Numbers 2
1And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
2Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father's house: far off about the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch.
3And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch throughout their armies: and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be captain of the children of Judah.
4And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred.
5And those that do pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Issachar: and Nethaneel the son of Zuar shall be captain of the children of Issachar.
6And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred.
7Then the tribe of Zebulun: and Eliab the son of Helon shall be captain of the children of Zebulun.
8And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred.
9All that were numbered in the camp of Judah were an hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, throughout their armies. These shall first set forth.
10On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben according to their armies: and the captain of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.
11And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were forty and six thousand and five hundred.
12And those which pitch by him shall be the tribe of Simeon: and the captain of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.
13And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred.
14Then the tribe of Gad: and the captain of the sons of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel.
15And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty.
16All 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. And they shall set forth in the second rank.
17Then the tabernacle of the congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp: as they encamp, so shall they set forward, every man in his place by their standards.
18On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim according to their armies: and the captain of the sons of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud.
19And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty thousand and five hundred.
20And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh: and the captain of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.
21And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred.
22Then the tribe of Benjamin: and the captain of the sons of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni.
23And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred.
24All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim were an hundred thousand and eight thousand and an hundred, throughout their armies. And they shall go forward in the third rank.
25The standard of the camp of Dan shall be on the north side by their armies: and the captain of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
26And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred.
27And those that encamp by him shall be the tribe of Asher: and the captain of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran.
28And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and one thousand and five hundred.
29Then the tribe of Naphtali: and the captain of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.
30And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.
31All they that were numbered in the camp of Dan were an hundred thousand and fifty and seven thousand and six hundred. They shall go hindmost with their standards.
32These are those which were numbered of the children of Israel by the house of their fathers: all those that were numbered of the camps throughout their hosts were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty.
33But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses.
34And the children of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses: so they pitched by their standards, and so they set forward, every one after their families, according to the house of their fathers.
Today's Scripture Meaning
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).
Today's Scripture Application
Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue the book of Numbers with Chapter 2 and in today's text we see that Once we identify who we are in the family of God we place a standard or flag to identify ourselves in the group. Israel did the same as they camped before the tabernacle they placed a standard as a place where your family would camp and live as Israel was moved to a destination of the promise land. In making application we see that we too, as Christians, have a place and dwelling place of service as we follow the Lord. Using our gifts in an orderly fashion in the Church is as important as pitching your tent around the Tabernacle. Preachers-preach, teachers-teach, exhorters-exhort, etc. all under the leadership of the Pastor as move in positive direction. If everyone goes in their own direction then chaos would result just as if Israel did not work together in there journey they would see chaos. How about you? Are you using your gifts in the Church according to the leadership of your Pastor? Let us learn from today's text and place a standard in our lives and work within the framework of the Church to accomplish the Lords will.
Contact Me with any Questions or Comments at info@USBibleSociety.com
Sincerely, Dr. David Burnette
Director, The United States Bible Society, Inc.
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