Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Numbers 2:1
And the LORD spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
Num 2:1-2
Pitch by his own standard.
The marshalling of Israel, and its lessons
I. They all dwelt in tents; and when they marched carried all their tents along with them (Psa 107:4). This represents to us our state in this world.
1. It is a movable state; here to-day and gone to-morrow.
2. It is a military state; is not our life a warfare?
II. Those of a tribe were to pitch together, every man by his own standard. It is the will of God that mutual love and affection, conerse and communion, should be kept up among relations. Those that are of kin to each other should, as much as they can, be acquainted with each other, and the bonds of nature should be improved for the strengthening of the bends of Christian communion.
III. Every one must know his place, and keep in it. They were not allowed to fix where they pleased, nor to remove when they pleased; but God quarters them, with a charge to abide in their quarters. It is God that appoints us the bounds of our habitation, and to Him we must refer ourselves (Psa 47:4); and in His choice we must acquiesce, and not love to flit, nor be as the bird that wanders from her nest.
IV. Every tribe had its standard, flag, or ensign, and it should seem every family had some particular ensign of their fathers house, which were carried, as with us the colours of each company in a regiment are. These were of use for the distinction of tribes and families, and the gathering and keeping of them together; in allusion to which the preaching of the gospel is said to lift up an ensign, to which the Gentiles shall seek, and by which they shall pitch (Isa 11:10; Isa 11:12). God is the God of order, and not of confusion. These standards made this mighty army seem more beautiful to its friends, and more formidable to its enemies. The Church of Christ is said to be as terrible as an army with banners (Son 6:10).
V. They were to pitch about the tabernacle, which was to be in the midst of them, as the tent or pavilion of a general in the centre of an army. They must encamp round the tabernacle–
1. That it might be equally a comfort and joy to them all, as it was a token of Gods gracious presence with them (Psa 46:5). The tabernacle was in the midst of the camp, that it might be near to them; for it is a very desirable thing to have the solemn administration of holy ordinances near us, and within our reach. The kingdom of God is among you.
2. That they might be a guard and defence upon the tabernacle and the Levites on every side. No invader could come near Gods tabernacle, but he must first penetrate the thickest of their squadrons. If God undertake the protection of our comforts, we ought in our places to undertake the protection of His institutions, and stand up in defence of His honour, and interest, and ministers.
VI. Yet they were to pitch afar off, in reverence to the sanctuary, that it might not seem crowded and thrust up among them; and that the common business of the camp might be no annoyance to it. They were also taught to keep their distance, lest too much familiarity should breed contempt. But we are not ordered, as they were, to pitch afar off; no, we are invited to draw near, and come boldly. The saints of the Most High are said to be round about Him (Psa 76:12). God by His grace keeps us close to Him. (Matthew Henry, D. D.)
Israel typical of the Christian Church: –
I. The one israel.
1. Their real oneness of descent. The children of Abraham.
2. Their original condition. All bondsmen.
3. Their Divine deliverance. Brought out of Egypt, &c.
4. In one Divine covenant. Promises, &c.
5. Journeying to the one inheritance.
6. Under one command.
See how this all applies to the Church of the Saviour. All the children of God by faith, all heirs, all pilgrims, all of one covenant, one Saviour, &c.
essentially one; one in Christ Jesus.
II. The various tribes.
1. Their different names. Necessary for distinction–recognition.
2. Their different positions in the camp. See next chapter. East side, Num 2:3; south side, Num 2:10; west, Num 2:18; north, Num 2:25.
3. The various tribes were in one general accord and union. All one religious confederacy, absolutely one, worship one, &c.; in perils one, in warfare one, in prospects one.
III. The special directions to the different tribes.
1. Each tribe had their own standard or banner to distinguish it from the rest. No order without.
2. Each man was to be by his own standard. Not a wanderer; not a visitor to all; but his own fixed, legitimate position.
3. Thus the duties of every tribe would be regarded and fulfilled.
4. Thus the interests of all would be sustained.
IV. Spiritual lessons.
1. We see now the denominational tribes in the kingdom of Christ. Christians of different conditions, education, training, leaders, &c.
2. Christians have a special interest in their own camp.
3. To devote themselves to these is the first duty and privilege. Just as families are constituted, so churches.
4. All the various denominational camps constitute the one Church of the Saviour. Only one Israel, one body, one army, &c. For particular purposes, every man by his own camp; for general purposes, all acting in conjunction and harmony. (J. Burns, D. D.)
The marshalling of the people: –
I. Order.
1. God Himself delights in order.
2. The importance of order is recognised in human affairs.
3. This order was probably divinely institated as a means to peace and unity.
II. Variety. Each camp had its own characteristic standard. And each tribe and each fathers house had its own distinctive ensign. Monotony is not a mark of divinity. Variety characterises the works of God, Countries differ in their climates, conformations, productions, &c. The features of landscapes differ. Trees, flowers, faces, minds differ. With one spirit there may be many forms.
III. Unity. All the tribes were gathered about the tabernacle of the congregation, as around a common centre. They had different standards, but constituted one nation.
1. The dependence of all on God. All the tribes looked to Him for support, provision, protection, direction, &c.
2. The access of all to God. The tabernacle was the sign of the presence of God with them.
3. The reverence of all towards God. They were to pitch over against the tabernacle. Probably the tribes were two thousand cubits from it. Cf. Jos 3:4. They were thus to encamp around the sacred place, that no stranger might draw near to it; and the Levites were to encamp near the tabernacle on every side, that the people themselves might not draw too near to it, but might be taught to regard it with respect and reverence.
IV. Security. The tabernacle of God in the midst of the camp was a guarantee of their safety. His presence in their midst would tend to–
1. Quell their fears. He had wrought marvellous things on their behalf in the past: He was ever doing great things for them. Then why should they quail before any danger or enemy?
2. Inspire their confidence and courage. It should have given to them the assurance of victory in conflict, &c. (Num 10:35-36). Distance from God is weakness and peril to His Church.
Nearness to Him is safety and power. Living in vital union with Him all-conquering might is ours. Conclusion–
1. Learn sincerely and heartily to recognise as members of the Christian Israel all who have the Christian spirit, however widely they may differ from us in forms and opinions.
2. Think less of our isms and more of Christs Church; less of theological and ecclesiastical systems, and more of Christs gospel; less of human authority and patronage, and more of the Lord Jesus Christ. (W. Jones.)
Why God assigns to every tribe his place and order:
The causes of this dealing of God toward His people are three: one in respect of Himself, another in respect of Israel, the third in regard of the enemies of them both, of God and His people.
1. The cause respecting God is, that they and all other might see what a wise God they serve. If they, professing the knowledge and service of the true God, had wandered up and down in the wild and waste wilderness, in such troops of men, in a confused manner, not knowing who should go before, nor regarding who should follow after, the name of God would have been dishonoured, His wisdom impaired, and His glory diminished. He leaveth them not to themselves, but assigneth to each tribe his proper mansion, to take away from them all confusion, and to cut off all matter of contention. For except He had established as by a law the order that should be observed among them, and thereby decided all questions that might arise touching priority, many hurly-burlies and heart-burnings would be entertained, and part-takings would be nourished; which being kindled at the first as a little spark of fire, would afterwards break out into such a flame as would spread further, and in the end hardly be quenched.
2. They are mustered and marshalled into an exact and exquisite order, to dismay and terrify their enemies, as also to confirm and encourage their own hearts. Great is the force of unity, peace, and concord. One man serveth to strengthen and establish another, like many staves bound together in one. Many sticks or staves joined in one bundle are not easily broken; but sever them and pull them asunder, they are soon broken with little strength. Thus the case standeth in all societies, whether it be in the Church or Commonwealth, or in the private family. If our hearts be thoroughly united one to another, we need not fear what man can do unto us; but if we be at war between ourselves, we lie open to our enemies to work us indignity whatsoever. (W. Attersoll.)
Gods delight in order: –
1. God is the God of order, not of confusion. As He hath order in Himself, so He commandeth and commendeth an order to be used of us.
2. All wise men will order their affairs with wisdom and discretion, and will dispose of them with seemliness and comeliness. An expert captain that goeth against his enemies will keep his soldiers in good array, whether he march or retire. If he fly out of the field out of order one is ready to overthrow another, and all are left to the mercy of his adversary.
3. The Church is not a confused multitude shuffled together, where no man knoweth his place or his office, and one encroacheth upon another; but it is the house of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth. Now in a house well ordered is to be seen the master as the ruler, and the family subject to his government, every one employing his proper gifts, and no man usurping the place and calling of another. If this be to be seen in our private houses, how much more must we conceive this of the Church of God, which is the house that He hath builded, the mountain of the Lord which He hath prepared, and the peculiar people which He hath chosen?
Uses:
1. Learn from hence to acknowledge an exquisite order in all Gods words and works above and beneath, in heaven and on earth.
2. This reproveth such as know no order, but bring in all confusion and disorder in Church or commonwealth; these have nothing to do with God, but are the children of the devil, that hath transformed them into his image and likeness. For from whence are seditions and confusions but from our own lusts, enflamed and kindled from his furnace?
3. Seeing God requireth orderly observation of His ordinances, we learn this duty, that we must be careful to observe it and practise it with a due regard of His commandment. This is the general rule that the apostle commendeth unto us (1Co 14:1-40). (W. Attersoll.)
Divine appointments:
The camp of Judah was to set forth first, the camp of Reuben was to set forth in the second rank, the camp of Ephraim was to go forward in the third rank, the camp of Dan was to go hindmost with their standards. Judah first, Reuben second, Ephraim third; these terms are arithmetical and may be accepted without murmuring; but the next term is more than arithmetical–the camp of Dan hindmost. That seems to be a word of inferiority and of rebuke. Had the numbers been–first, second, third, fourth, the arithmetic would have been complete; but to be hindmost is to be further behind than to be merely fourth; it is to have the position marked so broadly as almost to amount to a brand of tribal degradation. Faith in the Divine appointment could alone secure religious contentment under such circumstances. This is as necessary to-day, in view of the distribution of men, with their various gifts and their endlessly varied vocations. What is the astronomical force that so whirls society around an invisible centre as to sink the mountains into plains and lift up the valleys to a common level? Order is but another word for purpose, or another word for mind. This mechanism was not self-invented or self-regulated; behind this military table of position and movement is the God of the whole universe. It requires the whole Trinity to sustain the tiny insect that trembles out its little life in the dying sunbeam; even that frail heart does not throb by having some small portion of the Divine energy detached to attend to its affairs. Dan was to go hindmost. The hindmost position has its advantages. It is a rule in the higher criticism that a critic on looking at a picture shall first look for its beauties. We ought, surely, to look so upon the picture of Providence, the map of human life, the marvellous academy of society. The greater the statesman, the greater the responsibility he has to sustain; the greater the genius, the more poignant its occasional agonies; the more sensitive the nature, the more is every wound felt, the more is every concussion regarded with fear. The foremost soldiers will be in battle first; we who are hindmost may have only to shout the hosanna of victory. This age is the hindmost in procession of time; is it therefore the inferior age? The nineteenth century comes after all the eighteen; but it therefore comes on the firmer ground, with the larger civilisation, with the ampler library, with the more extended resources; it comes with a thousand-handed ability because it is the hindmost of the days. Take this view of all circumstances, and life will become a joy where it has long been a pain; our very disqualifications in one direction may become qualifications in another. In the Old Testament and in the New Testament there was some regard to specialty of gift, to definiteness of position; having lost that regard we have lost power. You do not say the clock is an excellent timekeeper, but no use at all as a musical instrument. You do not take up a trumpet and say, a finer instrument was never made to call men to feast or to battle, but it is utterly useless if you want it to tell you the time of day. Every man in his own place, in his sphere. The great question is not in what regiment we are, but rather, are we in the army of Christ–whether with Judah first, with Reuben second, with Ephraim third, or with Dan the hindmost tribe? To be in the army is the great consideration. (J. Parker, D. D.)
Satisfied with ones own position:
Many would do well to learn the lesson taught in an old parable. I dont know, said the turnstile one day, in a reflective mood, I dont know that I ought to have thought so ill of my lot, and to have fretted over it as I have done. Tis true a turnstile has plenty of worry, as I have truly proved; worry and whirl all the day long I Nobody will ever pass without giving a turnstile a swing round; and whoever returns, ten to one but he gives the turnstile a whirling twist the other way! Indeed, I have said that I wouldnt wish to any one, whether friend or foe, the life of a poor turnstile. No. But then, as that old wheel of the waggon said yesterday, mines a pleasant life and a favoured lot compared with his. If I have to turn round, he has the same; and whilst he has the burden of the cart, there is beside the weight of the load it carries pressing on him, and I have no encumbrances. So, on the whole, perhaps Id better try and be satisfied; that is, as satisfied as I can afford to be, with so many turns about as must in my situation naturally come to my lot. (Biblical Museum.)
The camp: –
1. The tents. They stand to-day; to-morrow sees the cords relaxed, the fastenings removed, and a vacant place. My soul, from Israels tents you learn how fleeting is lifes day! Press then the question, When I go hence, is an abiding mansion mine?
2. The order. Let Israels camp be now more closely scanned. What perfect regularity appears! Rule draws each line. Our God delights in order. Is it not so in every Christian heart? When Jesus takes the throne, wise rule prevails. Disturbing lusts lie down. Is it not so in Christian life? There is no tangled labyrinth of plans–no misspent diligence–no toll without a purpose.
3. The position. All these tents share one grand privilege. They all have common focus. As the planets circle the sun, so these surround the sanctuary. God is the centre. They form the wide circumference. And from each door one sight–the holy tent–is visible. God in Christ Jesus is the centre, the heart, the life, the strength, the shield, the joy of His believing flock.
4. The standard. A standard floats above each tribe. Beneath the well-known sign they rest, and by its side they march. Believers have an ensign too. The banner over them is Jesus love (Solomon Son 2:4). The standard is a pledge of safety. Beneath it there is sweet repose. Beside it there is misery. (Dean Law.)
The most prominent banner:
It is narrated that when, in the time of the Crusades, the lion-hearted Richard I. of England, the Emperor of Austria, and the King of France were jointly waging war against the valiant heathen, Saladin, a jealousy sprang up in the camp between England and Austria, and one morning the British banner was found lying in the dust on St. Georges Mount–a distinguished point on which it had long waved–and the banner of Austria was planted in its stead; impetuous Richard, who was confined to his tent through severe illness, no sooner heard of it than he strode forth alone, and before the assembled hosts hurled Austrias ensign to the ground, and caused the lion once more to take the prominence, remarking, Your banners may be arranged around mine, but must never take its place. So may it be in our preaching. Let the Lion of the tribe of Judah alone have the prominence. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
God the centre:
For more than fifty centuries men watched the starlit sky, noted the changes of the planets, and endeavoured to discover the laws which governed their movements; they took careful observations, made elaborate calculations, and yet the law of the harmony of the heavens remained a mystery. The stars were still supposed to follow fantastic circles which no rule of science could explain: their orbits formed a labyrinth of which the most learned failed to find the clue. One day a man of genius said, The sun, and not the earth, is the centre from which the worlds must be regarded. At once the harmony appeared; planets and their satellites moved in regular orbits; the system of the universe was revealed. God is the sun and the true centre of the spiritual world; only in the light in which He dwells can the destinies of man be truly read. (Eugene Bersier.)
Effectiveness of unity:
Pliny writes of a stone in the island of Scyros, that if it be whole, though a large and heavy one, it swims above water, but being broken it sinks. So long as the Church keeps together nothing can sink it. A thousand grains of powder, or a thousand barrels scattered, a grain in a place, and fired at intervals, would burn, it is true, but would produce no concussion. Placed together in effective position they would lift up a mountain and cast it into the sea. Even so the whole Church, filled with faith and the Holy Ghost, will remove every mountain and usher in the jubilee of the redemption.
Lessons from our national banner
When the Union Jack flies to the breeze the meaning is that what is under it is British property, and is a sort of challenge to touch that property. Every country had a flag. In old times very little did for a flag. One great nation had simply a wisp of straw on a pole, and another power in the East had but a blacksmiths apron. The Union Jack was their flag, and its composition was very simple. It was not made at all; like all the best things in this world, it grew. At first, in the thirteenth century, there was nothing but a single cross-one straight horizontal line and another perpendicular line. That was the cross of St. George, and it was introduced by Richard of the Lion-heart on his return from the Crusades. When away fighting in Palestine he came to know about St. George, whom he installed as his patron saint, took for his battle cry, and emblazoned on his flag. When England and Scotland were united under James I. of England, that monarch added the Scottish cross, and called the flag the Union Jack. That was his own name, as he usually signed it in the French way, Jacques. Two centuries later the Irish flag was placed on the top of the other two. The Union Jack was thus made up of three crosses, each being laid on the top of the other as each country came into the Union. These were the emblems of St. George, St. Andrew, and St. Patrick–the patron saints of the three countries. First, there was St. George. George originally meant a cultivated piece of ground, and parents in thus christening their children meant to say, Would that God would make this little boy a garden of God! They could desire nothing better than to be gardens of God. They must be gardens–they must allow themselves to be sown in–and they had to in their choice either to produce good or evil. Every good thought was a good seed. Now let us think a little about St. Andrew. There never was a live apostle in Scotland, but some one thought the bones of St. Andrew would do the Scots some good. So they were brought to St. Andrews, and that was the beginning of what was at one time the greatest city in Scotland. Andrew meant manly. Why was the object of the Brigade said to be the promotion of true manliness? Was it not as opposed to false manliness? Every one despised those who tried to be men before their time. Little was known about St. Patrick. He was carried away captive from Scotland to Ireland when a boy, and after obtaining his liberty he so pitied the people of Ireland that he went back to try and do them good. It was well for them to remember St. Patrick. Now, what did the flag teach them? It was a union–a Union Jack. It had been the strength of the British army all through, and it was owing to it that the English, Scotch, and Irish had fought side by side and helped one another. What they had to learn was the strength of union. The Cross led to victory. The Cross meant death to Christ, and the death of Christ meant that One came from heaven to die for them that they might be Gods children. Under which flag would they determine to serve? Under that of Christ, which led to happiness, or under that which assuredly would lead to misery and ruin? The greatest disgrace that could befall a man was the forsaking of his own flag to serve under another. To act thus was to be a traitor to his king. It was the worst thing possible not to yield themselves to Christ. Let them not try to serve Christ and some one else. Let them make up their minds and resolve that they would henceforth fight for what was good and do what was good. (Prof. Marcus Dods, D. D. , Sermon to Boys Brigade.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
CHAPTER II
Moses commanded to teach the Israelites how they are to pitch
their tents, and erect the ensigns of their fathers’ houses,
1, 2.
Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun, on the EAST, amounting to
186,400 men, 3-9.
Reuben, Simeon, and Gad, on the SOUTH, with 151,450
men, 10-16.
The Levites to be in the midst of the camp, 17.
Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, on the WEST, with
108,100 men, 18-24.
Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, on the NORTH, with 157,600
men, 25-31.
The sum total of the whole, 603,550 men, 32.
But the Levites are not included, 33.
The people do as the Lord commands them, 34.
NOTES ON CHAP. II
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
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 orderly and regular proceeding in it, in what form and manner they should both encamp and march;
saying: as follows.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Order of the Twelve Tribes in the Camp and on the March. – Num 2:1, Num 2:2. The twelve tribes were to encamp each one by his standard, by the signs of their fathers’ houses, opposite to the tabernacle (at some distance) round about, and, according to the more precise directions given afterwards, in such order that on every side of the tabernacle three tribes were encamped side by side and united under one banner, so that the twelve tribes formed four large camps or divisions of an army. Between these camps and the court surrounding the tabernacle, the three leading mishpachoth of the Levites were to be encamped on three sides, and Moses and Aaron with the sons of Aaron (i.e., the priests) upon the fourth, i.e., the front or eastern side, before the entrance (Num 3:21-38). , a standard, banner, or flag, denotes primarily the larger field sign, possessed by every division composed of three tribes, which was also the banner of the tribe at the head of each division; and secondarily, in a derivative signification, it denotes the army united under one standard, like , or vexillum . It is used thus, for example, in Num 2:17, Num 2:31, Num 2:34, and in combination with in Num 2:3, Num 2:10, Num 2:18, and Num 2:25, where “standard of the camp of Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, and Dan” signifies the hosts of the tribes arranged under these banners. , the signs (ensigns), were the smaller flags or banners which were carried at the head of the different tribes and subdivisions of the tribes (the fathers’ houses). Neither the Mosaic law, nor the Old Testament generally, gives us any intimation as to the form or character of the standard (degel). According to rabbinical tradition, the standard of Judah bore the figure of a lion, that of Reuben the likeness of a man or of a man’s head, that of Ephraim the figure of an ox, and that of Dan the figure of an eagle; so that the four living creatures united in the cherubic forms described by Ezekiel were represented upon these four standards.
(Note: Jerome Prado, in his commentary upon Ezekiel (ch. 1 p. 44), gives the following minute description according to rabbinical tradition: “The different leaders of the tribes had their own standards, with the crests of their ancestors depicted upon them. On the east, above the tent of Naasson the first-born of Judah, there shone a standard of a green colour, this colour having been adopted by him because it was in a green stone, viz., an emerald, that the name of his forefather Judah was engraved on the breastplate of the high priest (Exo 25:15.), and on this standard there was depicted a lion, the crest and hieroglyphic of his ancestor Judah, whom Jacob had compared to a lion, saying, ‘Judah is a lion’s whelp.’ Towards the south, above the tent of Elisur the son of Reuben, there floated a red standard, having the colour of the sardus, on which the name of his father, viz., Reuben, was engraved upon the breastplate of the high priest. The symbol depicted upon this standard was a human head, because Reuben was the first-born, and head of the family. On the west, above the tent of Elishamah the son of Ephraim, there was a golden flag, on which the head of a calf was depicted, because it was through the vision of the calves or oxen that his ancestor Joseph had predicted and provided for the famine in Egypt (Gen 41); and hence Moses, when blessing the tribe of Joseph, i.e., Ephraim (Deu 33:17), said, ‘his glory is that of the first-born of a bull.’ The golden splendour of the standard of Ephraim resembled that of the chrysolite, in which the name of Ephraim was engraved upon the breastplate. Towards the north, above the tent of Ahiezer the son of Dan, there floated a motley standard of white and red, like the jaspis (or, as some say, a carbuncle), in which the name of Dan was engraved upon the breastplate. The crest upon this was an eagle, the great doe to serpents, which had been chosen by the leader in the place of a serpent, because his forefather Jacob had compared Dan to a serpent, saying, ‘Dan is a serpent in the way, an adder ( cerastes, a horned snake) in the path;’ but Ahiezer substituted the eagle, the destroyer of serpents as he shrank from carrying an adder upon his flag.”)
