26:2 This is the second great census in the book of Numbers. Both were taken to count the number of men able to go to war. The first census (1:1–2:33) counted the Hebrews who had left Egypt. When the old generation died in the wilderness, another census was needed to count the Hebrews ready to enter the Promised Land. The new census revealed that although over 600,000 men (not counting women and children) had died in the wilderness, the male population of Israel now numbered 601,730. The census was one of the first major steps in preparing the people to enter the land they had waited so long to possess.
26:64 A new census for a new generation. Thirty-eight years had elapsed since the first great census recorded in Numbers (see 1:1–2:33). During that time, every Israelite man and woman 20 years old and over—except Caleb, Joshua, and Moses—had died, and yet God’s laws and the spiritual character of the nation were still intact. Numbers records some dramatic miracles. This is a quiet but powerful miracle often overlooked: A whole nation moved from one land to another, lost its entire adult population, yet managed to maintain its spiritual direction. Sometimes it may feel like God isn’t working dramatic miracles in our lives. But God often works in quiet ways to bring about his long-range purposes.