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The Order of Encampment and Marching

The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “The Israelites shall camp each in their respective regiments, under ensigns by their ancestral houses; they shall camp facing the tent of meeting on every side.(A) Those to camp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the regimental encampment of Judah by companies. The leader of the people of Judah shall be Nahshon son of Amminadab,(B) with a company as enrolled of seventy-four thousand six hundred. Those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar. The leader of the Issacharites shall be Nethanel son of Zuar,(C) with a company as enrolled of fifty-four thousand four hundred. Then the tribe of Zebulun. The leader of the Zebulunites shall be Eliab son of Helon, with a company as enrolled of fifty-seven thousand four hundred. The total enrollment of the camp of Judah, by companies, is one hundred eighty-six thousand four hundred. They shall set out first.(D)

10 “On the south side shall be the regimental encampment of Reuben by companies. The leader of the Reubenites shall be Elizur son of Shedeur,(E) 11 with a company as enrolled of forty-six thousand five hundred. 12 And those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon. The leader of the Simeonites shall be Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai,(F) 13 with a company as enrolled of fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 14 Then the tribe of Gad. The leader of the Gadites shall be Eliasaph son of Deuel,[a](G) 15 with a company as enrolled of forty-five thousand six hundred fifty. 16 The total enrollment of the camp of Reuben, by companies, is one hundred fifty-one thousand four hundred fifty. They shall set out second.

17 “The tent of meeting, with the camp of the Levites, shall set out in the center of the camps; they shall set out just as they camp, each in position, by their regiments.(H)

18 “On the west side shall be the regimental encampment of Ephraim by companies. The leader of the people of Ephraim shall be Elishama son of Ammihud, 19 with a company as enrolled of forty thousand five hundred. 20 Next to him shall be the tribe of Manasseh. The leader of the people of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel son of Pedahzur,(I) 21 with a company as enrolled of thirty-two thousand two hundred. 22 Then the tribe of Benjamin. The leader of the Benjaminites shall be Abidan son of Gideoni, 23 with a company as enrolled of thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24 The total enrollment of the camp of Ephraim, by companies, is one hundred eight thousand one hundred. They shall set out third.(J)

25 “On the north side shall be the regimental encampment of Dan by companies. The leader of the Danites shall be Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai,(K) 26 with a company as enrolled of sixty-two thousand seven hundred. 27 Those to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher. The leader of the Asherites shall be Pagiel son of Ochran,(L) 28 with a company as enrolled of forty-one thousand five hundred. 29 Then the tribe of Naphtali. The leader of the Naphtalites shall be Ahira son of Enan, 30 with a company as enrolled of fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31 The total enrollment of the camp of Dan is one hundred fifty-seven thousand six hundred. They shall set out last, by their regiments.”(M)

32 This was the enrollment of the Israelites by their ancestral houses; the total enrollment in the camps by their companies was six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty.(N) 33 Just as the Lord had commanded Moses, the Levites were not enrolled among the other Israelites.(O)

34 The Israelites did just as the Lord had commanded Moses: they camped by regiments, and they set out the same way, everyone by clans, according to ancestral houses.

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Footnotes

  1. 2.14 Heb mss Sam Vg: MT Reuel

Organization for Israel’s Camp

Then the Lord gave these instructions to Moses and Aaron: “When the Israelites set up camp, each tribe will be assigned its own area. The tribal divisions will camp beneath their family banners on all four sides of the Tabernacle,[a] but at some distance from it.

3-4 “The divisions of Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun are to camp toward the sunrise on the east side of the Tabernacle, beneath their family banners. These are the names of the tribes, their leaders, and the numbers of their registered troops:

TribeLeaderNumber
JudahNahshon son of Amminadab74,600
5-6 IssacharNethanel son of Zuar54,400
7-8 ZebulunEliab son of Helon57,400

So the total of all the troops on Judah’s side of the camp is 186,400. These three tribes are to lead the way whenever the Israelites travel to a new campsite.

10-11 “The divisions of Reuben, Simeon, and Gad are to camp on the south side of the Tabernacle, beneath their family banners. These are the names of the tribes, their leaders, and the numbers of their registered troops:

TribeLeaderNumber
ReubenElizur son of Shedeur46,500
12-13 SimeonShelumiel son of Zurishaddai59,300
14-15 GadEliasaph son of Deuel[b]45,650

16 So the total of all the troops on Reuben’s side of the camp is 151,450. These three tribes will be second in line whenever the Israelites travel.

17 “Then the Tabernacle, carried by the Levites, will set out from the middle of the camp. All the tribes are to travel in the same order that they camp, each in position under the appropriate family banner.

18-19 “The divisions of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin are to camp on the west side of the Tabernacle, beneath their family banners. These are the names of the tribes, their leaders, and the numbers of their registered troops:

TribeLeaderNumber
EphraimElishama son of Ammihud40,500
20-21 ManassehGamaliel son of Pedahzur32,200
22-23 BenjaminAbidan son of Gideoni35,400

24 So the total of all the troops on Ephraim’s side of the camp is 108,100. These three tribes will be third in line whenever the Israelites travel.

25-26 “The divisions of Dan, Asher, and Naphtali are to camp on the north side of the Tabernacle, beneath their family banners. These are the names of the tribes, their leaders, and the numbers of their registered troops:

TribeLeaderNumber
DanAhiezer son of Ammishaddai62,700
27-28 AsherPagiel son of Ocran41,500
29-30 NaphtaliAhira son of Enan53,400

31 So the total of all the troops on Dan’s side of the camp is 157,600. These three tribes will be last, marching under their banners whenever the Israelites travel.”

32 In summary, the troops of Israel listed by their families totaled 603,550. 33 But as the Lord had commanded, the Levites were not included in this registration. 34 So the people of Israel did everything as the Lord had commanded Moses. Each clan and family set up camp and marched under their banners exactly as the Lord had instructed them.

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Footnotes

  1. 2:2 Hebrew the Tent of Meeting; also in 2:17.
  2. 2:14-15 As in many Hebrew manuscripts, Samaritan Pentateuch, and Latin Vulgate (see also 1:14); most Hebrew manuscripts read son of Reuel.