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
| The Stations of the Several Tribes. | B. C. 1490. |
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 2 Every 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.
Here is the general appointment given both for their orderly encampment where they rested and their orderly march when they moved. Some order, it is possible, they had observed hitherto; they came out of Egypt in rank and file (Exod. xiii. 18), but now they were put into a better model. 1. They all dwelt in tents, and when they marched carried all their tents along with them, for they found no city to dwell in, Ps. cvii. 4. This represents to us our state in this world. It is a movable state (we are here to-day and gone to-morrow); and it is a military state: is not our life a warfare? We do but pitch our tents in this world, and have in it no continuing city. Let us, therefore, while we are pitching in this world, be pressing through it. 2. Those of a tribe were to pitch together, every man by his own standard. Note, It is the will of God that mutual love and affection, converse and communion, should be kept up among relations. Those that are of kin to each other should, as much as they can, be acquainted with each other; and the bonds of nature should be improved for the strengthening of the bonds of Christian communion. 3. Every one must know his place and keep in it; they were not allowed to fix where they pleased, nor to remove when they pleased, but God quarters them, with a charge to abide in their quarters. Note, It is God that appoints us the bounds of our habitation, and to him we must refer ourselves. He shall choose our inheritance for us (Ps. xlvii. 4), and in his choice we must acquiesce, and not love to flit, nor be as the bird that wanders from her nest. 4. Every tribe had its standard, flag, or ensign, and it should seem every family had some particular ensign of their father’s house, which was carried as with us the colours of each troop or company in a regiment are. These were of use for the distinction of tribes and families, and the gathering and keeping of them together, in allusion to which the preaching of the gospel is said to lift up an ensign, to which the Gentiles shall seek, and by which they shall pitch, Isa 11:10; Isa 11:12. Note, God is the God of order, and not of confusion. These standards made this mighty army seem more beautiful to its friends and more formidable to its enemies. The church of Christ is said to be as terrible as an army with banners, Cant. vi. 10. It is uncertain how these standards were distinguished: some conjecture that the standard of each tribe was of the same colour with the precious stone in which the name of that tribe was written in the high priest’s ephod, and that this was all the difference. Many of the modern Jews think there was some coat of arms painted in each standard, which had reference to the blessing of that tribe by Jacob. Judah bore a lion, Dan a serpent, Naphtali a hind, Benjamin a wolf, c. Some of them say the four principal standards were, Judah a lion, Reuben a man, Joseph an ox, and Dan an eagle, making the appearances in Ezekiel’s vision to allude it. Others say the name of each tribe was written in its standard. Whatever it was, no doubt it gave a certain direction. 5. They were to pitch about the tabernacle, which was to be in the midst of them, as the tent of pavilion of a general in the centre of an army. They must encamp round the tabernacle, (1.) That it might be equally a comfort and joy to them all, as it was a token of God’s gracious presence with them. Ps. xlvi. 5, God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved. Their camp had reason to be hearty, when thus they had God in the heart of them. To have bread from heaven every day round about their camp, and fire from heaven, with other tokens of God’s favour, in the midst of their camp, was abundantly sufficient to answer that question, Is the Lord among us, or is he not? Happy art thou, O Israel! It is probable that the doors of all their tents were made to look towards the tabernacle from all sides, for every Israelite should have his eyes always towards the Lord therefore they worshipped at the tent-door. The tabernacle was in the midst of the camp, that it might be near to them; for it is a very desirable thing to have the solemn administrations of holy ordinances near us and within our reach. The kingdom of God is among you. (2.) That they might be a guard and defence upon the tabernacle and the Levites on every side. No invader could come near God’s tabernacle without first penetrating the thickest of their squadrons. Note, If God undertake the protection of our comforts, we ought in our places to undertake the protection of his institutions, and stand up in defence of his honour, and interest, and ministers. 6. Yet they were to pitch afar off, in reverence to the sanctuary, that it might not seem crowded and thrust up among them, and that the common business of the camp might be no annoyance to it. They were also taught to keep their distance, lest too much familiarity should breed contempt. It is supposed (from Joshua iii. 4) that the distance between the nearest part of the camp and the tabernacle (or perhaps between them and the camp of the Levites, who pitched near the tabernacle) was 2000 cubits, that is, 1000 yards, little more than half a measured mile with us; but the outer parts of the camp must needs be much further off. Some compute that the extent of their camp could be no less than twelve miles square; for it was like a movable city, with streets and lanes, in which perhaps the manna fell, as well as on the outside of the camp, that they might have it at their doors. In the Christian church we read of a throne (as in the tabernacle there was a mercy-seat) which is called a glorious high throne from the beginning (Jer. xvii. 12), and that throne surrounded by spiritual Israelites, twenty-four elders, double to the number of the tribes, clothed in white raiment (Rev. iv. 4), and the banner over them is Love; but we are not ordered, as they were, to pitch afar off; no, we are invited to draw near, and come boldly. The saints of the Most High are said to be round about him, Ps. lxxvi. 11. God by his grace keep us close to him!
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
NUMBERS-CHAPTER TWO
Verse 1-9
God prescribed the order in which Israel’s camp was to be arranged, and the order in which they were to travel. God is the God of order, not of chaos, 1Co 14:33. He did not leave to chance the arrangement of His people.
No information is extant on the arrangement of the camp prior to the census, chapter 1. The arrangement given in the present chapter follows the tribal and family order.
“Standard,” degel, “banner, or flag.” The text implies that each tribe had its own special banner or flag.
“Ensign,” oth, “sign, token, signal.” The text implies that this was a token or emblem for each family.
“Far off,” literally, “over against.” Israel was to withdraw a distance from the Tabernacle, The exact distance is unknown, but Jos 3:4 implies that it was likely about 2,000 cubits (3,000 feet).
Three tribes were assigned places on each of the four sides of the camp surrounding the Tabernacle. One of these three was named as the leader, and the “standard” of this tribe became the banner for the group. Leaders for each tribe are those recorded in chapter one.
Toward the east, the three tribes were Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. The count of the men in this group was 186,400. This group camped and marched under the banner of Judah. They led the way when Israel traveled, with Judah in the forefront. This was not because Judah was the greatest in number, but because of the prophecy regarding him, of Ge 49:10.
The tribes under Judah’s standard were descendants of Jacob’s sons by Leah.
Jewish historians record that the emblem on Judah’s banner was a young lion. This appears to be confirmed by Re 5:5. They further record that the other emblems were: Reuben, a man; Ephraim, an ox (De 33:17); and Dan, an eagle. These are the forms of the “living creatures” described in prophecy, Eze 1:26; 10:1; Re 4:4-6.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
1. And the Lord spake unto Moses, and unto Aaron This distribution into separate bands must have served to prevent contention; for, had not God thus assigned to each their proper position, so natural is ambition to man, that they would have quarrelled for the place of honor. It would have been grievous to the family of Reuben, the first-born, to resign his dignity; and, even if they had patiently submitted to the punishment inflicted upon them, they would have been made to take the lowest place, as being condemned to ignominy. Disputes would also have arisen respecting the children of the concubines, for they would not have thought it consistent that; those who sprang from Leah and Rachel should yield them the superior place. Besides, in proportion as they severally had the advantage in numbers, they would have thought themselves injured unless they preceded others.
Thus the children of Simeon would never have suffered themselves to be ranged under the standard of Reuben. Again, dispute would also have arisen between the children of Ephraim and Manasseh. God, therefore, at once put a stop to all these disturbances by so arranging their ranks that each one knew his own band. Consequently, Judah, although the fourth son of Leah, received the first standard as an honorable distinction, that he might thus in a manner begin to fulfill the prophecy of Jacob by anticipation; and two tribes were united with him which would willingly submit to his rule, Issachar and Zebuhm; because they derived their origin from the children of the (421) handmaid whom Leah had substituted in her own place.
Although Reuben had been deprived of his primogeniture, still, that some consolation might remain for his posterity, he was set over the second standard; two tribes were associated with him, which on account of their connection would not be aggrieved at fighting under his command, the tribe of Simeon his uterine brother, and the tribe of Gad, which also sprang from the handmaid of Leah.
It was necessary that God should interpose His authorify, in order that two tribes should be formed of a single head, Joseph; otherwise the fact would have led to contention, because the inequality was odious in itself, and that family might appear to be elevated not without disgrace to the others. Besides, the children of Manasseh, who were superior by the law of nature, would never have been induced to obey, unless a divine decree had interposed. But thtat division could not have been better formed than of the sons of Rachel, because their consanguinity was closer; for a sharp contest might also have arisen for the leadership of the fourth band, because it was unjust that the son of a handmaid should have been placed at its head, and thus preferred to a legitimate son of Leah, and to the other son of Rachel, especially when Benjamin was so singularly beloved by Jacob, the common father of them all. (422) The sole will of God, indeed, was sufficient, and more than sufficient to prevent all quarrels; but, inasmuch as He chose rather to rule over them generously and paternally, than in a despotic manner, He rather conformed Himself to their wishes than drove them by compulsion. Still, however, because their contentions could not be prevented by mere human decisions, it is again said at the end of the chapter that Moses did nothing except by God’s command. At the same time the obedience of the people is noticed in that they peaceably obeyed Moses, since thus they ratified their acknowledgment of Moses as a true and faithful minister of God; for this submissiveness is the inseparable companion of sincere piety towards God, that whatever is proposed by His approved ministers the people should reverently accept.
(421) This is a singular oversight of C. , which is also copied in the French; “Pource qu’elles estoyent descendues de la chambriere de Lea;” because they were descended from the handmaid of Leah. It is perhaps still more strange that Attersoll in his Commentary on the Book of Numbers should have adopted it, evidently following C. ; “He (Judah) was the fourth son of Jacob by Leah, with whom he associateth such two tribes as were in reason most likely to submit themselves to him, inasmuch as Zebulun and Issachar were the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maid, whom she gave to her husband, and set in her own place.” I need scarcely remind my readers that Gad and Asher were the sons of Zilpah, and Zebulun and Issachar of Leah herself.
(422) Attersoll seems to have correctly, though somewhat quaintly, interpreted here the meaning of C. , which else perhaps may not be quite clear; “from hence might hurly-burlies and heart-burnings arise, which are all pacified and compounded by the express commandment of God, who joineth to Dan, Naphtali his mother’s son, (for both of them were the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maid,) and Asher, the son of Zilpah, Leah’s maid.” — Commentary on numbers in loco.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
MARCHING AND MURMURING
Numbers, Chapters 1-19.
THE Book of Leviticus is hard to outline and to interpret. It is lengthy, and introduces so much of detail of law and ceremony that its analysis is accomplished with difficulty. And yet Leviticus took but thirty days to declare and put its every precept into actual practice. In that respect the Book of Numbers quite contrasts its predecessor. It covers a period of not less than thirty-eight years, and the plan of the volume is simple. Four keywords compass the nineteen chapters proposed for this mornings study. They are words necessitated by the wilderness experience. Leviticus sets up a sanctuary and a form of service; but in Numbers, we read of men of war, of armies, of standards, of camps, and trumpets sounding aloud. Through all of this, these key-words keep their way, and the mere mention of them will aid us in an orderly study of the first half of the volume; while we will not be able to dispense with them when we come to the analysis and study of the latter half. I refer to the terms mustering, marching, murmuring, and mercy.
MUSTERING
The first nine chapters of Numbers have to do almost entirely with the mustering. Chapters one and two are given to arranging the regiment, as we saw in our former study:
And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,
Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the Children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls;
From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.
And with you there shall be a man of every tribe; every one head of the house of his fathers. * *
As the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai. * *
Every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war. * *
And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, Every man of the Children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard (Num 1:1-4; Num 1:19-20; Num 2:1-2).
After all the centuries and even the millenniums that have come in between the day of Numbers and our day, wherein have men improved upon Gods plan of mustering armies and arranging regiments? True, we permit our boys to enter the service younger than twenty, but we make a mistake, as many a war-wrecked youth has illustrated. True, we make up our regiments of men who are strangers to each other, and in whose veins no kindred blood is flowing. But such an aggregation will never represent the strength, nor exhibit the courage that the tribal regiment evinces in fight. The almost successful rebellion of our Southern States demonstrated this. Our standard speaks of the nation, and appeals to the patriotic in men. Their standard represented the family and addressed itself to domestic pride and passion. It is well to remember, however, that the primary purpose of these Old Testament symbols is the impression of spiritual truths. And the lesson in this arranging of regiments is the one of being able to declare our spiritual genealogy, and our religious standard.
Every Israelite, when he was polled, was put in position to declare his paternity and point unmistakably to his standard; and no Christians should be satisfied until they can say with John, Now are we the sons of God, because we have discovered that the Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the sons of God. And no standard should ever be accepted as sufficient other than that which has been set up for us in the Word. Long ago God said, Behold I will lift up Mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up My standard to the people, and in Christ Jesus He has accomplished that; and every one of us ought to be able to say with C. H. M., Our theology is the Bible; our church organization is the one Body, formed by the presence of the Holy Ghost, and united to the living and exalted Head in the Heavens. To contend for anything less than this is entirely below the mark of a true spiritual warrior.
Chapters three and four contain the appointment of the Priests. When Moses numbered the people, the Levites after the tribe of their fathers were not numbered (Num 1:47). God had for them a particular place in the army, and a peculiar part to take in this onward march. Their place was roundabout the tabernacle, at the center of the host, and their office was the charge of all the vessels thereof, and over all the things that belonged to it. They were to bear the tabernacle, to minister in the tabernacle, to encamp roundabout it; to take it down when they were ready to set forth; and when the army halted in a new place, they were to set it up (chap. 2). In one sense they were not soldiers; in another they were the very captains and leaders of Jehovahs army. Their men from twenty to fifty were not armed and made ready for the shedding of blood, but they were set in charge of that symbol of Jehovahs presence without which Israels overthrow would have been instantaneous, and Israels defeat effectual. The worlds most holy men have always been, will always remain, its best warriors. The Sunday School teachers of the land fight the battles that make for peace more effectually than the nations constabulary; while the ministers of the Gospel, together with all their confederatesconscientious laymenput more things to rights and keep the peace better than the police force of all towns and cities. Every believer is a priest unto God. We should be profoundly impressed with the position we occupy in the great army which is fighting for a better civilization, and with the responsibility that rests upon us in the bringing in of a reign of righteousness.
Chapters five to nine, we have said, relate themselves to the establishment of army regulations. They impose purity of life upon every member who remains in the camp; they require restitution of any property falsely appropriated; they insist upon the strictest integrity of the home-life, and they declare the vows, offerings, and ceremonies suited to impress the necessity of the keeping of all these commands. In this there are two suggestions for the present time, namely, the place that discipline has in a well-organized army and the prominence it ought to be given in the true Church of God. That modern custom of making a hero of every man who smells the smoke of battle, and the complimentary one of excoriating every moral teacher who insists that even men of war are amenable to the civilities of life and ought to be compelled to regard them, has filled the ranks of too many standing armies with immoral men and swung public opinion too far into line with that servile press which indulges the habit of condoning, yea, even of commending, an army code that makes for criminal culture.
Sometime ago I went, in company with a veteran of 61 to 66, to hold a little service at the grave of two of his comrades. On our way we met another veteran of that bloody war, and as we looked into his bloated face, and listened to his drunken words, this clean, sober, Christian ex-soldier uttered some things about the necessity of better discipline in the army that were worthy of repetition, and ought to be heard by those officials who have it in their power to aid the young men of our present army to keep the commandments of God; but who too often lead them by example and precept to an utter repudiation of the same.
But the Church of God is Jehovahs army, and if we expect civilities from the unregenerate, we have a right to demand righteousness of the professedly redeemed. Much as discipline did for the purity and power of Israel, if rightly employed, it would accomplish even more for the purity and power of the present organized body of believers. Baron Stowe, a long time Bostons model pastor, in his Memoirs says, touching the importance of strict discipline, A church cannot prosper that connives at sin in its members; and that charity which shrinks from plain, faithful dealing with offenders, is false charity, and deeply injurious. A straightforward course in discipline, in accordance with the rules laid down by the Saviour, is the only one that will insure His approbation. Any serious student of the Scriptures must be often and profoundly impressed with the parallelisms, and even perfect agreements, of the Old Testament teachings with those of the New. Touching discipline, the Lord said unto Joshua,
Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant, which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff.
Therefore the Children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they were accursed: neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed thing from among you (Jos 7:11-12).
When Paul found in the Corinthian Church a similar condition of transgression, he wrote,
But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. * * Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person (1Co 5:11 f).
MARCH
The tenth chapter and thirty-third verse sets our organized army into motion. And they departed from the mount of the Lord, three days journey. Touching this march there are three things suggested by the Scripture, each of which is of the utmost importance.
First of all it was begun at Gods signal.
And it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud was taken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony.
And the Children of Israel took their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai; and the cloud rested in the wilderness of Paran.
And they first took their journey according to the commandment of the Lord, by the hand of Moses (Num 10:11-13).
Going back to the beginning of this tenth chapter you will find that the priests were to assemble the armies with the silver trumpets. A single blast called together the princesheads of the thousands of Israel. When they blew an alarm, the camps that lay on the East went forward. A second alarm summoned the camps from the South, and an additional blast brought the congregation together. The same God at whose signal Israel was to march, speaks in trumpet tones by His Spirit, and through the Word, to the present Church militant. When whole congregations go sadly wrong, much of the trouble will be found with the men whose business it is to. use the silver trumpet, and thereby voice the mind of God. Too many preachers have been snubbed into silence or cowed to uncertain sounds. The silver trumpets through which they ought to call the people to battle have been plugged up with gold pieces, and in all too many instances they are afraid to blow an alarm, calling to the camps that lie on the East, lest when they sound the second, those that lie on the South should refuse to respond.
Joseph Parker suggests that when ministers become the trumpeters of society again, there will be a mighty awakening in the whole nation. In Italy they have a saying to this effect, There has never been a revolution in Europe without a Monk at the bottom of it. And when the ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ faithfully fill up their offices, there will never be a division of Gods army, marching Canaan-ward, without a preacher at the head of it; and he will not be a man who has accommodated himself to the cry of the times in which we live Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits, but rather one who will sound the alarm of Divine command, and whose word will be to the people, Gods signal. Every element of success enters into that assurance which comes from a conviction that one is marching according to the Divine command. The reason why public opinion, almost insuperable obstacles, and even royal counsellors, could not turn Joan of Arc from her purpose, existed in the fact that she kept hearing a voice saying, Daughter of God, go on, go on! And if we will listen, there is a voice behind us saying, This is the way, walk ye in it.
In this march Gods leadership was sought.
And it came to pass, when the ark set forward, that Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee.
And when it rested he said, Return, O Lord, unto the many thousands of Israel (Num 10:33).
There is a simplicity and a sincerity in that prayer which is truly refreshing. There are plenty of men who consult their circumstances; who take into account all the factors that can affect the march of life, and who try to keep as their constant guide a well-balanced intellect; but Moses preferred God. He esteemed His presence above all favorable conditions, and above the highest human judgment. And the man who rises up in the morning, offering his prayer to God to be guided for that day, and who, when he lies down at night, prays again, Return, O Lord, unto me, and watch over my slumber, is the man who has no occasion to fear because even the fiercest foe will fall before him.
Lewis Albert Banks says that about the year 1600 a man by the name of Heddinger was chaplain to the Duke of Wartenberg. The Duke was a wayward, wicked man. Heddinger was one of these genuine, faithful souls like John the Baptist who would stand for the right and God. He rebuked the Duke for his great sins. This terribly enraged his Honor, and he sent for the brave chaplain thinking to punish him. Heddinger came from his closet of prayer with his face beaming. The Duke, seeing the shine in every feature, realized that he was enjoying the actual presence of the Lord, and after putting to him the question, Why did you not come alone? sent him away unharmed. Ah, beloved, whether we be on the march or at rest; whether we be fighting the battles of life or enjoying its victories; whether we be proclaiming the truth or are on trial for having taught it, we have no business being alone, for we seek the Divine presence. The Lord will lead us in the march and lift over us His banner when we lie down to rest.
Nor can one follow this march without being impressed with the fact that God was guiding His people Canaan-ward. By consulting a good map you will see that the line from Sinai to Kadesh-Barnea was as direct as the lay of the land made possible. God never takes men by circuitous routes. These come in consequence of leaving the straight and narrow way for the more attractive but uncertain one of by-path meadow. Had they remained faithful to Divine leadership, forty days would have brought the whole company into Canaan. But when, through the discouragement of false reporters, they turned southward, putting their backs to God, they plunged into the wilderness fox a wandering of forty years, and even worse, to perish there without ever seeing the Land of Promise. What a lesson here for us! There is a sense in which every man determines his own destiny. It is within our power to trust to Divine leadership and enjoy it, and it is equally within our power to mistrust it, and lose it. One commenting upon this says, Israel declared that God had brought them into the wilderness to die there; and He took them at their word. Joshua and Caleb declared that He was able to bring them into the land, and He took them at their word. According to your faith be it unto you.
MURMURING
The eleventh chapter sounds for us a sad note. There the people fall to petty complaints and criticisms. And when the people complained. There are those who can complain without occasion. Criticism is the cheapest of intellectual commodities. And yet the critic always has a reason for his complaint, and however he may seek to hide the real cause, God is an expert in uncovering it. Here He lays it to the mixed multitude that was among themthey fell a lusting. That mixed multitude (or great mixture is the word in the original) consisted of Egyptians and others who had come out of Egypt with Israel, and whose Egyptian tastes were not being satisfied by enforced marches, holy services and manna from on High. It is a good thing to get Israel out of Egypt, to get the Church of God out of the world; but it is an essential thing also to get Egypt out of Israel, the unregenerate out of the Church of God, for if you do not they will fall a lusting, and the first complaint they will make is touching the food divinely provided for them. The Gospel of Jesus ChristGods provided mannanever did satisfy an unregenerate man, and it never will. What he wants is the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick. Yes, even the garlick of the world; and when you set before him manna, he insists that his soul is dried away.
I went to talk with a mother about her little daughters uniting with the church. She told me that she was opposed to it; and when I asked her why, she boldly replied that she united with the church herself when she was young, and thereby denied herself all the pleasures of the world. She had never ceased to regret it, and she proposed to save her girl from a similar experience. A lusting for the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick! If such is ones feeling, just as well go back to the world! It does not make an Egyptian an Israelite to go over into that camp, and it does not make an unregenerate man a Christian because you write his name on the church book.
