This chapter contains the order of the encampment and march of the tribes of Israel in their proper places about the tabernacle; the general direction for the same is in Num. 1:1, Num.

And the Lord spake unto Moses, and unto Aaron Very probably after the number of the children of Israel was taken, of which in the preceding chapter, and when the congregation of Israel with the tabernacle were about to set forward on their journey; and therefore directions are here given for their…

Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard Or banner, of which there were four, as appears from the following account, under each of which were placed three tribes; and so every man of each tribe was to pitch his tent in the tribe he belonged to, and by the standard under…

And on the east side, towards the rising of the sun Which rises in the east; or of all; for, as Jarchi observes, that which is “before” is called “Kedem”, the east, as the west is called “behind”: shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch, throughout their armies; the tribes of Judah,…

And his host, and those that were numbered of them As they had been before; and, supposing these words to be the words of God, there is no necessity of rendering them in the future, as some have observed; though they seem rather to be the words of Moses, who under every tribe repeats the number,…

And those that do pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Issachar Who with Zebulun, after mentioned, as placed with him under the same standard, were the brethren of Judah, by the same mother Leah, and so fitly put together, as most likely to continue in harmony and love; and being the youngest…

And his host The host of Issachar; and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred. ] 54,400 men. Which had been numbered, for it does not appear that there was a fresh account taken; see .

Then the tribe of Zebulun He pitched next; though the order of their encampment was not, as it may seem, first Judah, after him Issachar, and below him Zebulun; for Judah lay between these two, the one before him, and the other behind him; and it was Issachar that was behind, and Zebulun before, as…

And his host That is, the host of Zebulun; and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred. 57,400 men; see .

All that were numbered in the camp of Judah were an hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, throughout their armies 186,400 men.

On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben, according to their armies This camp consisted of the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, and Gad, which was divided into lesser bodies, regiments, or companies, called armies; and this was placed to the south of the tabernacle, or to the right…

And his host That is, the host of Reuben, as distinct from his camp, of which it was only a part, and of which Elizur was captain; and those that were numbered thereof, were forty and six thousand and five hundred. ] 46,500 men; see .

And those which pitch by him shall be the tribe of Simeon, &c.] Under his standard, and on one side of it; Reuben and Simeon being brothers by the mother as well as the father’s side, might well be thought to agree together; and Reuben being the eldest brother, and the eldest of all Jacob’s sons,…

And his host That is, the host of Simeon: and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred. 59,300 men; the same as in .

Then the tribe of Gad Who was placed on the other side of Reuben’s standard, and according to the former direction he must be before, and Simeon behind; and Gad being the eldest son of Leah’s handmaid Zilpah, is fitly placed under Leah’s firstborn, and being the son of an handmaid, could not object…

And his host That is, the host of Gad, as distinct from those of Reuben and Simeon, which together formed the camp; and those that were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty. ] 45,650 men; see .

And all that were numbered in the camp of Reuben were an hundred thousand and fifty and one thousand and four hundred and fifty, throughout their armies 151,450 men. Putting Reuben’s host, and the hosts of Simeon and Gad together, (Num. 2:13, Num.

Then the tabernacle of the congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites Which reached four miles, according to the Targum of Jonathan, as did Judah’s.

On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim, according to their armies It was in the rear or behind, consisting of his tribe, and of the tribes of Manasseh and Benjamin, divided into several companies, and extended four miles, as the above Targum.

And his host That is, the host of Ephraim; and those that were numbered of them, were forty thousand and five hundred. 40,500 men. Not his camp, but his host, or the army, which consisted only of his own tribe see .

And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh Who though the elder brother to Ephraim, yet Ephraim was preferred to him, and had a standard given him, and his elder brother was directed to pitch by it; and this being agreeably to the prophecy of Jacob, could not well be objected to; and Benjamin, the…

And his host, &c.] That is, the host of Manasseh; and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred. 32,200 men; see .

Then the tribe of Benjamin He was to pitch under the same standard of Ephraim, and the other side of it from that of Manasseh; the one being before, and the other behind, and the standard in the middle; (See Gill on Num.

And his host That is, the host of Benjamin; and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred. 35,400 men. The least number of all the tribes, excepting the tribe of Manasseh, ; see .

All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim were an hundred thousand and eight thousand and an hundred, throughout their armies 108,100 men. Which was the smallest of all the camps, and near eighty thousand fewer than the camp of Judah, : and they shall go forward in the third rank; and which was…

The standard of the camp of Dan shall be on the north side by their armies To the left of the tabernacle as encamped, and so was the left wing of the grand army; it consisted of the tribes of Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, in which were several divisions and companies, whose camp also the Targum of…

And his host That is, the host of Dan; and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred. 62,700 men, which agrees with the account of this tribe in .

And those that encamp by him shall be the tribe of Asher, &c.] Dan had a standard given him, though the son of an handmaid, being the firstborn of the sons of the handmaids, and his tribe being a warlike tribe, and very numerous; and Asher and Naphtali are placed by him, being the sons of handmaids…

And his host That is, the host of Asher; and those that were numbered of them, were forty and one thousand and five hundred. 41,500 men; as they were numbered .

Then the tribe of Naphtali That was to pitch by the same standard of Dan, on the other side of it: and the captain of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan; who is mentioned .

And his host That is, the host of Naphtali; and those that were numbered of them; not that some part of the tribe of Naphtali was numbered, which made up the host Ahira was captain of, but the whole of it, who were all numbered that were of twenty years of age and upwards; and the same is to be…

All they that were numbered in the camp of Dan were an hundred thousand and fifty and seven thousand and six hundred 157,600 men. Consisting of his own tribe, and those of Asher and Naphtali, which make the largest camp next to Judah: they shall go hindmost with their standards; for though, while…

These are those that were numbered of the children of Israel by the house of their fathers As the number was taken by Moses and Aaron, assisted by twelve princes of the tribe, who were now constituted captains over them, as so many hosts or armies: all those that were numbered of the camp…

But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel At this time, not among the Israelites, but by themselves, they being a camp of themselves: as the Lord commanded Moses; (Num. 1:48, Num. 1:49) .

And the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses Formed themselves into camps, so many tribes to a camp, and over each tribe or host appointed a captain, and erected a standard to each camp, by which they pitched as directed, which is next particularly observed: so they…