshua and Caleb.
As we look at the list of the tribal populations in Numbers 26, we see some startling evidence that things have changed since the children of Israel left Egypt. Some have an obvious increase, others a decided decrease. We see that Aaron is nowhere to be found, his death recorded in Numbers 20:22-29. At that time, the outer high priestly robes were removed and placed on Eleazar, his son, who now assists Moses in overseeing this new census. So “it came to pass, after the plague, that the Lord spoke to Moses and Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying: ‘Take a census of all the congregation of the children of Israel from twenty years old and above, by their fathers’ houses, all who are able to go to war in Israel’” (Num 26:1-2). Moses will soon also die, and Joshua will take his place. Thus is the saying, The workman dies, but the work of God continues. Now this enumerating of the tribes is not just to assess the armies of Israel. They are soon to receive their allotments in the Promised Land. As the Lord said, “To a large tribe you shall give a larger inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a smaller inheritance” (v 54). Speaking of larger and smaller—poor Simeon! In the first numbering, they were recorded as having 59,300 fighting men, the largest. Now 40 years later, the ledger says 22,200, the smallest! And, although the overall numbers had declined by a few thousand, it’s remarkable that millions could survive those long years in such an inhospitable wilderness. Only the faithful provision of the Lord could have brought this nation of labor-camp slaves through, ready to make conquest against the seven Canaanite nations who are ripe for God’s judgment. It will certainly be exciting to watch them move in!