This spirit of criticism spread to the officials and leaders. And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married. Their complaint was slightly different from that of the mixed multitude, but directed against the same man.
From the complaint of these leading officials the trouble spread, and when the ten spies rendered their report of the land which God had promised, the whole congregation broke into revolt. That was the opportunity that Korah and Dathan and Abiram and On took advantage of.
And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the Children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown.
And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them; wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord? (Num 16:2-3).
Here is the new complaint of the critics! Moses is domineering; his administration is that of a one-man power. He has not given sufficient attention to the princes of the assembly, and to the chief members of the congregation.
This is no ancient story. From that hour until this, the Church of God, whether in the form of Israel or that of the body of baptized believers, has experienced the same rebellion with the same reasons assigned. In Pauls day the Church at Corinth had to be counselled by the great Apostle and the members thereof reminded that they were of one body. The feet are enjoined not to complain of the hands, and the ear not to criticise the eye, and the eye not to envy the hand, nor yet the head the feet, that there should be no schism in the body, since when one member suffers, all the members suffer with it, and when one member is honored all the members should rejoice with it. In our own day the chief men have sometimes set aside the servant of God. Dr. Jonathan Edwards, once a man of the highest education and personal culture, honored by the members of his profession for his spirituality, and for the success that had attended his ministry, was set aside because he interfered with the Egyptian desires of the children of certain chief men of his congregation. Years ago, in New York, Americas most famous pastor and preacher, after passing through a series of sicknesses and bereavements in his family, came to the thirtieth anniversary of his pastorate to find himself retired from office by a few of the officials of the church who were influential. His reinstatement by the body at large came too late to save him from the collapse that attended this severe experience. A New York correspondent, writing of this, said, Such action makes every pastor in New York City feel sick at heart.
Attend to the way Moses met this! If the ministers of the present time learned his way, their course would be a more courageous one and their burdens better borne. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the Children of Israel (Num 14:5). That is the way he met the first rebellion. When the rebellion of Korah came, it is written, And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face. And he spake unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, Even to morrow the Lord will show who are His (Num 16:4-5). We may suggest here, prayer to God, the best possible reply to complaints and criticisms. If one has been guilty of that charged against him, such prayer will bring him to a knowledge of his guilt and give him an opportunity to correct it; and if he has not been guilty, such prayer will cause God to lift him up and establish his going, and put into his mouth a song.
Constantine the Great was one day looking at some statues of famed persons, and noting that they were all in standing position, he said, When mine is made Id like it in kneeling posture, for it is by going down before God I have risen to any eminence. Moses has taught us how to conquer all complaint, and all criticism, and come off victorious by falling on our faces and waiting until God shows who are His.
MERCY
The conclusion of this study presents a precious thought; in the midst of judgment, mercy appears.
At Moses intercession, God removes His hand. Every time there is a rebellion, and judgment is visited upon the people, Moses appears as intercessor, and when the people fell to lusting for the leeks, and the onions of Egypt, Moses cried unto God, Wherefore hast Thou afflicted Thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in Thy sight, that Thou layest the burden of all this people upon me? Their cries were the anguish of his soul! When Miriam and Aaron were in sedition against their brother, it was Moses who interceded, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech Thee. And when the whole congregation lifted up their voices of murmuring at the report of the spies, Moses was on his face again in such an intercessory prayer as you could scarce find on another page of sacred Scripture. He was ready to die himself, if they could not be delivered and when Korah and his company attempted his overthrow, he plead with God until the plague was stayed. Therein is an example for every true Christian man.
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath, for it is written, Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, saith the Lord;
Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink. * *
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
This is what Christ said,
Love your enemies, bless them that curse you; do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despite fully use you and persecute you, that you may be the children of your Father which is in Heaven (Mat 5:44-45).
The richest symbol of Gods mercy is seen in this nineteenth chapterthe red heifer! She was preeminently the type of Gods provision against the defilement of the wilderness experience. She prefigured the death of Christ as the purification for sin and contained the promise of Gods mercy toward all men, however dreadful their rebellion or deep their stains. Who can read this nineteenth chapter and remember how this offering of the red heifer covers the most grievous sin of man without seeing how great is Gods mercy, and how Divine is His example. Henry Van Dyke says, When we see God forgiving all men who have sinned against Him, sparing them in his mercy, * * let us take the gracious lesson of forgiveness to our hearts. Why should we hate like Satan when we may forgive like God? Why should we cherish malice, envy, and all uncharitableness in our breasts? I know that some people use us despitefully and show themselves our enemies, but why should we fill our hearts with their bitterness and inflame our wounds with their poison? This world is too sweet and fair to darken it with the clouds of anger. This life is too short and precious to waste it in bearing that heaviest of all burdens, a grudge.
And you will see in this nineteenth chapter, also, a new emphasis laid upon the necessity of personal purity. The red heifer was provided for cleansing, and God imposed it upon the cleansed to keep themselves unspotted from the world. That is the major part of true religion to this day, to keep onesself unspotted from the world. This whole chapter is Gods attempt to so provide us with the blood of the slain, and surround us with the cleansing ceremonies, that we may be able to resist the floods of defilement that flow on every side. Realizing, as we must realize, the beauty and blessedness of a holy life, we can enter into a keen appreciation of that most beautiful beatitude, and sing with John Keble:
Blest are the pure in heart,
For they shall see their God:
The secret of the Lord is theirs;
Their soul is Christs abode.
The Lord, who left the heavens,
Our life and peace to bring,
To dwell in lowliness with men,
Their pattern and their King.
Still to the lowly soul
He doth Himself impart,
And for His dwelling and His throne
Chooseth the pure in heart.
Lord, we Thy presence seek;
May ours this blessing be;
Oh, give the pure and lowly heart,
A temple meet for Thee.
Fuente: The Bible of the Expositor and the Evangelist by Riley
THE MARSHALLING OF THE PEOPLE
(Num. 2:1-2)
In this chapter we have the order of the twelve tribes in the camp and on the march. And in these verses we have the general directions which the Lord gave unto Moses for marshalling the tribes. Keil and Del.: The twelve tribes were to encamp each one by his standard, by the signs of their fathers houses, opposite to the tabernacle (at some distance) round about, and, according to the more precise directions given afterwards, in such order that on every side of the tabernacle three tribes were encamped side by side and united under one banner, so that the twelve tribes formed four large camps or divisions of an army. Between these camps and the court surrounding the tabernacle, the three leading mishpachoth (i.e., families or clans) of the Levites were to be encamped on three sides, and Moses and Aaron with the sons of Aaron (i.e., the priests) upon the fourth, i.e., the front or eastern side, before the entrance (Num. 3:21-38) , a standard, banner, or flag, denotes primarily the larger field sign, possessed by every division composed of three tribes, which was also the banner of the tribe at the head of each division; and secondarily, in a derivative signification, it denotes the army united under one standard, like , or vexillum. It is used thus, for example, in Num. 2:17; Num. 2:31; Num. 2:34, and in combination with in Num. 2:3; Num. 2:10; Num. 2:18; Num. 2:25, where standard of the camp of Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, and Dan signifies the hosts of the tribes arranged under these banners. , the signs (ensigns) were the smaller flags or banners which were carried at the heads of the different tribes and subdivisions of the tribes (the fathers houses). Neither the Mosaic law, nor the Old Testament generally, gives us any intimation as to the form or character of the standard (degel). According to rabbinical tradition, the standard of Judah bore the figure of a lion, that of Reuben the likeness of a man, or of a mans head, that of Ephraim the figure of an ox, and that of Dan the figure of an eagle; so that the four living creatures united in the cherubic forms described by Ezekiel were represented upon these four standards.
In these verses we have four homiletic points.
I. Order.
The Lord here gives directions to Moses concerning the order that was to be observed amongst them. The great importance of a clear and well understood arrangement amongst so large a number of men will be obvious upon the slightest consideration. But notice:
1. God Himself delights in order. This is clearly manifest in His works,in the rising and setting of the sun and moon, in the sublime march of the stars, in the ebbing and flowing of the tides, in the regular succession of the seasons. Even comets, those apparently erratic wanderers in space, are not erratic; but move with perfect precision both as regards space and time.
2. The importance of order is recognised in human affairs. In the Christian Church, in national government, in military affairs, in the family and home, and in the individual life, order is of the utmost importance, and is fraught with the greatest advantages. Order, says Southey, is the sanity of the mind, the health of the body, the peace of the city, the security of the state. As the beams to a house, as the bones to the microcosm of man, so is order to all things. Let all things, says St. Paul, be done decently, and in order.
3. This order was probably Divinely instituted as a means to peace and unity. It is probable that if God had not determined the order which should be observed among them, there would have been strife and contention for priority and precedence. Thus the tribe of Reuben might have claimed the pre-eminence as a birth-right, and refused to fall in with the arrangement by which Judah held the post of honour and headed the march. While Judah might have refused to concede the position to Reuben, because of their own vast numerical superiority. Again, the tribe of Simeon, for the same reason, might have refused to occupy a position subordinate to that of Reuben; for the former tribe numbered 59,300, while the latter only 46,500. Other causes of dissatisfaction and dispute would also, probably, have been discovered. And the issue would have been strife, divisions, and we know not what evils. But the Lord prevents this by himself determining the arrangement of the tribes. Order is ever conducive to peace and unity. Let us cultivate order. (a)
II. Variety.
There were different standards. Each camp had its own characteristic standard. And each tribe and each fathers house had its own distinctive ensign. Their order was not monotonous. Monotony is not a mark of divinity. Variety characterises the works of God. Countries differ in their climates, conformations, productions, etc. The features of landscapes differ. Star differeth from star. Trees, flowers, faces, minds differ. Hence it seems reasonable that we should find different ensigns in the Church of Christ. With one spirit there may be many forms. With unity of the inner life there may be great variety of outward development. There are many denominations in the Christian Church because there are differences of mind, temperament, degrees of education and culture, etc., in those who compose the Church. This variety is promotive of health, activity, usefulness, (b)
III. Unity.
All the tribes were gathered about the tabernacle of the congregation, as around a common centre. They had different standards and ensigns, but constituted one nation. Their position in relation to the tabernacle illustrates
1. The dependence of all on God. All the tribes looked to Him for support, provision, protection, direction, etc.
2. The access of all to God. The tabernacle was the sign of the presence of God with them. It was in their midst; not very far from any of them. All of them in the appointed way might approach Him in worship. Through Christ we both (Jews and Gentiles) have access by one Spirit unto the Father. (See Eph. 2:18-22.)
3. The reverence of all towards God. They were to pitch over against the tabernacle. Probably the tribes were 2,000 cubits distant from it. Compare Jos. 3:4. They were thus to encamp around the sacred place, that no stranger might draw near to it; and the Levites were to encamp near the tabernacle on every side, that the people themselves might not draw too near to it, but might be taught to regard it with respect and reverence. God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him. Now, all Christians are one in their relation to the Lord Jesus Christ. All depend upon God as revealed in Him; all approach unto God through Him; all reverence God in Him. The various denominations of Christians constitute the one Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the centre of unity. As Christians draw nearer to Him they will draw nearer to each other; not in uniformity, but in increasing nearness to Jesus Christ will the increase of true unity be found. Uniformity is the creation of man; unity is the inspiration of God. The first can be made by a mask; the latter must be created or imparted by the Spirit of God. Uniformity is compatible with death; unity is inseparable from real and conscious life. Uniformity is the churchyard; unity is the church itself of the living God. All may be uniform, yet all may be dead; none can have real, inner, spiritual, vital unity, without having that truth which God inspires, and that life of which Christ is the Giver.
IV. Security.
The tabernacle of God in the midst of the camp was a guarantee of their safety. We may apply to them the words of one of their poets of a subsequent age: God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved, etc.
His presence in their midst would tend to
1. Quell their fears. He had wrought marvellous things on their behalf in the past; He was ever doing great things for them. Then why should they quail before any danger or enemy?
2. Inspire their confidence and courage. It should have given to them the assurance of victory in conflict, etc. This seems to have been the idea of Moses: When the ark set forward, Moses said, Rise up, Lord, and let Thine enemies be scattered, and let them that hate Thee flee before Thee. Distance from God is weakness and peril to His Church. Nearness to Him is safety and power. Living in vital union with Him all-conquering might is ours.
Conclusion
1. Let us learn sincerely and heartily to recognise as members of the Christian Israel all who have the Christian spirit, however widely they may differ from us in forms and opinions.
2. Let us think less of our isms, and more of Christs Church; less of theological and ecclesiastical systems, and more of Christs Gospel; less of human authority and patronage, and more of the Lord Jesus Christ.
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) Order is Heavens first lawa glorious law,
Seen in those pure and beauteous isles of light
That come and go, as circling months fulfil
Their high behest. Nor less on earth discernd,
Mid rocks snow-clad, or wastes of herbless sand,
Throughout all climes, beneath all varying skies,
Fixing for een the smallest flower that blooms
Its place of growth.
Milton.
(b) Let us go down and stand by the beach of the great, irregular sea, and count whether the thunder of it is not out of time. Onetwohere comes a well-formed wave at last, trembling a little at the top, but, on the whole, orderly. So, crash among the shingle, and up as far as this grey pebble; now stand by and watch! Another! Ah, careless wave! why couldnt you have kept your crest on? It is all gone away into spray, striking up against the cliffs there. I thought as muchmissed the mark by a couple of feet! Another! How now, impatient one! couldnt you have waited till your friends reflux was done with, instead of rolling yourself up with it in that unseemly manner? You go for nothing. A fourth, and a goodly one at last. What think we of yonder slow rise and crystalline hollow, without a flaw? Steady, good wave; not so fast, not so fast: Where are you coming to? By our architectural word, this is too bad; two yards over the mark, and ever so much of you in our face besides; and a wave which we had some hope of, behind there, broken all to pieces out at sea, and laying a great white table-cloth of foam all the way to the shore, as if the marine gods were to dine off it! Alas! for these unhappy arrow-shots of Nature; she will never hit her mark with those unruly waves of hers, nor get one of them into the ideal shape, if we wait for her a thousand years. But the sea was meant to be irregular! Yes, and were not also the leaves and the blades of grass; and, in a sort, as far as may be without mark of sin, even the countenance of man? Or would it be pleasanter and better to have us all alike, and numbered on our foreheads, that we might be known one from the other?Ruskin.
The sun comes forth. And first I perceive the chick-weed blossoming, almost inconspicuous. It is born again of the sun, and shows the suns power. Just beyond there is a clump of violets. They are born again out of death into life by the power of the sun. Further on are bulbs of various kinds. And each developes in its own way. One has one style of leaf or bloom, and another another. And they multiply as the sun grows warmer, till the woods and fields swarm with myriads of growths, some purple, some red, some white, some blue, some green, all shades, and combinations, and forms being represented. They are all born of the sun, and brought into their life and power; and yet they are widely different in their structure and appearance. Would you reduce them all to one, and have nothing but daisies, nothing but tulips, or nothing but violets? Are not Gods abundant riches in this, that when He creates life from death in so many ways there are presented such variations of beauty and amiableness? So it is with the truths of the Gospel. God does not make those truths the same to any two minds. If men had the subtle power of analysis, so as to seize just what they feel, and put their feelings exactly into words, I believe it would be found that no two persons on the face of the earth ever stated or could state, their views of a fact alike. God, that never made two faces alike; God, that never made two leaves alike; God, that makes unity with infinite diversityHe does not mean that men shall feel just alike. The amplitude of being is expressed by variations of being, that go back to essential unity, and take hold of a common root. And the attempt to bring the glowing and fervid Orientals, the staid and practical Occidentals, the medival minds, the artist minds, the sombre and unirradiating natures, and the light and pay natures, all to one statement of speculative truth, is as wild and preposterous as the boys race after the rainbow. It cannot be done.H. W. Beecher.
MAN IN RELATION TO ORDER, HOME, AND GOD
(Num. 2:2)
Let us inquire what God would teach by this.
I. The importance of Order in everything.
God here insists upon method in all their movements. Each was to be in his own place. He was thus teaching His people, and, through them, the world. The sojourn in the wilderness was their school-time; hence we have so much of it. In the lessons God taught them we find principles that are to guide us. God loves order in everything: He is not the author of confusion. Satan brought discord into the world. There was not a jarring note in the universe till sin came into existence. God loves order. You can see this in all His works; there is no confusion or waste in anything; nothing is neglected or left out; nothing can be improved upon. In all there is completeness and harmony. God is our pattern in this. The highest art is the best copying of nature. So in human life, the noblest, the highest is the one that follows most closely in the footprints of God. To live well is of vast importance to us, and it is impossible with disorder and confusion. In business, if there is no method, failure must be the result. In the home life, if there is no order, there must be misery. So order is essential to success in the religious life. Let all things be done decently and in order, said Paul. The reference is to the regularity and discipline of an army: the order is as perfect as possible; and it is this which makes all the difference between an army and a rabble. Order is the essence of beauty, strength, comfort, and usefulness.
II. The sacredness of family life.
Each was to be with the ensign of his fathers house; his place was to be with his family. The people had been slaves; and slavery saps the foundation of family life. God has to teach them the sacredness of the family circle. There can be no real national life unless the family life be pure and sacred. Men only live in families. The brutes dwell in herds. God has given man the family instinct; and the Bible and religion ever tend to strengthen, purify, and ennoble it. The higher a man rises in the scale of being, the deeper is his interest in his family. The more we love God, the more we love one another. Divine love sanctifies and elevates the human. God taught the people here to respect their families. Many parents seem to be anxious only to feed, clothe, and help their children for this life. Are their children brutes? Are they to perish like the beasts? Or, have they a soul? Parents, strive to make your homes abodes of peace and blessedness, centres of attraction and holy influence, so that your children may gather round the ensign, etc. Gods eye is on our family life.
III. The right way to feel and to act towards Himself.
They were to be far off about the tabernacle. True life is impossible apart from right esteem of God. He is the centre, the pivot of all true life. As amongst this people, so in His Church, God is the attracting power, etc. He is in the midst to rule, protect, and guide. As there is no circle without a centre, so the Church falls to pieces unless God he in the midst. Love to Him brings His people together, and binds them together. The earth is made of particles: gravitation, as it attracts each particle to itself, binds them together so as to form the earth. Thus God attracting each soul to Himself, binds them together as a Church. We are to turn around Him as the planets around the sun, receiving our light, our beauty, our influence from Him.
Truth is dual. The above is only half the truth; the other half is involved in the expression, far off. In nature there are two great forces at workthe centripetal and the centrifugal. If either of these were to fail, the earth would be wrecked. In religion we have two similar forces. God must attract us; He is the centre of our soul. But we must also keep our distance; we must be far off. There is no religion without reverence. God is great and holy. The people were to be far off as well as about the tabernacle. Divine things are to be treated with respect and handled with reverence. There is no true religion without awe; no true love without fear. While we lovingly trust God as our Father, let us give Him the respect due to His name.
Learn.
1. The deep interest God takes in His people. He wants them to be the very best possibleto be perfect.
2. How religion affects the whole of man and His life. It teaches us how to act in all things. There is nothing above or beneath its notice that affects us. It is then our best Friend. If it is not yours, seek it without delay.David Lloyd.
THE CAMP
(Num. 2:2)
When Balaam looks down upon the outstretched camp of Israel, his very soul expands. It must break forth into praise. The beauty captivates. The order charms. (See Num. 24:5-9.) Let as, too, view this favoured camp.
I. The Tents.
Not splendid palaces; poor tents. They are the pilgrim-dwellings of a pilgrim-troopthe short-lived homes of short-lived sojourners. Reminds of mortal state. These frames have one originalthe dust. Is it not folly, then, to pamper and admire the flesh? At best these bodies are a tent. How soon they crumble! The tents must fall; but when? Perchance this very hour. Is he not then the fool of fools, who boasts him of to-morrows dawn? Learn how fleeting is lifes day. When I go hence, is an abiding mansion mine? Flesh is a mean abode. This thought commends the grace of Jesus. He scorned not to assume it. No man was ever man more thoroughly than Jesus. He thus descended that He might bear the curse. He sought a lowly tent to do a godlike work. But soon the degradation passed. The cross was triumphs car. Manhood now shines in Him arrayed in light of Deity. And all, whom faith makes one with Him, shall soon behold and share this lustre. Weakness and frailty shall put on unfading freshness.
II. The Order.
Let Israels camp be now more closely scanned. What perfect regularity appears! Arrangement is complete, etc. Our God delights in order. Where He presides, confusion vanishes. Is it not so in every Christians heart? When Jesus takes the throne, wise rule prevails, disturbing lusts lie down, etc. Is it not so in Christian life? Each duty occupies its stated post. The home, the closet, the public, the world, in turn have claims, in turn are served. How different is the worldlings day! It seems an upset hive, etc.
But in Israels camp each tribe has its place. God fixes all the bounds, and all the bounds are gladly kept. The same all-ruling mind disposes now each member of Christs body. Each enters on the stage of life, as God is pleased to call. Each runs a pre-ordained course. Each disappears, when the allotted task is done. We see this clear arrangement throughout the Churchs history Bow humbly before this ordering mind, then discontent will not arise; no murmurings will mourn an obscure lot, a grievous burden, a lengthened pilgrimage, or an early grave.
III. The Position.
About the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch. As the planets circle the sun, so these surround the sanctuary. God is the centre; they form the wide circumference.
Is there no meaning here? God in Christ Jesus is the centre, the heart, the life, the strength, the shield, the joy of His believing flock.
Is there no warning here? Let Christians ponder this Camps plan when called to fix their dwellings upon earth. When weighing the advantages of place, the foremost thought should be, Is God known here? Are His pure truths here clearly taught? Was Lot a gainer, when his eye only coveted the fertile plains? Can fairer fields, or sweeter prospects, make amends for a cold blank within? Can air-salubrity repay for inward sickness and a spiritual decline?
IV. The Standard.
A standard floats above each tribe. Beneath the well-known sign they rest, and by its side they march. Believers have an ensign too. The banner over them is Jesus love. (Son. 2:4.) The standard is a pledge of safety. Mighty foes hate and assail, plot and rage, etc.; but they must fail. Beneath it there is sweet repose. The weary spirit and the worn-out flesh can often watch no more. But as is the vineyard of the Lord, so is His camp. I the Lord do keep it, etc. (Isa. 27:3.)
Beside it there is victory. Many have fought beneath the Gospel-banner, and all have triumphed. They who go boldly forward, looking unto Jesus, assuredly prevail. (2Co. 2:14.) Happy camp, where Jesus is salvations Captain; His cross, salvations ensign; His heaven, salvations rest!
