1 And the Lord spake vnto Moses, and vnto Aaron, saying,
2 Euery man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his owne standerd, with the ensigne of their fathers house: farre off about the Tabernacle of the Congregation shall they pitch.
3 And on the East side toward the rising of the Sunne, shall they of the standerd of the campe of Iudah pitch, throughout their armies: and Nahshon the sonne of Amminadab, shall bee captaine of the children of Iudah.
4 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were threescore and fourteene thousand, and sixe hundred.
5 And those that doe pitch next vnto him, shall be the tribe of Issachar: and Nethaneel the sonne of Zuar, shall bee captaine of the children of Issachar.
6 And his hoste, and those that were numbred thereof, were fiftie and foure thousand, and foure hundred.
7 Then the tribe of Zebulun: and Eliab the sonne of Helon, shalbe captaine of the children of Zebulun.
8 And his hoste and those that were numbred thereof, were fiftie and seuen thousand, and foure hundred.
9 All that were numbred in the Campe of Iudah, were an hundred thousand, and fourescore thousand, and sixe thousand, and foure hundred, throughout their armies: these shall first set foorth.
10 ¶ On the Southside shall be the standerd of the Campe of Reuben, according to their armies: and the captaine of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the sonne of Shedeur.
11 And his hoste, and those that were numbred thereof, were fourtie and sixe thousand, and fiue hundred.
12 And those which pitch by him, shall bee the tribe of Simeon, and the captaine of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the sonne of Zurishaddai.
13 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were fiftie and nine thousand, and three hundred.
14 Then the tribe of Gad: and the captaine of the sonnes of Gad shall be Eliasaph the sonne of Reuel.
15 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were fourtie and fiue thousand, and sixe hundred and fiftie.
16 All that were numbred in the Campe of Reuben were an hundred thousand, and fiftie and one thousand, and foure hundred and fiftie throughout their armies: and they shall set foorth in the second ranke.
17 ¶ Then the Tabernacle of the Congregation shall set forward with the Campe of the Leuites, in the midst of the Campe: as they encampe, so shall they set forward, euery man in his place by their standerds.
18 ¶ On the West side shall bee the standerd of the Campe of Ephraim, according to their armies: and the captaine of the sonnes of Ephraim, shall be Elishama the sonne of Ammihud.
19 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were fourtie thousand and fiue hundred.
20 And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh: and the captaine of the children of Manasseh, shalbe Gamaliel the sonne of Pedahzur.
21 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were thirtie and two thousand, and two hundred.
22 Then the tribe of Beniamin: and the captaine of the sonnes of Beniamin, shall bee Abidan the sonne of Gideoni.
23 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were thirtie and fiue thousand, and foure hundred.
24 All that were numbred of the Campe of Ephraim, were an hundred thousand, and eight thousand, and an hundred, throughout their armies: and they shall goe forward in the third ranke.
25 ¶ The standerd of the Campe of Dan shall be on the Northside by their armies: and the captaine of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer, the sonne of Ammishaddai.
26 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were threescore and two thousand, and seuen hundred.
27 And those that encampe by him, shalbe the tribe of Asher: and the captaine of the children of Asher, shalbe Pagiel the sonne of Ocran.
28 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were fourtie and one thousand, and fiue hundred.
29 ¶ Then the tribe of Naphtali: and the captaine of the children of Naphtali, shall bee Ahira the sonne of Enan.
30 And his hoste, and those that were numbred of them, were fiftie and three thousand, and foure hundred.
31 All they that were numbred in the Campe of Dan, were an hundred thousand, and fifty and seuen thousand, and sixe hundred: they shall goe hindmost with their standerds.
32 ¶ These are those which were numbred of the children of Israel, by the house of their fathers; all those that were numbred of the Campes throughout their hostes, were sixe hundred thousand, and three thousand, and fiue hundred and fiftie.
33 But the Leuites were not numbred among the children of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses.
34 And the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses: so they pitched by their standerds, and so they set forward euery one after their families, according to the house of their fathers.
The order of the tribes in their tents.
- The tribes were to encamp about the tabernacle, which was to be in the midst of them. It was a token of God's gracious presence. Yet they were to pitch their tents afar off, in reverence to the sanctuary. The children of Israel put themselves in their posts, without murmuring or disputing; and as it was their safety, so it was their beauty. It is our duty and interest to be contented with the place allotted to us, and to endeavour to occupy it in a proper manner, without envying or murmuring; without ambition or covetousness. Thus the gospel church ought to be compact, according to the Scripture model, every one knowing and keeping his place; and then all that wish well to the church rejoice, beholding their order, #Col 2:5|.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.