SERIES E --- YHVH’S LAWS --- LESSON 02

THE CAMP ORGANIZED

HOW THE TRIBES WERE ARRANGED AROUND THE TABERNACLE

From Numbers 2

Adonai gave Moses specific Instructions for the arrangement of the tribes and their tents around the tabernacle. This is what He said: [Arrange the tribes with their tents around the tabernacle, keeping the tabernacle in the centre of the camp. Place the standard of each tribe with its camp in the location I shall tell you. The tribe of Judah will camp on the east side, toward the sunrise. Their tribal leader is Nahshon, son of Amminadab. Their men of military age total seventy-four thousand, six hundred. The tribe of Issachar will camp next to Judah on the east side. Their tribal leader is Nethaneel the son of Zuar and they number fifty-four thousand, four hundred fighting men. The tribe of Zebulun will camp next to Issachar on the east side. Their tribal leader is Eliab, son of Helon. They have fifty-seven thousand, four hundred fighting men. Altogether there will be one hundred and eighty-six thousand, four hundred fighting men on the {EAST SIDE} of the tabernacle. Whenever Israel moves on to a new place, these three tribes will be the first to break camp and move forward. On the {SOUTH SIDE} of the tabernacle there will be three tribes. The tribe of Reuben is first with forty-six thousand, five hundred men of war. Their tribal leader is Elizur the son of Shedeur. Next to Reuben is the tribe of Simeon, whose leader is Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. Simeon’s tribe numbers fifty-nine thousand, three hundred men of military age. The third tribe on the south side of the tabernacle is Gad, with forty-five thousand, six hundred and fifty men of war. Their leader is Eliasaph the son of Reuel. The total number of fighting men on the south side is one hundred and fifty-one thousand, four hundred and fifty. The three tribes on the south side will break camp and move next after the three tribes on the east side. The tabernacle, accompanied by the Levites, will follow the tribes from the east and south sides. When a tribe moves, it will march as it camps; all its parts keeping together under its own standard. The tribe of Ephraim will camp under its standard on the {WEST SIDE} of the tabernacle. Its tribal leader is Elishama the son of Ammihud. Ephraim has forty thousand, five hundred men of war. The tribe of Manasseh will camp beside Ephraim on the west side under the leadership of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. The fighting men of the tribe of Manasseh total thirty-two thousand, two hundred. Ahidan the son of Gideoni is the leader of the tribe of Benjamin, which will camp next to Manasseh on the west side of the tabernacle. Benjamin has thirty-five thousand, four hundred men of military age. Altogether there will be one hundred and eight thousand, one hundred fighting men on the west side of the tabernacle. They will follow next in line after the tribes which camp on the east and south sides. On the {NORTH SIDE} of the tabernacle there will be three tribes. First is Dan, led by Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. The men of military age in the tribe of Dan number sixty-two thousand, seven hundred. Next on the north side is the tribe of Asher, with forty-one thousand, five hundred fighting men. This tribe is led by Pagiel the son of Ocran. The third tribe on the north is Naphtali, with fifty-three thousand, four hundred. The leader of Naphtali is Ahira the son of Enan. The total number of fighting men in these three tribes is one hundred and fifty-seven thousand, six hundred. Whenever Israel breaks camp and moves to a new location, these three tribes will be the last to move. These are the men of Israel as they were numbered by tribes and families. Altogether there were six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men of military age included in the census. The Levites were not included, as Adonai had commanded Moses. Thus when the people of Israel camped or marched, they gathered by tribe under their tribal standards, just as Adonai said they should.

COMMENTARY

ARRANGEMENT OF THE CAMP

More than a million Israelites camped around the tabernacle, so the camp had to be highly organized. Each tribe camped in a certain place, located in a certain direction from the tabernacle. Tribes marched in somewhat the same order as they camped. The tribes descended from Leah camped to the east of the tabernacle; to the west, those descended from Rachel. Descendants of the same families through their maids were on the north and south. Moses, Aaron and Aaron’s sons camped on the east side, close to the tabernacle, as did the priests.