Believer, glory in your standard, and be steadfast. Cling constantly to Christ. Let every company, moment, place, witness your firm resolves. Wave now and ever the glorious ensignChrist is all. Thus dwell within the camp, and you will reign upon the throne.Henry Law, D.D.
ASPECTS OF HONOUR
(Num. 2:3-9)
It seems to us, says Dr. Cumming, an uninteresting and unprofitable exercise to read the list of the tribes and their names, the camps and their numbers, the captains and their names, who together composed the mighty host that took their exodus from Egypt, through the desert, to the land of Canaan; but surely it was important in the circumstances in which they were placed that each and all should be recordedit was important with reference to the separate and distinct maintenance of the tribesthat the promise of the Messiah from a specific tribe might be vindicated and established in the fulness of the times. In the next place, this mighty crowd, numbering six hundred thousand men, able to bear armsand that must have amounted, with camp followers, to nearly two millionsa vast population in the desertmust of necessity be reduced to some order of regiments or companies, in order that authority might be exercised where it was needed; that the means of defence might be had recourse to most speedily and effectually where they were required; and that each loving his own company, each individual loving by preference his own tribe best, might yet, as a tribe mingled with the rest, have that wider feeling, which recognised an Israelite under whatever standard he was, in the great army of which they formed a part. For these and other reasons, God commanded Moses and Aaron to make the arrangements here specified; and what God saw useful to command, it cannot have been useless to record, and it may not be altogether unprofitable to read. We must not think that the chapter that does not personally benefit us spiritually is therefore of no use. It is possible for true Christians often to be somewhat selfish, and to think that that cannot be useful which does not benefit the individual, or that that cannot play a part important in the whole which does not produce a deep, a spiritual, and profitable impression upon each. We must learn to look wider, to extend our horizon, and to learn that there are parts in the Bible which may not bring personal instruction to us, but which nevertheless may have a force in relation to the whole book that vindicates it from the assaults of the sceptic; sets out its great truths in bolder relief and in clearer light; and even those parts which we cannot see or comprehend the use, the place, and the necessity of now, if we can only exercise a little patience we shall know, and understand, and see the usefulness of more clearly hereafter. There are many parts in this globe that we cannot understand the end of; we cannot see the use perhaps of so much water; we cannot see the necessity of those large wasted and blasted deserts. But yet I have no doubt they have a use, and are subserving a purpose; and we must not deny that God made this or made that because we cannot see the purpose that it subserves in the great economy of the universe. I believe that with the exception of what sin has done, there is not a star in the sky, however tiny it looks to us, that is not necessary to the balance of the universe; and that if one star were to fall from its socket, or one orb to be shattered in its march, a shock might be felt that would influence injuriously at least the whole solar system. And it may be that in this blessed Book, which is Gods inspired Book, some of those dull and dry passages, as they must appear to us personally, are probably subserving great and ultimate purposes, which we may not see now, but shall see hereafter.
Our text gives us the account of the composition of the first camp, which was situated on the east side, toward the rising of the sun. This post of honour was conferred upon Judah. To him was given the first standard. With him were Issachar and Zebulun. These three tribes were descended from the three younger sons of Leah; and their union under one standard was, therefore, an appropriate arrangement. To each tribe a captain was appointed; these captains being the princes of the tribes of their fathers, who assisted Moses and Aaron in the numbering. Here, then, are differences of rank ordered by God. One tribe has the most distinguished position of all. Three other tribes are placed each at the head of a camp; and in each tribe one person was appointed by God as captain, or prince, or commander-in-chief. Leaders and rulers are essential to society. To have neither superiors nor inferiors would be to breathe a stifling atmosphere of mediocrity. Natural leadership is the soul of common action. Inasmuch as the most distinguished place was assigned to the tribe of Judah we take as our subject: Aspects of Honour.
We see here
I. Honour wisely conferred.
The tribe of Judah was the must numerous and powerful of all the tribes. This was a good reason for placing it in the most prominent and illustrious position. Honours of title and place are not always wisely conferred. They are sometimes bestowed upon those who are neither distinguished in their abilities, exalted in their character, nor exemplary in their conduct. This is a sad perversion of things. (a) But the truest and highest honours are those of character and conduct, and these are attainable through the grace of God unto all men.
Trust me, Clara Vere de Vere,
From you blue heavens above us bent,
The grand old gardener and his wife
Smile at the claims of long descent.
Howeer it be, it seems to me,
Tis only noble to be good.
Kind hearts are more than coronets,
And simple faith than Norman blood.
Tennyson
The honour of being children of the Most High, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, of being made kings and priests unto God, of sharing in the spirit and service of Christ, we may all attain through Him. But in these honours there are differences of degree. There are some to whom will be given an abundant entrance, while others will be saved yet so as by fire.
II. Honour in relation with duty and responsibility.
The tribe of Judah in being appointed to the place of honour in the Israelitish host had also the place of peril. Being at the head of the camp, if there were dangers to be met or foes to be encountered, they must first enter the lists against them. In their case rank and risk, distinction and duty, were united. The places of distinction should ever be for those who render the most and best service. And the highest places in both the Church and the State involve gravest responsibilities and most arduous duties. He who treads the path of duty faithfully and bravely will find in due time that it leads to the most unfading honours. (See notes and illustrations on ch. Num. 1:4-16.) (b)
III. Honour as connected with parental influence.
Judah was the first of the sons of Jacob who was blessed by the venerable patriarch when he was a-dying. Reuben, Simeon, and Levi were censured by him. The parental blessing in the case of Judah has not been in vain. And in the honour now put upon the tribe the influence of that blessing is still further manifest (see Gen. 49:8-12). It is in the power of every parent instrumentally to bless his children. By wise teaching, holy example, and believing prayer, parents may confer the greatest advantages on their off-spring, and aid them to reach the highest honours. Let parents seek thus to bless their children. (c)
Let the children of godly parents appreciate their privileges in this respect. (d)
IV. Honour as related to future greatness.
The dying patriarch had predicted that Judah should be the ruling tribe; he promised to Judah a kingdom and sovereignty. Many years have since passed away; and still Judah has neither lawgiver nor sceptre. But here are two things to encourage faith in the patriarchal predictionviz., the numerical superiority of the tribe, and the post of honour assigned to it. Ages more were to pass away before the prediction was fulfilled; but the honour now conferred on the tribe would encourage faith in its predicted destiny. Its natural tendency would be to stimulate them to
1. Believe in their destiny.
2. Work for their destiny.
3. Wait for their destiny.
In like manner let every blessing which we receive from God be to us a pledge of our full and final salvation. Let every privilege conferred upon us increase our assurance of the splendid honours which await us hereafter. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, etc. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in My Throne, etc. Now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, etc.
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) Let none presume
To wear an undeserved dignity.
O, that estates, degrees, and offices,
Were not derived corruptly! and that clear honour
Were purchased by the merit of the wearer!
How many then should cover, that stand bare!
How many be commanded, that command!
How much low peasantry would then be gleaned
From the true seed of honour! and how much honour
Pickd from the chaff and ruin of the times,
To be new varnishd!Shakespeare.
The Merchant of Venice, ii. 8.
(b) Not once or twice in our rough island-story
The path of duty was the way to glory:
He that walks it, only thirsting
For the right, and learns to deaden
Love of self, before his journey closes,
He shall find the stubborn thistle bursting
Into glossy purples, which outredden
All voluptuous garden roses.
Not once or twice in our fair island-story
The path of duty was the way to glory:
He, that ever following her commands,
On with toil of heart and knees and hands,
Thro the long gorge to the far light has won
His path upward and prevaild,
Shall find the toppling crags of duty scaled
Are close upon the shining table-lands
To which our God Himself is moon and sun.
Tennyson.
(c) The voice of parents is the voice of gods,
For to their children they are Heavens lieutenants,
Made fathers not for common uses merely
Of procreation (beasts and birds would be
As noble then as we are); but to steer
The wanton freight of youth through storms and dangers,
Which with full sails they bear upon, and straighten
The mortal line of life they bend so often.
For these are we made fathers, and for these
May challenge duty on our childrens part.
Obedience is the sacrifice of angels,
Whose form you carry.
Shakespeare.
Mr. Irving, in his Life of Washington, brings to the knowledge of the public, we believe for the first time, a beautiful incident in the religious training of the youthful George when left to the sole care of his widowod mother. Of her general course, Mr. Irving remarks, with fine discrimination: Endowed with plain, direct good sense, thorough conscientiousness, and prompt decision, she governed her family strictly, but kindly, exacting deference while she inspired affection. George, being her eldest son, was thought to be her favourite, yet she never gave him undue preference, and the implicit deference exacted from him in childhood continued to be habitually observed by him to the day of her death. He inherited from her a high temper and a spirit of command, but her early precepts and example taught him to restrain and govern that temper, and to square his conduct on the exact principles of equity and justice. No Maternal Association has ever devised a better principle to be observed in training children than this of Mary Washingtonexacting deference while she inspired affection. How rarely do we see these two essential elements in family government justly combined in either parent! From thin general view Mr. Irving passes to the following incident: Tradition gives an interesting picture of the widow with her little flock gathered round her, as was her daily wont, reading to them lessons of religion and morality out of some standard work. Her favourite volume was Sir Matthew Hales Contemplations, Moral and Divine. The admirable maxima therein contained, for outward action as well as self-government, sank deep into the mind of George, and doubtless had a great influence in forming his character. They certainly were exemplified in his conduct through life. This mothers manual, bearing his mothers name, Mary Washington, written with her own hand, was ever preserved by him with filial care, and may still be seen in the archives of Mount Vernon. A precious document! Let those who wish to know the moral foundation of his character consult its pages. Would that the minds and hearts of all our youth might be trained after such a model!New York Independent.
(d) Hold fast to home influences and remembrances; and recollect that he who tries to shame you out of a fathers and a mothers fear, and out of obedience to them, tries to steal the most precious treasure you have. He that is trying to destroy the influence of your parents upon you is trying to take from you the most faithful love you ever knew. You shall lie down in the grave when you shall have traversed forty or eighty years of life, without having found another friend who has borne as much for you, or done as much for you, as your father or your mother.H. W. Beecher.
THE MERCY OF GOD IN RELATION TO THE CONSEQUENCES OF SIN
(Num. 2:10-16)
We have here the account of the composition of the second camp. Its place was south of the tabernacle. At its head was placed the tribe of Reuben, the eldest son of Jacob and Leah, and with it were associated the tribe of Simeon, the second son of Leah, and that of Gad, the eldest son of Leahs handmaid, Zilpah.
Reuel, in Num. 2:14, is doubtless an error of some copyist, and should be Deuel, as in Num. 1:14. Several MSS. and Versions read Deuel in this place.
In this section we have
I. An example of the continuance of the consequences of sin.
How is it that Reuben, being the first-born, does not take the first place? Why was Judah, the fourth son, preferred before him? Because Reuben had been guilty of the most shocking incest. (See Gen. 35:22; Gen. 49:4; 1Ch. 5:1.) He sinned grievously, and now his posterity suffer loss thereby. Sin when it is done is not done with. It lives in its results in the person of the sinner, and in the persons of others who are related to the sinner. Sin may be repented of, confessed, forgiven; and yet many of its consequences may remain, and that for many generations. (a)
1. The Sacred Scriptures declare this. (See Exo. 20:5; Lev. 26:39; Lam. 5:7; Luk. 11:49-51.)
2. The connexion between one generation and another necessitates this. The consequences of the vices of parents are transmitted to their offspring.
3. Our social relationships necessitate this. We are ever exerting an influence upon others, and being influenced by others. One corrupt character corrupts others. One holy character tends to purify and exalt others.
4. The facts of human life attest this. The drunkard may forsake his drunkenness, may seek and obtain the Divine forgiveness, may lead a new life, yet many of the results of his sinful indulgences will remain in himself, and if he be a parent will be transmitted to his children. The spendthrift may abandon his reckless courses; but it requires many years, perhaps more than one generation, to repair the shattered fortunes and restore the family estate to its ancient prosperity. Man may turn to God late in life, may be pardoned, accepted, saved; but he cannot recover the years spent in the service of sin, or undo the evil which he has wrought. The guilt is taken away; but the loss, and much more than the loss, remains. God is just. His laws are immutable. They cannot be set at nought, or disregarded, without incurring stern and certain penalties. Let these solemn facts restrain us from sin. Let parents especially lay them to heart; and for the sake of their offspring, let them eschew evil, and cultivate virtue. Parents bequeath not to your childrens lot The shame that from them no device can take, The blemish that will never be forgot.
II. An example of the exercise of the Divine mercy in mitigating the consequences of sin.
Notwithstanding the horrible sin of Reuben, he was not altogether cut off from his fathers house. Though he forfeited his birthright he was not exiled from the family. His posterity was not cast out of the chosen people. His tribe was not degraded to the lowest rank among the tribes, but placed in an inferior position to that of Judah only. So then, says Attersoll, albeit he was punished justly, he was punished gently. Thus God dealeth evermore. He correcteth both moderately and mercifully; and as the physician allayeth the bitterness of the potion with some sweetness, so God assuageth the greatness of His punishment with some mildness and favour that He mingleth with it. We have illustrations of this in the case of Miriam (ch. 12) and that of David (2Sa. 24:10-16) (Comp. Psa. 89:30-33; Isa. 54:7-8; Lam. 3:31-33.) In further elucidation and confirmation of our position, let the following points be noted:
1. God delighteth not in judgment, but in mercy. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy, etc. (Psa. 103:8-11.) Mark the tenderness of His appeal to His faithless and rebellious people, Why will ye be stricken any more? (Isa. 1:5.) He delighteth in mercy. (b)
2. He is our Father, and deals with us as a Father. He is not simply our Creator, Sustainer, and Sovereign, but our Father. When He punishes, He does so as a Father. Consider in thine heart, that as a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee (comp. 2Sa. 7:14-15).
3. In His dealings with us He duly considers our weakness, our exposedness to temptation, etc. Our temperament, tendencies, temptations, trials, etc., are all known to Him. In His judgments all these things are taken into consideration. He never judges harshly. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him: for He knoweth our frame, etc. (Psa. 103:13-18)
His mercy is ever in exercise mitigating the severity of the consequences of sin, and tempering the sternness of the woes of life.
Conclusion:
1. Let the mercy of God deter us from sin. Shall we be so base as to sin against so much kindness?
2. Let the mercy of God encourage our confidence in Him. In sorrow let us seek Him; for he pities, etc. In guilt let us seek Him; for He forgives, etc.
3. Let this example of the mercy of God lead us to be patient under lifes trials. Like those of Reuben, our trials are not so severe as we have deserved, and they are tempered by the rich mercy of God. He is ever evolving good out of them, making them by His grace the occasion of strength and blessing to us.
4. Let this example of the mercy of God encourage the wicked to forsake sin and seek salvation. Let the wicked forsake his way, etc (Isa. 55:6-7.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) If sin were mortal, then thirty years would swing the world over into the millenium; we should bury it with the next generation. But it is not mortal. It is not barren, but prolific; it propagates itself; it has paternal functions, and sends its children out in swarms to possess the earth. I wish you all to understand that whatever evil you are tolerating in your lives, will live after you are gone; you will pass away, but this shall not pass away. One immortality you will take with you at death; another you will leave behind. It shall stand above your grave when the mound is fashioned and the mourners depart; and shake itself as a strong man rejoiceth in his strength, and go forth as one of the forces of the world. It will be impersonal; it will have no name; it will show no face; and yet it will be you, your worse half unchecked, unrestrained by the good that was once mated with it, and that kept it within bounds. It is in the moral and spiritual as it is in the material world. It is said that one cannot stir the air with a sound so soft and slight that it will ever cease to be a sound. The words we speak, whether of love or hate, whether pure or vile, start pulsations in the air that will never cease to throb. You cannot open your lips and start a motion in the atmosphere, which shall not, like a wave on a shoreless sea, whose forces are within itself and adequate, roll on and on for ever. An oath once spoken sounds for ever in the universe as an oath; it is an explosion whose reverberations can never die. They roll around all continents; they crash against the sides of all mountains; they beat discordantly in and upon the atmosphere of all worlds; the devils hear them, and rejoice; the holy, and fly in dismay. And, at the Judgment, why may we not suppose that these sounds shall all come back to usthe good in soothing music, and the evil in torturing discord, and every man shall be judged according to the word of his mouth? Indeed, it seems to me that everything in man that is of the mind and soul is immortal.W. H. H. Murray.
(b) Man having destroyed that which God delighted in, the beauty of his soul, fell into an evil portion, and, being seized on by the Divine justice, grew miserable, and condemned to an incurable sorrow.
In the midst of these sadnesses God remembered His own creature, and pitied it; and, by His mercy, rescued him from the hands of His power, and the sword of His justice, and the guilt of His punishment, and the disorder of his sin, and placed him in that order of good things where he ought to have stood. It was mercy that preserved the noblest of Gods creatures here below; he who stood condemned and undone under all the other attributes of God, was saved and rescued by His mercy; that it may be evident that Gods mercy is above all His works, and above all ours, greater than the creation, and greater than our sins. As is His majesty, so is His mercy, that is, without measures and without rules, sitting in heaven and filling all the world, calling for a duty that He may give a blessing, making man that He may save him, punishing him that He may preserve him. And Gods justice bowed down to His mercy, and all His power passed into mercy, and His omniscience converted into care and watchfulness, into providence and observation for mans avail; and heaven gave its influence for man, and rained showers for our food and drink; and the attributes and acts of God sat at the foot of mercy, and all that mercy descended upon the head of man. For, ever since the fall of Adam, who, like an unfortunate man, spent all that a wretched man could need, or a happy man could have, our life is repentance, and forgiveness is all our portion; and though angels were objects of Gods bounty, yet man only is, in proper speaking, the object of His mercy; and the mercy which dwelt in an infinite circle became confined to a little ring, and dwelt here below; and here shall dwell below, till it hath carried all Gods portion up to heaven, where it shall reign and glory upon our crowned heads for ever and ever! I must tell concerning Gods mercy as we do concerning God Himself, that He is that great fountain of which we all drink, and the great rock of which we all eat, and on which we all dwell, and under whose shadow we are all refreshed. Gods mercy is all this; and we can only draw the great lines of it, and reckon the constellations of our hemisphere, instead of telling the number of the stars; we only can reckon what we feel and what we live by; and though there be, in every one of these lines of life, enough to engage us for ever to do God service, and to give Him praises, yet it is certain there are very many mercies of God on us, and toward us, and concerning us, which we neither feel, nor see, nor understand as yet; but yet we are blessed by them, and are preserved and secure, and we shall then know them, when we come to give God thanks in the festivities of an eternal Sabbath.Jeremy Taylor.
THE TABERNACLE IN THE MIDST OF THE HOST
(Num. 2:17)
We have spoken of two of the standards, and two other remain to be spoken of. In this verse, Moses interlaceth the placing and situation of the tabernacle, which was so environed with the Levites, and they flanked and fortified with the whole host, that it remained in the midst, in a place of the greatest safety, fittest for access in regard of the people, and hardest for access in regard of their enemies.
I. The Reasons for placing the Tabernacle after this manner.
1. God doth hereby admonish them, that they should always have Him before their eyes, lest they should forget His worship or offend Him with their sins (comp. Lev. 26:11-12).
2. He had respect indifferently unto all the tribes. If any others had pitched their tents farther than from the Tabernacle, they would have quarrelled and complained that they had been contemned and despised.
3. The Levites were hereby put in mind of their duty, and therefore are lodged about it.
II. The Uses of placing the Tabernacle after this manner.
1. It assureth us that God will ever be in the midst of us, and settle His rest and residence among us (comp. Lev. 26:11-12; Eze. 27:27). We must know how God is said to dwell among us. Difference between His general presence and His special presence. His general presence is in all places; His special presence is in His Church. His general presence is of His power; His special presence is of His grace and favour. There is a common manner of Gods being everywhere, and in all things, by His essence: there is a special way of Gods being present, as that which is loved is present in him that loveth (comp. Joh. 14:23).
(1) God is joined unto us in the person of His own only Son Emmanueli.e., God with us. We are made members of His body (see Mat. 28:20).
(2). We have with Him the preaching of the Gospel, whereby God is, as it were, brought down to reside and remain among us.
(3) We have the promise of His presence and the seals thereof in His Sacraments, whereby we are at one with Him, and He with us (see Gal. 3:27; Joh. 6:54-56; 1Co. 10:16-17).
(4) When we come together in the Church to call upon His name, He is near unto us, and most familiar with us (see Mat. 18:20).
(5) He dwelleth among us whensoever He preserveth us from evil, and delivereth us from our enemies. Let us take heed to walk in fear before Him, etc. (see Deu. 6:12-15; 2Co. 6:16-18). We ought to walk always as in Gods presence, and to consider evermore that His eye is upon us.
2. It serveth to teach us to what end God hath instituted Civil States and Commonwealths in this worldto wit, to be stays and props to the Church, that the people of God may assemble together in peace and quietness.
(1) Let all persons, princes, and people, high and low, do good to the Church of God, and employ their best endeavours to promote the glory of God and the safety of the Church (see Psa. 122:6-7; Psa. 132:1-5).
(2) It is the duty of all persons to assemble together to hear His word. If we would dwell with God, let us repair to His house; if we would see Him, we shall see Him there; if we would hear Him, we shall hear Him there; if we would know Him, we shall know Him there, for His face is to be seen there, His voice is to be heard there. His presence is to be found there (see Psa. 27:4; Psa. 42:1; Psa. 84:2).
(3) Let us not stand in fear of any enemies, as if they would bear and beat down the Church before them; neither let us forsake our mother, for fear of troubles that may come upon her. The Church is set in a safe place; they shall not be able to hurt it: it hath a safe Keeper, that neither slumbereth nor sleepeth; they shall not be able to destroy it: the gates of hell and the power of the devil are set against it, but they shall never have victory over it (see Deu. 7:21-22).
3. It serveth to conclude the full and final happiness of the faithful, which is begun in this life, but shall be consummated in the end of this world. Then will God dwell with us, and we shall dwell with Him; then we shall be admitted into His presence, and never be cast out; then no evil shall touch us, or come near us, and no good thing shall be wanting unto us that we can desire (see Rev. 21:3-4; 2Pe. 3:13; Rev. 7:15-17; Rev. 21:22-27).W. Attersoll.
THE CAMP OF EPHRAIM, AND ITS SUGGESTIONS
(Num. 2:18-24)
In these verses we have an account of the third camp, which was posted to the west of the Tabernacle. It consisted of the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, all descendants of Rachel. Looking at this camp homiletically we discover in it
I. An illustration of the Divine Sovereignty.
Ephraim and Manasseh were sons of Joseph by his wife Asenath. Though Manasseh was the elder, yet Ephraim was placed at the head of this camp. The first indication we have of the ascendancy of Ephraim over Manasseh is in the blessing of the children by Jacob (Genesis 48). The intention of Joseph was evidently that the right hand of Jacob should convey the ampler blessing to the head of Manasseh, his first-born, and he had so arranged the young men. But the result was otherwise ordained.
Jacob persisted in setting Ephraim before Manasseh. God chose from the beginning, says Bishop Patrick, in several instances, to prefer the younger before the elder, as Abel before Cain; Shem before Japheth; Isaac before Ishmael; Jacob before Esau; Judah and Joseph before Reuben; and here Ephraim before Manasseh; and Moses before Aaron; and David, the youngest of all, before his elder brethrento show that the Divine benefits were not limited to the order of nature, but dispensed freely, according to Gods most wise goodness. God bestows all His gifts freely, according to His own good pleasure, both when He will, and where He will, and to whom He will. Our salvation from beginning to end is owing to His sovereign favour. We have nothing of our own. For who maketh thee to differ? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? etc. God is debtor to no man. We have no claim upon His bounty. If He should withhold His blessing from any of us, we should have no just ground of complaint against Him. We, however, do well ever to bear in mind that His is the sovereignty of a Being of infinite wisdom, righteousness, and love. It is the sovereignty of GOD, the Supremely Good, (a) Though we know not the reasons of many of His decisions and doings, yet we know that in them all He is actuated by motives and seeks the accomplishment of ends which are worthy of Himself. Let us then, like the Hebrew poets, rejoice in Gods sovereignty, and celebrate it in reverent and hearty songs.
II. An illustration of the sacredness of family ties
These three tribes which constitute this camp were all descended from Rachel, and were the whole of her descendants. We may fairly conclude that this was one reason, and a chief one, why they were grouped together. To the eye of God family ties are sacred things. Jesus our Lord was subject unto His parents. On the cross, amidst His own fierce agonies of both body and soul, He was mindful of His mother, spake to her and committed her to the care of His beloved disciple. The ties of kinship are of the closest, tenderest, strongest, holiest nature; and should be so regarded. In our families let us cultivate mutual forbearance, and helpfulness, and holy love; for without hearts there is no home. Let us make our houses homes; the scenes of confidence, peace, affection, and worship. It is just as possible to keep a calm house as a clean house, a cheerful house, an orderly house, as a furnished house, if the heads set themselves to do so. Where is the difficulty of consulting each others weakness, as well as each others wants; each others tempers, as well as each others health; each others comfort, as well as each others character? Oh! it is by leaving the peace at home to chance, instead of pursuing it by system, that so many houses are unhappy. (b)
III. An illustration of the Divine regard for the weak.
This was the least numerous of the four great divisions, and therefore by direction of God it was appointed to that position in which there was the last danger. Tenderly God cares for the feeble. He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench. What a rich fund of comfort and encouragement there is here
1. For those who are physically afflicted.
2. For those whose faith is feeble.
3. For those who are sorely tried
He is acquainted with us altogether; and in our great need He will bestow upon us the tenderest care and the richest grace, (c)
Conclusion:
Let us unfalteringly trust in God. Let us rejoice in the sovereignty of so wise and kind a Being.
He everywhere hath sway,
And all things serve His might,
His every act pure blessing is;
His path unsullied light.
Leave to His sovereign sway,
To choose and to command:
So shalt thou wondering own His way,
How wise, how strong His hand!
Thou comprehendst Him not:
Yet earth and heaven tell
God sits as Sovereign on the throne;
He ruleth all things well.
Thou seest our weakness, Lord,
Our hearts are known to Thee;
O lift Thou up the sinking hand,
Confirm the feeble knee.
Let us in life and death,
Boldly Thy truth declare;
And publish with our latest breath,
Thy love and guardian care.
P. Gerhard.
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) The sovereignty of God naturally ariseth from the relation of all things to Himself as their entire Creator, and their natural and inseparable dependence upon Him in regard of their being and well-being. The fast cause of everything hath an unquestionable dominion of propriety in it upon the score of justice. By the law of nations, the first finder of a country is esteemed the rightful possessor and lord of that country, and the first inventor of an art hath a right of exercising it. If a man hath a just claim of dominion over that thing whose materials were not of his framing, but from only the addition of a new figure from his skill; as a limner over his picture, the cloth whereof he never made, nor the colours wherewith he draws it were never endued by him with their distinct qualities, but only he applies them by his art to compose such a figure; much more hath God a rightful claim of dominion over His creatures, whose entire being, both in matter and form, and every particle of their excellency, was breathed out by the word of His mouth. He did not only give the matter a form, but bestowed upon the matter itself a being; it was formed by none to His hand, as the matter is on which an artist works. He had the being of all things in His own power, and it was at His choice whether He would impart it or no; there can be no juster and stronger ground of a claim than this. A man hath a right to a piece of brass or gold by his purchase, but when by his engraving he hath formed it into an excellent statue, there results an increase of his right upon the account of his artifice. Gods creation of the matter of man gave Him a right over man; but His creation of him in so eminent an excellency, with reason to guide him, a clear eye of understanding to discern light from darkness, and truth from falsehood, a freedom of will to act accordingly, and an original righteousness as the varnish and beauty of all; here is the strongest foundation for a claim of authority over man, and the strongest obligation on man for subjection to God.Charnocke.
(b) Families are not isolated individuals, but the descendants of their fathers, and therefore essentially members one of another; God himself being the Father of all the families of the universe. What can be more interesting than to contemplate the intelligent universe, as consisting of endlessly multiplied bonds of fatherhood and childhood; and all these held in the strong unity of one Divine Fatherhood and one Divine Sonship?
Family relationship is therefore a very sacred thing. Its root being not in the creation, but in God. And though we shall not find on earth any development worthy of its holy root, nevertheless, the flower which fills the world with choicest fragrance is family affection. It is capable of becoming most heavenly, since the Eternal Father is Himself the spring of parental, as His Eternal Son is of filial love. Therefore, also, family affections are capable of ceaseless cultivation. There is nothing to hinder family love from becoming evermore deeper, stronger, and lovelier. If it be so strong and so precious among fallen creatures, what must it be among the perfect? If family life on the earth gives rise, as it often does, to a very paradise of courtesies and tender sanctities, what must family life be in the immediate Presence, and under the direct influence, of the Infinite Father and His Only Begotten Son? Christian parents and their children should know therefore, that in their families they have not a little world, but a little heaven to cultivate.
What a solace to our hearts is the assurance, that we shall never cease to be members of a family! The perfection of the great heavenly household is that it is a Household of households. We are born into a family, we grow up in a family, we die in a family, and after death, we shall not simply go into the great heaven, but to our own family, in our Fathers House. Abraham gave up the ghost, and was gathered to his people. Thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace, God had said to him. All in heaven will not know us, but our own people will know us. We shall go to them.J. Pulsford.
(c) A bruised reed I will not break. Is there anything that grows so high, carrying up so little strength of stem, as the reed that rises twenty or thirty feet in the air, and has a stalk not larger than my finger? Now, a beast striking through the thicket, eager, with his unquenched thirst, for the cooling draught, strikes against a joint of the slender reed, shattering it so that it has but just strength to boar its own weight. So weak is it, that if there be so much wind as to lift one of its leaves, or to bend it in the least degree in either direction, it must surely break. But God says, My gentleness is such that when I go down among men whose condition is like that of a bruised reed, I will do nothing to complete their overthrow, but will deal with them in such a way that they shall gather strength till I have sent forth judgment unto victory.
And smoking flax I will not quench. If the flame is just dying out in a lamp it is not in danger of being suddenly extinguished, for the old warmth in the wick seems for a time to nourish and sustain it; but immediately after the wick is lighted, and before any warmth is communicated to it, the least movement is sufficient to extinguish it. Now God says, Wherever there is a spark of grace lighted in the soul, if it flickers so that the least breath of the person who carries it, or the least motion of his hand is in danger of putting it out, I will deal so gently with him as not to quench that spark. I will treat it with such infinite tenderness that it shall grow into a flame which shall burn on for ever. And these are the symbols by which God measures His wonderful gentleness.H. W. Beecher.
THE CAMP OF DAN: ASPECTS OF DIVINE SERVICE
(Num. 2:25-31)
This is the fourth great division which encamped north of the tabernacle, and brought up the rear on the march. The powerful tribe of Dan was placed at the head of it, and with it the remaining tribes, Asher and Naphtali. Dan was the fifth son of Jacob, and the first of Bilhah, Rachels maid. Asher was the eighth son of Jacob, and the second of Zilpah, Leahs handmaid. Naphtali was own brother to Dan, being the sixth son of Jacob, and the second of Bilhah. The composition and station of this camp suggest certain homiletic points concerning the Divine service.
I. Persons of every kind and degree of faculty may find employment in the Divine service.
Each of the tribes had its position and duties in one of the four great divisions, or in the interior near to the tabernacle. Whatever its number or its peculiar characteristics, every one had its allotted place and work. It would appear that Judah was strong and courageous, while Dan was secret and subtle (see Gen. 49:8-12; Gen. 49:17); yet for Dan, as well as for Judah, there is a place in the great army of Israel. In the great work of God amongst men there is room for workers of every kind and degree of ability. And God lays claim to the services of every one. There is work suited to every one, as St. Paul clearly shows in 1 Corinthians 12. Eloquence, scholarship, teaching power, courage, patience, tact, administrative ability, aptitude for the details of business, etc., may each find its appropriate sphere in the great work and warfare of the Church of Jesus Christ. Even the patient sufferer has a place in His service.
The; also serve who only stand and wait.
Let this serve as
1. An encouragement to the feeble.
2. A rebuke to the slothful. (a)
II. It is essential that even the lowest position in the Divine service should be faithfully filled.
It may appear to some that the place allotted to the camp of Dan was an inferior and obscure one. They shall go hindmost with their standards. But it was essential that some of the tribes should occupy this position, and discharge its duties. There must be a rearguard as well as a vanguard. In building the temple the services of the hewers of wood are as indispensable as those of the skilled workmen. The blower of the organ-bellows is as necessary to secure its grand aid in worship as the accomplished musician.
Small service is true service while it lasts;
Of friends, however humble, scorn not one:
The daisy, by the shadow that it casts,
Protects the ling ring dewdrop from the sun.
Wordsworth.
Moreover, great achievements are impossible apart from faithful attention to the details of the enterprise. The strength of the whole chain is not greater than that of its weakest link. The efficiency of the entire body is affected by the condition of its obscurist and feeblest member. Faithfulness in littles is imperatively demanded as a condition of success in all true and noble work. (b)
III. Even the lowest position in the Divine service is one of privilege and honour.
If the position of Dan and the two associated tribes be regarded as the lowest in the great host, yet it was a distinguished and advantageous position. They were as truly a part of the people chosen of God as those in the first camp. The privileges which those of the other camps enjoyed, they enjoyed also. The promises and prospects which encouraged the others, encouraged them also. The Lord was their God, etc. The feeblest and obscurist member of Gods spiritual Israel occupies a place and sustains relationships of highest honour and richest privilege. We are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, etc. In calling us to any work, even the most menial, in His service, God confers upon us the most exalted distinction. It is a call to co-operation with Himself, etc. We are workers together with Christ.
Our Master all the work hath done
He asks of us to-day;
Sharing His service every one,
Share too His sonship may:
Lord, I would serve and be a son,
Dismiss me not, I pray.
T. T. Lynch.
IV. Seemingly obscure positions in the Divine service are in many instances positions of great importance and responsibility.
It was so in this case. There was danger of attack in the rear. With the exception of the camp of Judah, which led the way, the camp of Dan was in a position which required the greatest strength. And, being numerically interior only to Judah, the wisdom of its appointment to that position is obvious. Though their position was hindmost, yet in importance it was second only to that of the camp of Judah. An illustration of spiritual work. The services of the quiet and comparatively obscure scholar, thinker, and writer are, at the very least, quite as important as those of the popular preacher. The wise and faithful pastor, who is almost unknown beyond his own sphere of service, is doing as worthy and as needful a work as the evangelist whose fame is world-wide. The quiet members of the Church, who are influential in the family and in the prayer meetings, are perhaps more necessary to the existence and prosperity of the Church than the men who are prominent in committees and on public platforms. (c)
Conclusion:
1. Have we any place in the spiritual Israel?
2. Are we endeavouring faithfully to discharge its duties?
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) The feeblest power may be beneficially exerted. Are there any who are flittering themselves that if they possessed gigantic talents they would employ them on behalf of human freedom and human progress? I pronounce such self-consolation a deadly error. Mans business is to employ the talents with which Almighty Wisdom has endowed him, and by their employment to multiply them. Deposit the acorn in a cabinet, and time will turn it to corruption; but plant that acorn where the light and the dew of heaven can exert upon it their fructifying influence, and time will develope the majestic oak. So with talents; bury them in disuse, and they will become morally pestilential; but give them free and beneficent exercise, and they will breathe new life into the social constitution. Young man! employ thy one talent diligently, and thou shalt be promoted to the rulership of larger empire: wait not for time that may never advene; sigh not for golden opportunities and felicitous coincidences; the true man makes every opportunity golden by turning it to a golden use, and the robust soul conquers the infelicties of unpropitious circumstances. That will be a glorious day in human history on which all Christians, the feeblest and mightiest, will be working for the advancement of Christs Kingdom;the orator swaying the multitude, the writer sending forth his richly laden page, the widow giving her two mites, and the child of poverty bestowing a cup of cold water. When the whole Church is at work the kingdom of darkness will be shaken to its centre.J. Parker, D.D.
(b) Napoleon was the most effective man in modern timessome will say of all times. The secret of his character was, that while his plans were more vast, more various, and, of course, more difficult than those of other men, he had the talent, at the same time, to fill them up with perfect promptness and precision, in every particular of execution. His vast and daring plans would have been visionary in any other man: but with him every vision flew out of his brain a chariot of iron, because it was filled up, in all the particulars of execution, to be a solid and compact framework in every part. His armies were together only one great engine of desolation, of which he was the head or brain. Numbers, spaces, times, were all distinct in his eye. The wheeling of every legion, however remote, was mentally present to him. The tramp of every foot sounded in his ear. The numbers were always supplied, the spaces passed over, the times met, and so the work was done. There must be detail in every great work. It is an element of effectiveness, which no reach of plan, no enthusiasm of purpose, can dispense with. Thus, if a man conceives the idea of becoming eminent in learning, but cannot toil through the million of little drudgeries necessary to carry him on, his learning will be soon told. Or, if a man undertakes to become rich, but despises the small and gradual advances by which wealth is ordinarily accumulated, his expectations will, of course, be the sum of his riches. Accurate and careful detail, the minding of common occasions and small things, combined with general scope and vigour, is the secret of all the efficiency and success in the world.H. Bushnell, D.D.
(c) Slight services may be invaluable services. What can be a more trivial image than a cup of cold water? Less trivial, unquestionably, in the hot East than in our well-watered England; but a trivial image even there. And yet I have read of cases in which a cup of water would have fetched more than its weight in gold. Look into the despairing eyes of that boat-load of ship-wrecked sailors, tossing hour after hour on the ocean in the heat of the sun: the briny water glancing and flashing all around them as if in mockery, and not a drop anywhere of that which might slake their wild human thirst. What would not those men give for a draught of fresh water a-piece? Look at the caravan in the desert, when the last camel, the ship of the desert. lies stranded and doomed upon the sand; when no hope remains to the travellers of reaching in time the spot where the cool palm trees draw their life from the hidden spring. How much of his rich merchandize would not that dying trader be content to part with in exchange for a cup of cold water? Or traverse the battle-field when the fight is ended, and one poor wounded soldier, whose courage had carried him too far has been overlooked. The sun goes down, the stars appear, but dewy night fails to alleviate the burning thirst which always follows gun-shot wounds. Yet if some comrade shall venture out to look for the wounded man, shall find him groaning under the silent stars, and shall bring him, though it were from the nearest puddle, the draught he craves, they two shall know for ever what a blessing there may be in a cup of cold water. And have we not all heard of the generous Sidney, as he was borne dying from the field of Zutphen, how he had just put the cup to his lips, when a poor fellow was carried by, who looked as he went at the richer Sidneys draught with the longing eyes of despair,and how the dying rich man withdrew his lips before he drank, and gave the cup to the dying poor man with the words, Thy necessity is yet greater than mine! Beside the noble Sidneys name is that simple story still inscribed upon the immortal page. Of such and of so great a value may even a cup of cold water be. And I often think of HIM who sat once by Jacobs well in the heat of the day, asking for a drink of water from the Samaritan woman. He accepted all the conditions of human weakness and human want. He knew by experience, even whilst he used this image to indicate the slight nature of such an offering as this, what a precious offering it might really be, and that it might be employed, and that without exaggeration, to denote all the difference between life and death.J. G. Pigg, B.A.
CONTENTMENT AND OBEDIENCE
(Num. 2:32-34)
These verses present to us two topics on which we may reflect with profit.
I. Contentment with the Divine appointment.
We have seen that God in His infinite and sovereign wisdom allotted to each tribe its place and duty as it pleased Him. And it appears from the text that each tribe freely accepted the Divine appointment, and fell into its allotted position. There is not even a hint that any one of the tribes was guilty of any murmuring against the arrangements. This is the more remarkable when we take into account how prone the people were to complain and fret upon the very slightest pretext. Let us learn to be content cheerfully to occupy the position, and diligently to do the work allotted to us by God. My times are in Thy hand. He shall choose our inheritance for us. Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel. The most cogent reasons urge us to be content with the appointments of God concerning us.
1. We are incompetent to determine our own place and duty. This will at once appear if we consider
(1). Our ignorance. How ignorant we are (a) of ourselves. Possibilities of both good and evil are latent within us which only God knows. If the determination of our lot were with us, we might choose such an one as would tend to kill any germs of truth and goodness which are within us, and to stimulate the germs of evil into awfully rapid and ruinous development. God alone is thoroughly acquainted with us. How ignorant we are (b) of the future. The particular character and circumstances of the coming minute are veiled from us. The choice which now seems wise and good, amid the altered circumstances and conditions of the morrow, may appear foolish and evil. To God only is the entire future clearly visible. Our incompetence to determine our own lot will appear further if we consider
(2) Our proneness to self-indulgence. In choosing for ourselves, we should select the pleasant rather than the painful, the sweet rather than the bitter. And yet for us the bitter may be the more wholesome, and the painful may be indispensable to our well-being. We are incapable of choosing our own place and work.
2. We have ample grounds for confidence in the determinations of God for us. We discover these in
(1) His knowledge. He knows all things. He knows the whole future perfectly. He knows us individually and thoroughly (see Psa. 139:1-4).
(2) His wisdom. Wisdom and might are His: He giveth wisdom unto the wise, etc.; O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! etc.; The only wise God.
(3) His kindness. He is as gracious as He is wise. God is love (see Psa. 145:8-9). Surely, in considerations like these we have most powerful reasons for contentment with the place and work to which we are appointed by God. (a) These considerations should
FirstSilence our murmurings because of our particular circumstances and condition.
SecondDeter us from seeking to alter our condition and circumstances by any unrighteous or unworthy methods. (b)
II. Obedience to the Divine commands.
The obedience of Israel upon this occasion seems to have been most exemplary, And the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses: so they pitched by their standards, etc. Without murmuring or disputing, without abatement or omission, they did as they were directed. Their obedience was prompt and complete. Let us note this to their credit, and as an example to us. Entire obedience is required of us also.
1. All Gods commands are binding, because they are all right. He requires of us nothing but what is just and true. We cannot break the least of His commandments without sin. The law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.
2. All Gods commands are benevolent. In keeping of them there is great reward. Obedience is blessed as well as binding. (c)
Conclusion:
Let us seek Divine aid that we may render full and hearty obedience to all the commands of God.
O let Thy sacred will
All Thy delight in me fulfil!
Let me not think an action mine own way,
But as Thy love shall sway,
Resigning up the rudder to Thy skill.
Geo. Herbert.
ILLUSTRATIONS
(a) There are two forms of discontent: one laborious, the other indolent and complaining. We respect the man of laborious desire, but let us not suppose that his restlessness is peace, or his ambition mockness. It is because of the special connection of meekness with contentment that it is promised that the meek shall inherit the earth. Neither covetous men, nor the grave, can inherit anything; they can but consume. Only contentment can possess. The most helpful and sacred work, therefore, which can at present be done for humanity, is to teach people (chiefly by example, as all best teaching must be done) not how to better themselves, but how to satisfy themselves. It is the curse of every evil nation and evil creature to ear, and not be satisfied. The words of blessing are, that they shall eat and be satisfied. And as there is only one kind of water which quenches all thirst, so there is only one kind of bread which satisfies all hunger, the bread of justice or righteousness; which hungering after, men shall always be filled, that being the bread of Heaven; but hungering after the bread, or wages, of unrighteousness, shall not be filled, that being the bread of Sodom. And, in order to teach men how to be satisfied, it is necessary fully to understand the art and joy of humble life,this, at present, of all arts or sciences being the one most needing study. Humble life,that is to say, proposing to itself no future exaltation, but only a sweet continuance; not excluding the idea of foresight, but wholly of fore-sorrow, and taking no troublous thought of coming days: so, also, not excluding the idea of providence, or provision, but wholly of accumulation; the life of domestic affection and domestic peace, full of sensitiveness to all elements of costless and kind pleasure;therefore, chiefly to the loveliness of the natural world.J. Ruskin.
(b) But that Thou art my wisdom, Lord,
And both mine eyes are Thine,
My mind would be extremely stirrd
For missing my design.
Were it not better to bestow
Some place and power on me?
Then should Thy praises with me grow,
And share in my degree.
But when I thus dispute and grieve,
I do resume my sight;
And pilfring what I once did give,
Disseize Thee of Thy right.
How know I, if Thou shouldst me raise,
That I should then raise Thee?
Perhaps great places and Thy praise
Do not so well agree.
Wherefore unto my gift I stand;
I will no more advise:
Only do Thou lend me a hand
Since Thou hast both mine eyes.
Geo. Herbert.
(c) That principle to which Polity owes its stability, Life its happiness, Faith its acceptance, and Creation its continuance, is Obedience. How false is the conception, how frantic the pursuit, of that treacherous phantom which men call Liberty! most treacherous, indeed, of all phantoms; for the feeblest ray of reason might surely show us, that not only its attainment, but its being, was impossible. There is no such thing in the universe. There can never be. The stars have it not; the earth has it not; the sea has it not; and we men have the mockery and semblance of it only for our heaviest punishment. If there be any one principle more widely than another confessed by every utterance, or more sternly than another imprinted on every atom of the visible creation, that principle is not Liberty, but Law.
The enthusiast would reply that by Liberty he meant the Law of Liberty. Then why use the single and misunderstood word? If by liberty you mean chastisement of the passions, discipline of the intellect, subjection of the will; if you mean the fear of inflicting, the shame of committing, a wrong; if you mean respect for all who are in authority, and consideration for all who are in dependence; veneration for the good, mercy to the evil, sympathy to the weak; if you mean watchfulness over all thoughts, temperance in all pleasures, and perseverance in all toils; if you mean, in a word, that Service which is defined in the liturgy of the English Church to be perfect Freedom, why do you name that by the same word by which the luxurious mean licence, and the reckless mean change; by which the rogue means rapine, and the fool equality, by which the proud mean anarchy, and the malignant mean violence? Call it by any name rather than this, but its best and truest is Obedience. Obedience is, indeed, founded on a kind of freedom, else it would become mere subjugation, but that freedom is only granted that obedience may be more perfect; and thus, while a measure of licence is necessary to exhibit the individual energy of things, the fairness and pleasantness and perfection of them all consist in their Restraint. Compare a river that has burst its banks with one that is bound by them, and the clouds that are scattered over the face of the whole heaven, with those that are marshalled into ranks and orders by its winds. So that though restraint, utter and unrelaxing, can never be comely, this is not because it is in itself an evil, but only because, when too great, it overpowers the nature of the thing restrained, and so counteracts the other laws of which that nature is itself composed.J. Ruskin.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
IV. ARRANGEMENTS OF TRIBES FOR CAMPING, MARCHING (Numbers 2)
TEXT
Num. 2:1. And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 2. Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their fathers house: far off about the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch. 3, And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of Judah pitch throughout their armies: and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be captain of the children of Judah. 4. And his host, and those that were numbered of them were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred. 5. And 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. 6. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred. 7. Then the tribe of Zebulun: and Eliab the son of Helon shall be captain of the children of Zebulun. 8. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred. 9. All that were numbered in the camp of Judah were a hundred thousand and four score thousand and six thousand and four hundred, throughout their armies: these shall first set forth.
10. On 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. 11. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were forty and six thousand and five hundred. 12. And 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. 13. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred. 14. Then the tribe of Gad: and the captain of the sons of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel. 15. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty. 16. And that were numbered in the camp of Reuben were a hundred thousand and fifty and one thousand and four hundred and fifty, throughout their armies: and they shall set forth in the second rank.
17. Then 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.
18. On 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. 19. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty thousand and five hundred. 20. And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh: and the captain of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. 21. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred. 22. Then the tribe of Benjamin: and the captain of the sons of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni. 23. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred. 24. All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim were a hundred thousand and eight thousand and a hundred, throughout their armies: and they shall go forward in the third rank.
25. The 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. 26. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred. 27. And 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. 28. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and one thousand and five hundred.
29. Then the tribe of Naphtali: and the captain of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan. 30. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were be Ahira the son of Enan. 30. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and three thousand and four hundred. 31. All they that were numbered in the camp of Dan were a hundred thousand and fifty and seven thousand and six hundred: they shall go hindmost with their standards.
32. These 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. But the Levites were not numbered 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 standards, and so they set forward, every one after their families, according to the house of their fathers.
PARAPHRASE
Num. 2:1. The Lord said unto Moses and Aaron, 2. The people of Israel shall encamp each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers houses; they shall encamp facing the Tent of Meeting on all sides. 3. Those who shall encamp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be under the standard of the camp of Judah by their armies, with Nahshon, son of Amminadab, captain of the army of the children of Judah. 4. And his host, and those who were numbered, were 74,600. 5. Those who encamp beside him shall be the tribe of Issachar, whose leader shall be Nethanel the son of Zuar of the tribe of Issachar; 6. his host is numbered at 54,400. 7. Next is the tribe of Zebulun, whose leader shall be Eliab, the son of Helon, of the tribe of Zebulun; 8. his host is numbered at 57,400. 9. The total number of the camp of Judah, by their armies, is 186,400. They shall lead out on the march.
10. On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben by their armies, whose leader shall be Elizur, the son of Shedeur, of the tribe of Reuben; 11. his host is numbered at 46,500. 12. And those who are to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, with Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai, leader of the people of Simeon; 13. his host as numbered is 59,300. 14. Then Gads tribe, with Eliasaph, the son of Reuel, the leader of the tribe of Gad; 15. his host as numbered was 45,650. 16. The entire number of the camp of Reuben by their armies is 151,450. They shall move out second.
17. Then the Tent of Meeting shall move out, with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camps; just as they encamp, so shall they move out, each in place, standard by standard.
18. On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim by their armies, with Elishama, the son of Ammihud, the leader of the tribe of Ephraim; 19. his host as numbered was 32,200. 20. And next to him shall be the tribe of Manasseh, with Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, leader of the people of Manasseh; 21. his host as numbered was 32,200. 22. Then the tribe of Benjamin, with Abidan, the son of Gideoni, leader of the tribe of Benjamin; 23. his host as numbered was 35,400. 24. The entire number of the camp of Ephraim by their armies is 108,100. They shall move out third on the march.
25. On the north side shall be the standard of the camp of Dan by their armies, with Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai, leader of the tribe of Dan: 26. his host as numbered was 62,700. 27. And those who are to camp next to him shall be the tribe of Asher, with Pagiel, the son of Ochran, leader of the tribe of Asher; 28. his host as numbered was 41,500.
29. Then the tribe of Naphtali, with Ahira, the son of Enan, leader of the tribe of Naphtali; 30. his host as numbered was 53,400. 31. All those who were numbered in the camp of Dan were 157,600. They shall go forth last with their standards.
32. These are the children of Israel as they were numbered by their fathers houses; all who were numbered in their armies were 603,550. 33. But the Levites were not counted among the people of Israel, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 34. So the people of Israel did everything according to what the Lord had commanded Moses. In this manner they camped by their standards, and in this manner they set forth, every one with his family, according to his fathers house.
COMMENTARY
Since the Tent of Meeting represented the literal presence of Jehovah, it was only appropriate that the Tent should be situated in the very center of the camp of Israel. All tribes were virtually equidistant from this Tent, lying roughly along the sides of a large rectangle.
With three tribes designated to each point of the compass about the Tent, and with the priestly families and the other Levites established in the inner camping area, directly before the door of the Tent, the place of greatest importance was toward the east, or sunrise. The sons of Aaron held this favored spot among the Levites, while Judah was awarded the choice spot among the secular tribesthe area central toward the rising sun.
We know the symbols of some, but not all, of the tribes. The best known of all must be Judahs lion. The symbol was both historic and prophetic, pointing to the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ (Rev. 5:5). Jacob had spoken of Judah as a lions whelp, one to whom his brothers children would bow, one who would conquer his enemies, and one from whom the scepter would not depart until Shiloh come, (Gen. 49:8-10). History will show the validity of the statements. Rabbinical literature consistently affirms the symbol of Judah to be a young lion. The same sources, primarily Aben Ezra, assign to Reuben the sign of a man, to Ephraim that of an ox (see Deu. 33:17), and an eagle to Dan; on the other hand, the Targum of Palestine, while concurring in the case of Judah, makes the stag a sign of Reuben, assigns a young man to Ephraim, and a basilisk serpent to Dan. In his blessings to his sons, Jacob had identified several of them with various figurative expressions. Besides that given of Judah, he had spoken of Reuben as boiling water (Gen. 49:3); of Issachar as a strong donkey (Gen. 49:14); of Dan as a horned snake (Gen. 49:17); of Naphtali as a freed doe (Gen. 49:21); of Joseph as a fruitful bough (Gen. 49:22); and of Benjamin as a ravening wolf (Gen. 49:27). No symbolic terms are given for Simeon, Levi, Zebulun, Gad or Asher. Since the list is incomplete, we may not infer that these omitted tribes had no symbols, nor that the symbols they used in the wilderness coincided with Jacobs identifications among those which are known, with the exceptions of Judah and, perhaps, Dan.
We do not know in what precise form these symbols were made, although it is believed the standard (degel) was a kind of banner or flag, perhaps of great size, such as might be carried in advance of a large troop under martial conditions. The ensigns (othoth), it is suggested, were smaller pennants which might be carried at the front before tribal subdivisions. Each tribe had its standard; each family its ensign. In no way did Israel consider the making of the flags a violation of the Commandment prohibiting images or likenesses of any created thing (Exo. 20:4). After all, they were erected by the very commission of the Lord; and, more important, in no way were they to be mistaken for religious objects and worshiped. Their erection simply served as a means of identifying the location of the tribes and families while encamped and on the move, and would allow quick regrouping should any lose its place. During the prolonged marches and many settlements, an unorganized or illogical arrangement could have caused numerous unnecessary problems.
The matter of Israels multiplication between the time of entering and leaving Egypt has been much discussed. Gen. 46:27 gives a total of seventy souls who came to Egypt, including the family of Joseph, which was already there. The census here taken gives the number of male Israelites of age twenty and over at 603,550. To this must be added the number of Levites, or 22,000 (Num. 3:39), more than one month old. Tribe by tribe, the increase is given as follows:
Tribe
Number at Coming to Egypt
Census in Numbers 2; Numbers 3
Reuben
7
46,500
Simeon
7
59,300
*Levi
4
*22,000
Judah
7
74,600
Issachar
5
54,400
Zebulun
4
57,400
Gad
8
45,650
Asher
9
41,500
Joseph
0 3
Ephraim
40,500
Manasseh
32,200
Benjamin
11
35,400
Dan
2
62,700
Naphtali
5
53,400
0 72
* 603,550
* The Levites, and their totals, are not included in the final figure.
The total of 72 includes Ephraim and Manasseh, who would not have been reckoned among those who came into Egypt; they were born there.
Judah, along with Issachar and Zebulun, received the front position in the camp, that is, the eastward side, and their combined army of 186,400 men was appointed to lead the entire group as they marched. Those who camped on the south under the banner of Reuben, with Gad and Simeon, marched next. They totaled 151,450 men. At this point as the armies moved forward, the Tabernacle and the Levites moved into the center position. Symbolically, then, whether Israel might be in camp or on the march, the sacred Presence was in their midst.
Following next, under the banner of Ephraim, also came Manasseh and Benjamin. Their number totaled 108,100 men of war. Bringing up the rear was the tribe under Gads standard, together with Asher and Naphtali, with 157,600 soldiers. The total picture would be impressive indeed.
The Palestinian Talmud says that the encampment of the Israelites covered an area of approximately twelve square miles. Later historians have estimated, however, that it was more probably three to three and one-half square miles, basing their figures upon relative sizes and spaces occupied by the Roman armies in camp. Whatever the true area might have been, there was a clear need for careful planning, tight discipline and constant cooperation among the people. We are not told what provisions are made for the animals; it would seem fit to assume they were pastured about the perimeter of the camp, and driven at the end of the marching band. Further, in many areas where the camps must have been erected, it would be very difficult to find even three square miles of level land in one spot, complicating the camping problems. This would have been true throughout their travels until they reached the plateaus of Moab. Doubtless adjustments were made, with the camp much elongated to fit the narrow accommodations of the tight valleys through which they traversed. We must not forget that these were slave people, and the tight quarters and handicaps of the wilderness should have been accepted as a part of the price of their freedom. What has been described is the ideal arrangement; how often they were able to conform precisely to the instructions, we may only speculate upon, As set forth, the plan of organization for the camp of Israel has become symbolic of the great city of Zion as portrayed by Ezekiel (Eze. 48:20), and in Rev. 21:16. Binnie, in his homily based upon the passage, points out the resemblances between the camp of Israel and the church of Christ as he notes 1. that the church is an army; it Isaiah 2. an army on the march; that Isaiah 3. an army moving under a banner; that 4. God keeps a perfect roll of His men by name; and that 5. the army has the Lord for its everpresent Leader.
QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH ITEMS
40.
Suggest some complications which might arise if the tribes of Israel had simply camped and marched at random.
41.
Draw a diagram showing the places of the camps of each tribe as they related to the Tent of Meeting.
42.
What reasons may be given for placing the sons of Aaron and the families of the Levites immediately about the Tent of Meeting?
43.
Group the placement of the tribes according to their maternal origin (see Gen. 35:23-26).
44.
Why was the tribe of Judah chosen to lead the marching order of the people? Is there something prophetic in this arrangement?
45.
Why are the Levites and the Tent of Meeting placed in the center of the camp? Why do they march in the midst of the tribes?
46.
What arrangements might have been made to provide for the herds and flocks both while camping and marching?
47.
Discuss the symbolism attached to the centrality of the Tent of Meeting; of the design of the encampment.
48.
Identify the tribes whose symbols we know, or for which there is traditional evidence. What is unusual about the symbol for Judahs group?
49.
List the totals of the tribes, tribe by tribe; then give the number of the Levites counted. Now show what the sum of the congregation was when the Levites are not counted, and what it was with them included.
50.
What are the probable differences between the standards and the banners? What were their separate purposes?
51.
Arrange the tribes in their marching order.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
ORDER OF ENCAMPMENT.
1. The Lord spake unto Moses Aaron We are not to suppose that Jehovah utters all the words of this chapter. Divine commands relating to the order seem to alternate with human statements of the numbers. This should be borne in mind by the reader. Jehovah relieved Moses of the delicate duty of establishing the order of the camp, and of making distinctions among his brethren by giving some the post of honour. He did what all generals claim as their prerogative, deeming it necessary to their success. He selected his own division, and subordinate commanders, and assigned each battalion its post in camp and on the march. We see no reason why Aaron should be addressed with Moses in this chapter, and Moses alone in the first. The reverse of this would have been natural, inasmuch as duties are enjoined on the Levites in the first chapter, but none in the second.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Chapter 2 The Camp Of Israel.
In this chapter Israel are depicted as needing to be organised around the God’s ‘Dwellingplace’, (mishkan, often translated ‘the tabernacle’), in square formation in a similar way to the camp of the Egyptians around the tent of Rameses II. Encamped to the east of the Dwellingplace were to be Judah, with Issachar and Zebulun (all Leah tribes). On journeying these were seemingly to form the advance guard. To the south were to be Reuben with Simeon and Gad (two Leah tribes with Gad replacing Levi, compare Gad’s similar listing with the Leah tribes earlier (Num 1:24). These were to move off second, taking up a second line of defence. In the centre around the Dwellingplace were to be the priests and Levites. They were, as it were, the Dwellingplace’s special bodyguard. They were then to be followed up by Ephraim, with Manasseh and Benjamin, who encamped to the west but followed the Dwellingplace when on the march (Rachel tribes), and finally came Dan, with Asher and Naphtali (concubine tribes along with Gad), who encamped to the north, but followed up in the rear on marching.
The whole picture is of Yahweh’s ‘holy nation’. The people are seen as holy as they surround the Tent of Meeting. This will be followed in Numbers 3 by those who are even more holy, the Levites, set apart by Yahweh in holiness to replace the firstborn sons of Israel as servants of the Sanctuary, and to come between the people and the Sanctuary. The most holy are the priests, who alone can deal with holy things, approaching the altar to make offerings, applying the blood of the offerings, entering within the inner Sanctuary, the Holy Place (but not the Holy of Holies/‘Most Holy Place’). All this reflects Exodus and Leviticus.
Positioning and Arrangements for Travel of the People ( Num 2:1 to Num 3:1 ).
Num 2:1
‘And Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, “The children of Israel shall encamp every man by his own standard, with the ensigns of their fathers’ houses. Over against the tent of meeting shall they encamp round about.” ’
All the children of Israel, man by man, were to encamp in their own ranks beneath the ensigns of their fathers’ houses, at some distance from (over against) the Tent of Meeting, but surrounding it.
Num 2:3-4
‘And those who encamp on the east side toward the sunrising shall be they of the standard of the camp of Judah, according to their hosts: and the prince of the children of Judah shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab. And his host, and those who were numbered of them, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred.’
Those who were to camp on the east side, towards the sunrising, were Judah, Issachar and Zebulun. Their chieftains’ names are again mentioned, and the numbering of their tribe. This was made up in the case of Judah of 74 families or military officers/mighty men and contained in all 6 ‘hundreds’ or military/social units.
The east was probably seen as the side from which most danger could come while they were encamped. This would come from the roving tribes of the people of the east. But when it came to journeying they would lead the way because of their strength.
We note here that while Reuben as the firstborn headed the list in chapter 1, here Judah takes the lead, as they will also in the final invasion (Jdg 1:2). This may partly explain the disenchantment of the Reubenites revealed in the behaviour of Dathan and Abiram.
“Towards the sunrising” probably indicates the favour with which God looked on them, the priests would also be encamped on this side. They were the blessed of Yahweh. There may also be a reminder in this of Jacob’s blessing where the tribe of Judah were depicted as having a bright future, with Shiloh, the Coming One, coming from among them (Gen 49:10 compare Num 24:17-19).
Num 2:5-6
‘And those who encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and the prince of the children of Issachar shall be Nethanel the son of Zuar. And his host, and those who were numbered of it, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred. And the tribe of Zebulun, and the prince of the children of Zebulun shall be Eliab the son of Helon. And his host, and those who were numbered of it, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred.’
Issachar and Zebulun, both Leah tribes, were to be joined with Judah in protecting the east, each numbered in the same way as before. And with Judah they would march ahead of the column behind the Ark (10:33-36) when journeying.
Num 2:9
‘All who were numbered of the camp of Judah were a hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, according to their hosts. They shall set forth first.’
Thus the total number of guards to the east in ‘the camp of Judah’ were 185 ’lph (families/military leaders) and 14 military units. (185 ’lph and one ’lph of troops plus a portion making 186 ’lph and a portion). They were the first to set forth when the march began, and would lead the way.
We might in our day cavil at adding together a number of military leaders with a regiment in the same sum, but regularly in ancient days battles were fought between ‘champions’ with the remainder watching. The result would often be accepted by both parties for it indicated to all whose side the gods were on. Thus a champion could actually represent a regiment on his own. Consider Goliath in 1 Samuel 17.
Num 2:10-15
‘On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben according to their hosts, and the prince of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur. And his host, and those who were numbered of it, were forty and six thousand and five hundred. And those who encamp next to him shall be the tribe of Simeon, and the prince of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. And his host, and those who were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred. And the tribe of Gad: and the prince of the children of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel. And his host, and those who were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty.’
To the south of the Dwellingplace were to encamp the tribe of Reuben, assisted by Simeon and Gad. Again the numbers are given, and the names of their chieftains, as per chapter 1. Here Eliasaph’s father is named Reuel (‘friend of God’), contrast Deuel (‘one who knows God’) in Numbers 1. This may be an alternative spelling of his name (compare Paul and Saul). While it is true that in ancient Hebrew ‘d’ and ‘r’ were very similar, we must beware of too glibly just assuming a copyist’s error. We must remember that the copyist would have heard it read out a hundred times and more prior to becoming a copyist. He would know which it would be. The lesson for us from this name is that it is necessary for us to know God truly if we would be His friend.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Order of Encampment In Num 2:1-24 the Lord sets in order the encampment of the twelve tribes around the Tabernacle. The tribe of Judah, which name means “praise,” led the armies of God in the wilderness, and thus encamped to the east of the Tabernacle. Note: The head of these armies (a captain over each tribe) are listed in Num 1:5-16. These leaders were chosen by God, and not appointed by lot or by Moses.
1. Judah’s Camp – Total 186,400
Judah – 74,600
Issachar – 54,400
Zebulum – 57,400
2. Reuben’s Camp – Total 151,450
Reuben – 46,500
Simeon – 59,300
Gad – 45,650
3. Ephraim’s Camp – Total 108,100
Ephraim – 40,500
Manasseh – 32,200
Benjamin – 35,400
4. Dan’s Camp – Total 157,600
Dan – 62,700
Asher – 41,500
Naphtali – 53,400
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
The Order of the Tribes in the Camp and on the March.
v. 1. And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, v. 2. Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, flag, or banner, with the ensign of their father’s house. v. 3. And 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.
v. 4. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, v. 5. And 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.
v. 6. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred.
v. 7. Then the tribe of Zebulun; and Eliab, the son of Helon, shall be captain of the children of Zebulun.
v. 8. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred.
v. 9. 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. These shall first set forth, v. 10. On 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.
v. 11. And his host, and those that were numbered thereof, were forty and six thousand and five hundred.
v. 12. And 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.
v. 13. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred.
v. 14. Then the tribe of Gad; and the captain of the sons of Gad shall be Eliasaph, the son of Beuel.
v. 15. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty.
v. 16. All that were numbered in the camp of Reuben, v. 17. Then the Tabernacle of the Congregation shall set forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp, v. 18. On 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.
v. 19. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty thousand and five hundred.
v. 20. And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh; and the captain of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur.
v. 21. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred.
v. 22. Then the tribe of Benjamin; and the captain of the sons of Benjamin shall be Abidan, the son of Gideoni.
v. 23. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred.
v. 24. All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim, v. 25. The 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.
v. 26. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred.
v. 27. And 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.
v. 28. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and one thousand and five hundred.
v. 29. Then the tribe of Naphtali; and the captain of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira, the son of Enan.
v. 30. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.
v. 31. All they that were numbered in the camp of Dan, v. 32. These are those which were numbered of the children of Israel by the house of their fathers; all those that were numbered of the camps, the sections of the large camp, v. 33. But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel; as the Lord commanded Moses.
v. 34. And 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.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
EXPOSITION
THE ENCAMPING OF THE TRIBES (Num 2:1-34).
Num 2:1
The Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron. Probably when they had finished the census, and brought the results into the tabernacle.
Num 2:2
Shall pitch by his own standard. We are not told how they had pitched hitherto; the tribal and family order now enforced was the natural order, but in the absence of precise directions would sometimes be departed from. With the ensign. Rather, “ensigns” (othoth in the plural). Each tribe, it would seem (see Num 2:31), had its standard (degel), and each family in the tribe its ensign (oth). Far off. Rather, “over against,” i.e; facing the tabernacle, with a certain space between.
Num 2:3
On the east. The van, the post of honour. The general direction indeed of their march was northwards, not eastwards; but nothing can obliterate the natural pre-eminence given to the east by the sunrise, the scattering of light upon the earth, the daily symbol of the day-spring from on high. The standard of the camp of Judah. Judah led the way not because he was the greatest in number, for the order of the tribes was not determined by this consideration, but because of his place in prophecy, and as the ancestor of the Messiah (Gen 49:10). According to Aben Ezra and other Jewish expositors, the device upon the standard of Judah was a young lion, and this agrees with Rev 5:5. The same authorities assign to Reuben a man, to Ephraim an ox (cf. Deu 33:17), to Dan an eagle. If it were so, we should find in these banners the origin of the forms of the living creatures in the visions of Ezekiel and St. John (Eze 1:26; Eze 10:1; Rev 4:4-6), unless, indeed, the devices on the standards were themselves taken from the symbolic forms of the cherubim in the tabernacle, and these in their turn borrowed from the religious art of Egypt. But the tradition of the Jews is too fluctuating to carry any weight. The Targum of Palestine assigns to Judea the lion, but to Reuben a stag, to Ephraim a young man, and to Dan a basilisk serpent.
Num 2:5
Next unto him. Whether the leading tribe occupied the center or one extreme of its own side of the encampment is a matter of mere speculation.
Num 2:9
These shall first set forth. No order to set forth had been given, but the necessity of doing so was understood, and is here anticipated, as in Num 1:51.
Num 2:14
Reuel. Probably an error of transcription for Deuel, which actually appears here in many MSS. The Septuagint, however, has Raguel (see Num 1:14; Num 7:42, etc.). The error is utterly unimportant, except as proving the possibility of errors in the sacred text.
Num 2:17
Then the tabernacle shall set forward. Thus it was provided that, whether at rest or on the march, the Divine habitation should be exactly in the midst of Israel.
Num 2:24
All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim. All the descendants of Rachel, forming at this time the smallest of the four divisions, although destined to become very numerous. Their association in the camp was continued in the promised land, for the greater part of their territory was coterminous. Subsequently, however, the great division of the kingdom separated Benjamin for ever from his brethren. In the third rank. Immediately behind the tabernacle. This position is clearly alluded to in Psa 80:1, Psa 80:2.
Num 2:25
The standard of Dan. In the light of its subsequent history, it is remarkable that this tribe should at this time have been so prominent and so honoured. Dan is, so to speak; the Judas among the twelve. In history he ends by melting away into the heathen among whom he intruded himself. In the sacred writings he ends by being omitted altogether; he has no part in the new Jerusalemperhaps on account of the idolatry connected with his name (see Jdg 18:1-31; Rev 7:1-17).
Num 2:34
So they pitched. The Targum of Palestine (which embodies the traditional learning of the Palestinian Jews of the 17th century) says that the camp covered a space of twelve square miles. Modern writers, starting from some measurements of the Roman camps given by Polybius, compute the necessary space at three or three and a half miles square. This would require the strictest discipline and economy of space, and makes no provision for cattle; but supposing that the women and children were closely packed, it might suffice. It is, however, evident that there would be very few places in the wilderness, if any, where more than three square miles of fairly level ground could be found. In the plains of Moab the desired room might perhaps have been found, but scarcely anywhere in the wilderness of Paran. We must conclude, therefore, that this order of encampment was an ideal order, beautiful indeed by reason of its faultless regularity and equality, but only to be attained in practice as circumstances should permit, more or less. Indeed, that the foursquare symmetry of the camp had an ideal meaning and significance more really, because more permanently, important than its actual realization at the time, is evident from its recurrence again and again in the Apocalyptic writings (see Eze 48:20, and especially Rev 21:16). It is impossible to help seeing that the description of the heavenly Zion is that of a city, but of a city modeled upon the pattern of the camp in the wilderness. Here is one of those cases in which the spiritual significance of an order is of such importance that it matters comparatively little whether it could be literally carried out or not.
HOMILETICS
Num 2:1-34
THE CAMP OF THE SAINTS
We have here, spiritually, the Church of God in its order and its beauty and its balanced proportion of parts; resting inwardly upon, and ranged outwardly around, the abiding presence of the Almighty, and thus prepared either to abide in harmony and safety, or to set forward without confusion and without fear. Consider, therefore, on a broad view of this chapter
I. THAT THE ONE AND ONLY CENTRE OF THE WHOLE CAMP, of all its symmetry and all its order, WAS THE TABERNACLE OF GOD. About this were arranged in the inner lines of encampment the priests and Levites, in the outer lines the rest of Israel; the tent of the Presence was, as it were, the jewel of priceless worth, of which the camps of Levi formed the inner case, the other camps the outer casket. Even so the whole Church of God, in its broadest extent, is centered upon and drawn up about the spiritual presence of God in Christ, according to that which is written: “I will dwell in them, and walk in them.” Whether for rest or for progress, for safety or success, all depends exclusively upon, all can be measured only with reference to, that Presence in the midst of her. She is herself, in the truest sense, the living shrine, the spiritual casket, which encloses and enfolds this Divine jewel. About this Presence”over against” it, full in view of it, looking straight towards it, albeit separated yet by an uncrossed intervalall the tribes of God are drawn up, all of them near, all equally near, save that those are nearest who are specially devoted to the waiting upon that Presence.
II. That as the glory and beauty of the encampment depended as to its internal symmetry upon the presence of God in the midst of it, so IT DEPENDED AS TO ITS OUTWARD PERFECTION UPON THE ORDERLY ARRANGEMENT AND HARMONY OF ITS PARTS, Every tribe and every family had its place, knew its place, kept its place, mutually supporting and supported by all the others. Even so God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, in all the Churches of the saints. Conflicting aims, rivalries, counter-workings, cannot be in the Divine ideal. Towards them that are without, in the face of the difficulties and hostilities of the Church’s earthly pilgrimage, an absolute discipline, a perfect oneness of purpose, a universal walking by the same rule and minding the same thing, is an essential part of the truth as it is in Jesus (Joh 17:21, Joh 17:22; 1Co 1:10; Php 2:2; Php 3:16).
III. That this perfect order and discipline was not attained by ignoring or effacing the natural divisions and distinctions of the people, and by making of each individual an isolated unit before God; but, on the contrary, BY RECOGNIZING AND UTILIZING HUMAN DIVISIONS. “Every man shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house.” Even so within the common life of the Church of Christ there is room and use for many strong and lasting divergencies of Christian character and cast of thought due to national or social or educational distinctions. Variety embraced m unity is the law of the Spirit. There is a true sense in which all Christian truth and virtue are the proper heritage of each Christian soul, which each ought to possess; but there is also a true sense in which the Christian virtues, and even the complemental truths of the Christian faith, are rather distributed among the various portions of the Church than equally spread over all, or perfectly combined in any one. If we would have a true conception of the full beauty and power of Christianity, we must embrace in one view all the ages of faith, we must have respect unto east and west and north and south alike. If our own sympathies are chiefly with one or other, there will be the more reason to give heed that we do not overlook the excellence most remote from our own. Dan and Simeon, whatever might be said or feared of them, had their place in the camp of God as well as Judah and Ephraim.
Consider, again, on a closer inspection of the camp
1. That it lay foursquare in twelve great divisions, with the tabernacle in the, center. And this arrangement is clearly of spiritual import, because it is carefully preserved in the prophetic visions of Ezekiel and St. John. The heavenly city, which is the camp of the saints, lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth (Rev 20:9; Rev 21:16). And this seems to denote the absolute and unbroken equality, and the equal development in every direction, of the heavenly state, wherein it contrasts so strongly with the strange inequality and the one-sided character of all earthly good. The Church should lie foursquare because she should show an equal front, and have attained a like extension in every direction, in whatsoever way regarded. And notice here that the superior perfection of the gospel is shown herein, that the holy city not only lieth as a perfect square, but standeth as a perfect cube,”the length and the breadth and the height of it are equal” (Rev 21:16),an impossibility bordering on the grotesque, in order to emphasize the entire absence of anything one-sided, unequal, or imperfect. Again, the holy city, like the camp of Israel, is laid out with careful respect unto the number twelve, because this is the full and perfect number of the tribes, and intimates that the Church is of all, and for all, who can in any wise be reckoned as the people of God.
2. That the foursquare arrangement of the camp was ideal and could only be approximately realized in the wilderness through the evil necessity of things: the camps could not be pitched across rugged mountains or precipitous ravines, such as constantly lay in their way. Even so the ideal picture of the Church drawn in the New Testament has never been adequately realized, nor perhaps can be, amidst the confusions and contradictions of time. Her harmony and symmetry are grievously marred for want of room, and through the impracticable nature of men and circumstances. Nevertheless, the Divine ideal lives before her eyes and within her heart, and it is the unchanging hope of every faithful soul to behold it realized, sooner or later, in the good providence of God. In the mean time, when outward regularity was impossible, the one thing for each tribe to do was to pitch as near to the tabernacle, on its own side, as possible. Even so the practical wisdom and duty of every Church is to abide as near to God as it can according to the truth and order it has received; the nearer to God, the closer to one another.
3. That, among the tribes, Judah held the van, and his standard led the way, on which was borne aloft “the lion of the tribe of Judah.” Even so Christconcerning whom “it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda” (Heb 7:14)must always go before us in the way, and all the hosts of light must follow after him.
4. That Dan at this time was very large in numbers, and held an honourable place, and was a standard-bearer; yet afterwards he dwindled, and left the place given him by Providence, and sought another for himself, and fell into idolatry, and was struck out at last from the list of the Israel of God. Even so it happens that some particular Church or some individual at one time shall stand high, and be a leader, and hold a place of command, yet afterwards shall swerve from the right way, and fall into some idolatry, and be cast out as evil at the last. But it is not necessary to seek to discover wickedness in the first estate because it is in the last; as in Dan it is not possible to find any cause of wrath while he walked with the others in the wilderness; and even Judas must have been sincere at first, and was not discerned from the other eleven.
5. That at this time the children of Leah were all together, and that this union was apparently made sure for ever by their dwelling side by side in Canaan. Yet when the great division came, Ephraim and Manasseh went one way, Benjamin the other. Even so it often happens that those who have grown up together as brethren in the common enjoyment of spiritual blessings and practice of religious duties, are thereafter widely separated by some great sifting, and take opposite sides on some fundamental question.
HOMILIES BY W. BINNIE
Num 2:1-34
THE MASTER AT SINAI
The children of Israel in the wilderness were a divinely-framed figure or parable of the Church of Christ. Devout readers of the story of the long march from Egypt to Canaan have always been haunted with such an irrepressible feeling of this figurative and spiritual intention, that traces of it are apparent in the familiar speech of all the Christian nations. Christians everywhere speak of redemption from bondage, the wilderness of this world, the wilderness journey, the heavenly manna, the “Rock of ages cleft for me,” the land of promise, Pisgah views of the better land, the dark Jordan, the promised inheritance. The muster at Sinai is a chapter in the long parable; a chapter as replete as any with instruction regarding the Church of God.
I. THE CHURCH IS AN ARMY. The enumeration at Sinai was not an ordinary census. It took note only of such as were fit to bear arms. These opening chapters of Numbers are a muster-roll. The Church in this world is the Church militant. Christ is a Man of war (Psa 45:3-5). Every true follower of Christ is called to be a soldier, and to fight a good fight. There is no place in Christ’s host either for neutrals or non-combatants (Mat 12:30).
II. THE CHURCH IS AN ARMY ON THE MARCH.
1. Not settled in permanent quarters. The wilderness was not a place to build cities in or to plant vineyards. As little is the world a continuing city to Christ’s saints. Compare “this tabernacle,” 2Co 5:1; 2Pe 1:14. We are passing travelers here.
2. Marching to an appointed place. In some sense all menbelievers and unbelievers alikeare on the march. Compare the Anglo-Saxon prince’s comparison of human life to the flight of the bird out of the dark night, through the lighted hall, and out by the opposite door into the darkness again. God’s people are not only passers-by, but “strangers” here, who have in view a country beyond. Their back is toward Egypt, their face toward Canaan, and they are on the move from the one to the other.
“We nightly pitch our moving tent
A day’s march nearer home.”
III. THE CHURCH IS AN ARMY WITH BANNERS. Not a mob, but a marshaled host.
Observe the order prescribed in this chapter for the encampment and for the march. This idea of the Church has often been abused to the support of ecclesiastical systems for which there is no warrant in the New Testament. The sort of organized unity proper to the Hebrew Church cannot be transferred to the Church Catholic. Still the idea is true and valuable. God is a God of order, and not of confusion. We believe in the communion of saints. Christians are not to fight every one for his own hand, or march every one by himself. It is a good and pleasant thing for brethren to come together and keep together.
IV. THE CHURCH IS AN ARMY OF WHICH GOD KEEPS A PERFECT ROLL. A good general would like to know, and Christ does know, every one of his men by name, and they are written in his book. When a soul is born againborn in Zionthe Lord registers the fact (Psa 87:6); and lye continually remembers the person’s name. “I am poor and needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me.”
V. THE CHURCH IS AN ARMY WHICH HAS THE LORD FOR ITS EVER–PRESENT LEADER AND COMMANDER. The ark of the covenant led the van on the march, and rested in the midst of the congregation when it encamped. “Go ye into all the world; and, lo, I am with you alway.”B.
HOMILIES BY E.S. PROUT
Num 2:1, Num 2:2
GOD’S TABERNACLE IN THE MIDST OF ISRAEL’S TENTS
I. AS THE SOURCE OF ORDER. Israel formed an armed encampment, not a mob. The place of each tribe was assigned by God, and thus was not a matter of caprice or partiality on the part of Moses (Num 2:34). They were grouped according to their tribes and families. A post in the rearguard was as honourable as one in the van, because a matter of Divine appointment. Yet all “afar off,” as a sign of the reverence due to their God. Apply this truth to the tribes, i.e; the visible Churches and denominations of the Israel of God. This may be illustrated from apostolic days, or from modern Church history. Each has a position, historical, geographical, social, assigned by the providence of God. Each tribe had some peculiarities (cf. Gen 49:1-33), as each section of the Church has. And as there were, no doubt, reasons for the position allotted to every family, so the God of “order” and “peace” (1Co 14:1-40) designed that every Church should fill its appointed place (“by its own standard,” etc.), and, as part of the militant host, stand in orderly relations to himself and to the brotherhood. The same truth extends to individuals, the bounds of their habitation and the sphere of their service having been fixed by God.
II. AS A CENTER OF ATTRACTION. The doors of the tents probably faced the tabernacle. It was a center of attraction
1. For guidance, through the high priest, and Moses, and the symbolic cloud (cf. Psa 25:4, Psa 25:5, Psa 25:9, Psa 25:15).
2. For pardon, through sacrifice. And God himself is the only hope of a sinful Church (Jer 14:7-9; 2Co 5:18, 2Co 5:19).
3. For purity, through the restraining and elevating influence of a holy God ever present in their midst (cf. Deu 23:14 with 2Co 6:16-7:1).
III. AS A PLEDGE OF SAFETY, both when encamped (Num 2:2) or on the march (Num 2:17). So “God is in the midst” “of the tabernacles of the Most High,” the homes of his people (cf. Deu 4:7, and Rom 8:31). He is in our midst as “a lion” to terrify our foes (Hos 11:10; see Act 5:17 42), as a fire to enlighten and to protect (Isa 4:5), as “a man of war” to fight for us (Isa 49:25, Isa 49:26; Num 23:21). This presence of God in our midst should inspire
(1) confidence (Deu 33:29),
(2) reverence (Psa 89:7),
(3) joy (Psa 118:15), and should prepare us for the fulfillment of the promise in Rev 21:3-7.P.
HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG
Num 2:1-34
THE DISCIPLINE OF GOD’S ARMY
As the first chapter discovers the size of God’s army, so the second discovers the discipline of it. Number is nothing without order and discipline. A handful of cavalry can scatter a mob. Discipline also prevents rivalries. If those about our Lord, in spite of all his teaching, asked, “Who shall be greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” then we may be sure there were many ambitious souls asking in the wilderness, “Who shall be greatest in Israel?” The discipline set before us in this chapter was particularly related to the tabernacle. In this connection the discipline may be regarded as intended to secure three things.
I. REVERENCE FOR THE SANCTUARY. They were to pitch the camp far off about the tabernacle. There was plenty of a superstitious and idolatrous spirit among the Israelites, but the reverence was wanting that comes from intelligent appreciation. But for a special injunction to the contrary, they would very likely have crowded round the tabernacle, as feeling nothing peculiar about the ark. This lesson of reverence had to be sharply taught again and again, e.g; to the Philistines and the men of Bethshemesh (1Sa 5:1-12 and 1Sa 6:1-21), and to Uzzah (2Sa 6:1-23). The fear of God is not only the beginning of wisdom, but also of security and spiritual conquests. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. The Israelites carried about with them something as awful as the mount that burned with fire. So in the Church of Christ there should be a deep habitual reverence for the Almighty. The death of Ananias and Sapphira is a lesson for all ages as to the danger of forgetting that God is strict to mark iniquity. Confidence is necessary, but in our boldest approaches there must be the deepest humility. If we waged our spiritual warfare with real reverence for the great Trinity above, there would be more success.
II. DEFENSE OF THE SANCTUARY. It was in the midst, alike in resting and in marching. Travelers in savage countries circle themselves with fire at night, to keep off the wild beasts. So the circling tribes were to be a defense to the tabernacle. The company of Judah marched in front, and Dan brought up the rear. Judah went from honour to honour among the tribes, until the honour culminated in the inn at Bethlehem. Reuben, though the eldest, was not put first. “Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel.” He could do something, leaning on Judah; not last, yet not competent to be first. But exactly all the reasons why the tribes were arranged thus, and not otherwise, we cannot tell. Jehovah had the sovereign disposal of the matter; not therefore arbitrary, or without cause. A commander does not give reasons for his strategy, though some of them may be afterwards discoverable. God has given his people to defend the sanctuary still, to contend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the saints; against the paganism of the old world, and all sorts of corruption in Christendom itself; against the pride of science transgressing its borders. We have to fight for an open Bible, free to every one caring to read it; a full Bible, its truths not minimized or attenuated to suit the fancies of men; a pure Bible, interpreted in its own light, and not confused with the distortions of later traditions. The Scriptures are our tabernacle, and we must defend them as something solemnly put in our charge.
III. PROTECTION FROM THE SANCTUARY. That which we defend protects us. Peter, before the Council, asserted and acted his right to preach the gospel. “We must obey God rather than men.” Defending what was committed to his charge, he also was defended when God delivered him from Herod’s prison. The unfaithful are the insecure. When we are searching the Bible to defend it against the attacks of its enemies, we are multiplying comforts and defenses for our own souls. How many looking for arguments have also found balm and security! The Lord would have Israel to understand that it was not because they were 600,000, but because he was their Leader, they were strong. Let our protection come from God. Protections of human device are like the experiments in modern naval construction. A defense may be announced perfect, but some new weapon will make it worthless. The shield of faith alone will quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one, Compare 1Co 14:1-40 with this chapter, as showing the need both for order and discipline.Y.
Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary
The Order for the Camp and for the March
Num 2:1-34
1And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 1 2Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their 2fathers house: 3far off about the 4tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch.
53And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch 6throughout their armies: and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be 7captain of the children of Judah. 4And his host, and those that were 8numbered 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 fcaptain of the children of Issachar. 6And his host, and those that were xnumbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred. 7Then the tribe of Zebulun: and Eliab the son of Helon shall be fcaptain of the children of Zebulun. 8And his host, and those that were xnumbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred. 9All that were xnumbered 9in the camp of Judah were a hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, ethroughout their armies: these shall first set forth.
10On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben eaccording to their armies: and the fcaptain of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur. 11And his host, and those that were xnumbered thereof, were forty and six 12thousand and five hundred. And those 10which pitch by him shall be the tribe of Simeon: and the fcaptain of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 13And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred. 1114Then the tribe of Gad: and the fcaptain of the sons of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of 12Reuel. 15And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty. 16All that were xnumbered in the camp of Reuben were a hundred thousand and fifty and one thousand and four hundred and fifty, ethroughout their armies: and they shall set forth 13in the second rank.
17mThen the ctabernacle of the congregation shall set forward 14with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the 15camp: 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 eaccording to their armies: and the fcaptain of the sons of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud. 19And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were forty thousand 20and five hundred. And 16by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh: and the fcaptain of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. 21And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred. m22Then the tribe of Benjamin: and the fcaptain of the sons of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni. 23And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred. 24All that were xnumbered of the camp of Ephraim were a hundred thousand and eight thousand and a hundred, ethroughout their armies: and they shall 17go forward in the third rank.
25The standard of the camp of Dan shall be on the north side eby their armies: and the fcaptain of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. 26And his host, and those that were xnumbered of them, were threescore and two thousand 27and seven hundred. And those hthat encamp by him shall be the tribe of Asher: and the fcaptain 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.
m29Then the tribe of Naphtali: and the fcaptain 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 xnumbered in the camp of Dan were a hundred thousand and fifty and seven thousand and six hundred: they shall go hindmost 18with their standards.
32These are those which were xnumbered of the children of Israel by bthe house of their fathers: all those that were xnumbered of the camps ethroughout their hosts were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty. 33But the Levites were not xnumbered 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 bthe house of their fathers.
TEXTUAL AND GRAMMATICAL
[Num 2:2. . The A. V. gives the false rendering, far off, suggested, perhaps, by Jos 3:4, but corrects it in the marg reading. It has its common meaning here of confronting, thus used in a hostile sense, Jos 5:13. The double term means fronting and surrounding. Thus all faced the common centre. The notion of distance is unexpressed, yet necessarily suggested by the magnitude of the bodies to be located. Comp. Psa 38:12 (11), where the notion of distance is suggested by the stroke of adversity, though not expressed by , and then, in the following clause, is expressed by .
Num 2:3. . Comp. Num 34:15; Jos 19:12; Exo 37:13. The apparent redundancy seems to be for the purpose of expressing direction and excluding the notion of distance: comp. Eze 45:17. and are used for the remote east.
Num 2:5. . This singular orthography is in order to conform to the current pronunciation of the name, which dropped the second s. All authorities invariably give the consonants as here. See Fuerst and Smiths Bib. Dict. sub. voc.
Num 2:18. westward, or more exactly seaward. This is one of the expressions that opponents to the genuineness of the Pentateuch have seized on, alleging that it betrays a writer actually in Palestine. But in fact it only shows that the writer used a language whose idiom was indigenous to the region east of the Mediterranean sea. And this and similar traits are corroborative proof that the people had their ancestry and language from the East. See Macdonald, Introd. to Pentateuch, I. 268.Tr.]
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Num 2:1 sqq. (a) The order of encampment.The twelve Tribes are divided into four corps, which encamp about the centre of the Levitical sanctuary, and that in the order of East, South, West, and North. The four leading tribes are Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, and Dan. To Judah, the first leader-tribe, with its camp in the East, are joined Issachar and Zebulun, who also were song of Leah; a very strong chief force at the Tan of the army. To the south was the camp of Reuben in conjunction with the tribes of Simeon and Gad. It should be noted in this connection, that the tribe of Simeon at this time numbered many more warriors than Reuben. On the west Ephraim was encamped, at the head of Manasseh and Benjamin. Here then all the children of Rachel are united. To the north Asher and Naphtali are encamped under the leadership of the tribe of Dan. Here with Dan the adopted son of Rachel, are associated his brother Naphtali and his half-brother Asher.
(b) The order of march.This was determined by the order of encampment. In front of the camp of the Levites and of the tabernacle marched six tribes, first the corps of Judah, next the corps of Reuben. The march was covered by the six tribes in the divisions of Ephraim and Dan. [See below.Tr.]
, standard, banner, flag, denotes the larger military ensign which each of the corps composed of three tribes had, and which at the same time was the banner of that tribe that headed the division; then, in a more extended signification, the army as united under one banner, similar to , vexillum, and the old German Fhnlein, etc. According to rabbinical tradition, the banner of Judah bore the image of a lion; that of Reuben the picture of a man or of a human head; that of Ephraim the image of an ox; that of Dan the emblem of an eagle; so that on these four standards the four creatures which are united in the cherubic figures given by Ezekiel, are said to have been represented (Keil, p. 200). A more minute rabbinical account of the colors of the flags, according to Jerome Prado, is given in a note by Keil, p. 200 [Eng. Tr., Vol. I. 17]. Judah is therefore the champion of his brethren according to Gen 49:10. Yet we must understand the position of Ephraim in covering the march, not as subordinate, but as a sort of parallel one. The name Reuel, Num 2:14, is the error of a copyist for Deuel As they encamp so shall they set forward, Num 2:17; therefore, with Levi in the midst of the tribes, every man on his own side by their standards, i. e., upon the side where he was encamped; not as it is generally translated: each at his place, since , hand, does indeed signify latus, side, but not place (Keil).
It would certainly have been a very difficult and frequently impracticable order of march, if the three divisions, Reuben on the one side, Dan on the other, and Levi with the Tabernacle in the middle, had been compelled to march abreast. Moreover it says very emphatically that Judah and Reuben precede the Tabernacle (Num 2:17)consequently the like would obtain as to the marching order of the succeeding corps, Ephraim and Dan. As to the more common meaning of see Genesis.
Besides the military camp we must distinguish two particular campsthe camp of the pure congregation, composed of women and children, and the encampment of the levitically unclean on the outside of the camp. The children of the Levites appear to have been in the camp from their youth up; probably also in time of peace the families dwelt with their defenders. A distinction between the warriors and the people is indicated in Num 20:1.
[It appears from Num 10:17, that on the march the position of the Tabernacle and the attendant Gershonites and Merarites was immediately after the division of three tribes headed by Judah. Then followed Reubens division. After that, and in the middle of the line, the Kohathites with the sacred things. Then came the division under Ephraim, followed by that of Dan, which brought up the rear. The only reason assigned for the position of Tent of Meeting next after Judahs division, is that it might be set up by the time the sacred things that were to be put into it (Num 10:21) should arrive at camp.
The foregoing plan represents the arrangement of the encampment as gathered from chaps. 2, 3. Such is the ideal disposition. The actual disposition of the multitudes, even when order was maintained, must often have presented only an imperfect approach to it, owing to topographical irregularities.Tr.]
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
[See under Numbers 1.
The ideal form of the encampment was reproduced in the square court with which the Temple was eventually surrounded, and in the vision of the heavenly city as seen by Eze 48:20; and by St. John, Rev 21:16; comp. Rev 20:9. Thus the camp of Gods earthly people was divinely ordered, so as to set forth the completeness of His Church; and to illustrate by its whole arrangement, which was determined by the Tabernacle in the centre, both the dependence of all on God, and the access which all enjoyed to God. The Bible Comm. in loc.
In the plains of Moab, and in the immediate prospect of conquering the promised land, the ideal plan of the encampment might be conformed to. Perhaps such was the sight that greeted Balaams eyes and made him exclaim: How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, Num 24:5. Thus the gospel-church, called the camp of saints, 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. M. Henry.
The comments of M. Henry on this chapter are in his best vein of happy suggestion. The following thoughts are reproduced from him.
Those of a tribe were to pitch together. Note, it is the will of God that mutual love and affection, converse and communion should be kept up among relations. The bonds of nature should be improved for the strengthening of the bonds of Christian communion.
Every one must know his place and keep it. Note, it is God that appoints us the bounds of our habitation, and to Him we must refer ourselves. God is the God of order and not of confusion. The standards made this mighty army seem more beautiful to its friends, and more formidable to its enemies. The Church of Christ is said to be terrible as an army with banners, Son 6:10.
The Tabernacle and sacred things were in the middle of the camp and of the line of march. God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved, Psa 46:5. Their camp had reason to be hearty when thus they had God in the heart of them. Note, if God undertake the protection of our comforts, we ought in our plans to undertake the protection of His institutions, and stand up in the defence of His honor, and interest and ministers.
Every tribe had a captain, a prince, or commander-in-chief, whom God Himself had nominated, the same that had been appointed to number them (Num 1:5). Our being all the children of one Adam is so far from justifying the levellers and taking away the distinction of place and honor, that even among the children of the same Abraham, the same Jacob, the same Judah, God Himself appointed that one should be captain of all the rest. There are powers ordained of God, and those to whom honor and fear are due, and must be paid.
Some observe the significancy of the names of these princes, at least in general, and how much God was in the thoughts of those that gave them their names, for most of them have El, God, at one end or other of their names. (See above, Introd., 6). By which it appears that the Israelites in Egypt did not quite forget the name of their God, but when they wanted other memorials, preserved the rememblance of it in the names of their children, and therefore comforted themselves in their affliction.
Nahshon is reckoned among the ancestors of Christ (Mat 1:4). So that when he went before them, Christ Himself went before them in effect, as their Leader.Tr.]
HOMILETICAL HINTS
The regulation of the host. The camp of Gods army. The sacredness of number. The sanctifying and the distribution of the number. Arithmetic and geometry, and book-keeping and mensuration brought into the service of the Holy One. The tribes of the army of God, and their significance for the organization of the church, of the state, especially with reference to its means of defence. The standards. The significance of the Tabernacle in the midst of the camp. Jehovah as King and Commander-in-Chief in the midst of His warriors. So Christ is the Captain of salvation. The New Testament army of God: the Apostolic spirit in twelvefold gifts and forms. The Church of God in relation to war in the world. The war of light (of self-defence for right of conscience and freedom) and the war of darkness.
Footnotes:
[1]The children of Israel shall pitch every man by his, etc.
[2]their fathers-houses.
[3]Heb. over against.
[4]Tent of meeting.
[5]And those that camp eastward, toward the rising, etc.
[6]according to their hosts.
[7]prince.
[8]mustered.
[9]of.
[10]that do pitch next unto.
[11]And.
[12]Deuel.
[13]second.
[14]comma, omit with.
[15]camps.
[16]next to.
[17]set forth third.
[18]by.
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange
CONTENTS
As the former Chapter contained an account of the numbering of Israel; so in this, here is the divine appointment for the arranging the people into distinct and separate battalions, and tribes.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Even in this appointment, where we might least expect to find the Lord Jesus, methinks among the standards of Israel, I discern him who is said to be set up as the Lord’s standard to the people. Isa 49:22 . And is not Jesus that very standard, which the Holy Ghost, it is said, shall lift up, when the enemy cometh in like a flood? Isa 59:19 . But, Reader! do not overlook in this place, that the Israelites were to pitch the standard far off: while we, blessed be God, are now brought nigh by the blood of Christ. Oh! the happy, happy privilege of the gospel state! Eph 2:13 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Divine Appointments
Num 2
This chapter deals with the order of the tribes in their tents. Though at first we may seem to have no relation to this order, at last it may be perceived that we are in vital relations to it. Let us first set before the mind vividly the literal exactness of the case. The camp of Judah was to set forth first; the camp of Reuben was to set forth in the second rank; the camp of Ephraim was to go forward in the third rank; the camp of Dan was to go hindmost with their standards. Who arranged this order? The answer is in the first verse: “And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,… the camp of Judah… first;… the camp of Reuben… second;… the camp of Ephraim… third;… the camp of Dan… hindmost.” It was a military tone; there was nothing suggestive in its music; it was imperative, complete, final. Keep positiveness of speech quite vividly before the mind, even at the expense of some tediousness in words. Judah first, Reuben second, Ephraim third; these terms are arithmetical and may be accepted without murmuring; but the next term is more than arithmetical: the camp of Dan “hindmost.” That seems to be a word of stigma and of inferiority and of rebuke. Had the numbers been, first, second, third, fourth, the arithmetic would have been complete; but to be hindmost is to be further behind than to be merely fourth; it is to have the position marked so broadly as almost to amount to a brand of tribal degradation. All this was to be done; it never could have been done but by divine appointment. A third party may arrange a controversy, or a position as between two men; but come to handle hundreds of thousands of men nations, solar systems, constellations innumerable, and we can have no compromising, temporising, giving and taking on a small scale, so as to balance the pride of all parties; there must be sovereignty, fiat, the “let it be” out of which all smaller imperatives are struck, like sparks from an infinite flame.
Faith in the divine appointment could alone secure religious contentment under such circumstances. This is as necessary to-day, in view of the distribution of men, with their various gifts and their endlessly varied vocations. What is that mystic, subtle, nameless power that keeps society together, with its diversities, antagonisms, and contradictions? What is the astronomical force that so whirls society around an invisible centre as to sink the mountains into plains and lift up the valleys to a common level? Have we not to-day precisely this order in society intellectually, Judah first, Reuben second, Ephraim third, Dan hindmost? This is not ancient history: it is the military rule and law of the passing time. Men cannot alter it. Ambition attempts to change relations and positions, and ambition dies in the abortive effort. The Lord will have his way in the whirlwind and in the fire and the storm. To deny it is to waste words; to contend against it is “to kick against the pricks”; to say “We will not have this Man to reign over us,” is to utter an empty gasconade a brag that bursts with its own swelling. We are standing in the region of law; we are bounded on every side. Every man has his gift, into the use of which the King will inquire when he comes back from the far country. How is it that men, being first, second, third, and hindmost in the matter of circumstances, are still knit together by a mysterious bond? The rich man cannot do without the poor man; the palace has its kitchen; the throne has its retinue of attendants, and if one be absent the harmony of the service is impaired. We, being many members, are one body; the hand cannot say to the foot “I have no need of thee”; nor can the ear say to the eye, nor the eye to the ear “I have no need of thee.” Yet some parts are honourable, and some dishonourable; some comely, some uncomely. How is this? Marvellous if society made itself! requiring quite a miraculous infidel to believe that it invented its own harmony. “The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice.”
Order is but another word for purpose, or another word for mind. This mechanism was not self-invented or self-regulated; behind this military table of position and movement is the God of the whole universe. He is behind everything. It requires the whole Trinity to sustain the tiny insect that trembles out its little life in the dying sunbeam; even that frail heart does not throb by having some small portion of the divine energy detached to attend to its affairs. Were there but one man in all the universe, he could only subsist by the omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence of the Triune God. The Cross was not built for millions, but for the sinner, though he be the solitary offender in creation. We see in everything that the amount of order which is represented suggests the extent and quality of the mind behind it. Acknowledging this in things earthly and human, why should we deny the doctrine in relation to things not local, not human, and not transient? Singular, if order means so much in little things, but means nothing in great affairs! A marvellous thing, we say, is a book. There are in an English book but some six-and-twenty letters; a most marvellous thing if some skilled printer, shaking the six-and-twenty letters out of his box, let them fall into the shape of “Paradise Lost”! Might such a miracle occur? The world is amazed by the majesty of the poem; the world devotes monumental brass and marble to bear to other ages the name of the poet who so arranged the letters. A most wonderful thing, then, if six-and-twenty letters cannot shape themselves into a poem, or be shaped by some magical toss of the mechanician’s hand, that man, woman, and child, of all grades, and classes, and varieties of tongue, gifts, genius, and all stars and systems and constellations, should have rolled themselves into position and kept together in their magnificence without any mind, reason, or purpose, being above, below, or around, to account for and interpret into higher meanings the massive consolidation! The more exquisite the mechanism, the more valuable the result of its working. What a mechanism is the world! How the earth rolls on in the midst of all its revolutions and burials and tragedies! The same world, yet not the same two moments together, having a permanent quantity centralised in the very heart of changing phenomena. The wise man looks for the permanent quantity; he is not a mere grubber amongst details and appearances and fleeting thoughts and complexions: he says, Under all this is something that abides. To find out the eternal quantity is the philosophy of history and the philosophy of religion. We may know much about details, and yet know nothing about the very thing which brings them into order and flushes them with the colour of moral purpose and meaning. Who knows most about the history of England: the man who has been in every market-town, who knows the market day of every borough, the name of every village, the departure and arrival of every train, the name of every mayor in every municipality; or the man who knows England by its conquests, its sovereigns, the philosophy of its legislation, the measure of its progress, its relation to other kingdoms, the general set and purpose of its civilisation, but who knows nothing of any market-town in the whole country? We assign the superiority at once. A country is not an affair of market-towns, and comings and goings of trains, and changes of local officers; it is a genius, a spirit, a purpose, and to find that is to find out the true history of the land. It is so with Providence, with the Almighty Ruler-ship that is above us and around us. We are affrighted by details, pained by cases of personal suffering, and are at a loss to reconcile individual anecdotes with the beneficence of a universal Providence; but we must look for the central and eternal quantity and that is plainly written in all history and in all enlightened consciousness: the sum of it was never so grandly expressed as by the Pauline eloquence “All things work together for good to them that love God” that are in the rhythm and majesty of the divine music. Let us not be traders in details, puzzle-makers amid the little occurrences of the parish, but students in the temple of wisdom, worshippers at the throne of light, recognising eternity amid the fluctuation and the tumult of time.
Dan was to go hindmost. The hindmost position has its advantages. It is a rule in the higher criticism that a critic, on looking at a picture, shall first look for its beauties. That rule we have not yet introduced into the Church; but that is the rule in all the higher life of civilisation. The critic, looking at the picture, first inquires into the beauties, the fascinations, the marks of ability, the signature of genius; and then reluctantly suggests the drawback or the point of inferiority, and submits it rather for consideration than for judgment. We ought, surely, to look so upon the picture of Providence, the map of human life, the marvellous academy of society. We ought oftentimes to pity the foremost men. The greater the statesman, the greater the responsibility he has to sustain; the greater the genius, the more poignant its occasional agonies; the more sensitive the nature, the more is every wound felt, the more is every concussion regarded with fear. The foremost soldiers will be in battle first; we who are hindmost may have only to shout the hosanna of victory. Judah is first, and may have first to fight; Dan is hindmost, and may take some pride in Judah’s victories. The pioneer traveller has the hardships to undergo; he was first in honour, but he was first in suffering. We travel on the road he made. This age is the hindmost in procession of time; is it therefore the inferior age? The nineteenth century comes after all the eighteen; but it therefore comes on the firmer ground, with the larger civilisation, with the ampler library, with the more extended resources; it comes with a thousand-handed ability because it is the hindmost of the days. Take this view of all circumstances, and life will become a joy where it has long been a pain; our very disqualifications in one direction may become qualifications in another. If you had been fit for more field work, you could not have read so much; if your health had been more robust, your spirit might have been coarser; through the feebleness or the restraint of the body you became acquainted with processes of chastening and limitation and refinement which have made you your noblest self. There is no lot that has not in it some point of light; if, indeed, we except men who have sinned away their day and are now in the wilderness of despair, still enough remains to justify the reassertion that in every human lot there are points of advantage. Let no man glory over another; God has set everyone in his place, and every man must accept the divine appointment. But this was Old Testament; we have supposedly outlived the venerable record. Is there anything to correspond with this order of the camps in the New Testament? Read 1Co 12:28-30 : “And God hath set some in the Church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?” This is the Old Testament translated into later language. So is this: “Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all… For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.” Paul, then, was but Moses evangelised; the God of both Testaments is the same. The great mischief is, that one man is so often expected to be all men. This is particularly so in the Church. Outside the Church we have some little tincture of common sense in these matters; but inside the Church we have another kind of sense. We thus declaim: The minister is an excellent visitor, but he is a very poor preacher. A marvellous thing it would have been, now, if the same man had been both a preacher and a visitor! Or we say: No doubt he is a very learned theologian, but he has no gift in the relation of anecdotes. A marvellous thing if he had been great in the theological metaphysics of the fathers, and profound in his knowledge of anecdotes that never transpired! Or: He is very solid, but not entertaining. Marvellous if he had been as solid as a Quarterly Review, and as great a liar as an evening newspaper! In the Old Testament and in the New Testament there was some regard to specialty of gift, to definiteness of position; having lost that regard we have lost power. You do not say, The clock is an excellent time-keeper, but no use at all as a musical instrument. You do not take up a trumpet and say, A finer instrument was never made to call men to feast or to battle, but it is utterly useless if you want it to tell you the time of day. Every man in his own place, in his sphere. The great question is not in what regiment we are, but rather, Are we in the army of Christ whether with Judah first, with Reuben second, with Ephraim third, or with Dan the hindmost tribe? To be in the army is the great consideration. There are no inferior positions in the Church; there are no inferior clergy. There may be valleys; but the valleys are in the Alps even the depressed places are on the high mountains; to be on those mountains At all is to be in an elevated position. We have the same regulation in the New Testament, as Paul has just proved. We need not have gone to Paul, for Paul was but an echo, not a voice; the Voice is Christ. The Son hath revealed the Father as a King who has gone into a far country, and before going divided to his servants, severally as he would, to one five talents, to another two, to another one, saying to each “Occupy till I come.” So the Book of Numbers is but an earlier edition of the book by which Christian conduct is regulated and Christian education is completed. So the Bible has many writers, but only one Author. The hands that shaped its letters are many; the Spirit that revealed its truth is One.
Note
The book of Numbers is rich in fragments of ancient poetry, some of them of great beauty, and all throwing interesting light on the character of the times in which they were composed. Such, for instance, is the blessing of the high-priest ( Num 6:24-26 ):
In Num 21 we have a passage cited from a book called “The Book of the Wars of Jehovah.” This was probably a collection of ballads and songs composed on different occasions by the watch-fires of the camp, and for the most part, though not perhaps exclusively, in commemoration of the victories of the Israelites over their enemies. The title shows us that these were written by men imbued with a deep sense of religion, and who were therefore foremost to acknowledge that not their own prowess, but Jehovah’s Right Hand had given them the victory when they went forth to battle. Hence it was called, not “The Book of the Wars of Israel,” but “The Book of the Wars of Jehovah.” Possibly this is the book referred to in Exo 17:14 , especially as we read ( Exo 5:16 ) that when Moses built the altar which he called Jehovah-Nissi (Jehovah is my banner), he exclaimed, “Jehovah will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” This expression may have given the name to the book.
Fuente: The People’s Bible by Joseph Parker
II
INTRODUCTION
Numbers 1-4
We now commence the introduction to the book of Numbers. The first thing is the name. In the Hebrew there are two names. One takes the first word and the other takes the first most important word. In the Septuagint the name is Arithmoi; in the Vulgate, Numeri, both meaning the same as our word Numbers. These names are derived from the numbering recorded in Num 1 and the second numbering thirty-eight years later in Num 26 ; the first, prior to the first start on the great march, and the second, at the second start.
Next is the period of time covered by the book of Numbers. We will notice the following points: Num 1:1 , “Second year, second month, first day.” One year and one month after leaving Rameses in Egypt, they leave Sinai. You have another date, viz.: The death of Aaron, Num 20:22 ; Num 33:38 . Aaron’s death is in the fortieth year, and fifth month, the first day, from the time they left Egypt and thirty-ninth year from the time they left Sinai.
Next, Deuteronomy I, which commences the fortieth year and the eleventh month, making exactly six months after Aaron’s death before Deuteronomy commences. If you add these periods together, they make thirty-eight years and nine months. It takes them a little over a year at Sinai and then nearly thirty-nine years to close up this book. Deuteronomy occupies not over a month, bringing us to the death of Moses forty years from the time they left Egypt. I will give you a brief outline and then a more extended outline of this book. The brief outline consists of only four points:
1. Preparation for the march, extending from Num 1:1-10:10 . The preparation will include not only the census and some legislation which follows it, but also some other things necessary to the start.
2. The march from Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, close to the border of the Holy Land Num 10:11-14 a brief period of time. They had only three stopping places of any length, recorded again in Num 33 . That chapter gives the entire itinerary, or order of the march, from the day they left Rameses in Egypt to the time they reached the Jordan River.
3. Period of aimless wandering, Num 15:19 , the longest part of the book of Moses as to time, including the wanderings and the legislation during that time. It covers more space than any other part.
4. From Kadesh-barnea to the camp opposite Jericho and the events on the plains of Moab Numbers 20-36. In this book are some of the most interesting incidents in the history of the Jewish people, some of the most thrilling themes for the preacher, new laws of a particular kind, especially concerning those about the red heifer, which have a deep significance in the New Testament. In this book you have an account of the sins committed by the people that excluded every grown man from entering the Promised Land with the exception of two, including the special sin of Moses and Aaron.
Now follows the more elaborate analysis:
Sec. I. Preparation for the great march (Numbers 1-4). In these chapters we have the first census, the order in which the tribes shall camp and march, the special numbering of the firstborn and the exchange of the firstborn males of all the people for the tribe of Levi, the special duties that the Levites are to perform and their order of march.
Sec. II. Some legislation (Numbers 5-6), divided into five parts:
(1) The exclusion of the unclean; (2) the law of recompense and of offerings; (3) the trial of jealousy, a strange and horrible thing (I imagine it would scare any woman to death to be put to that test) ; (4) the Nazarite vow; (5) the words that the priest shall use in his benediction, one of the most beautiful benedictions.
Sec. III. Further preparation for the march (Num 7:1-10:10 ), consisting of the following items: Offerings of the princes at the dedication, the voice in the sanctuary, the lamps lighted in the tabernacle, the consecration of the Levites, the second passover and the supplemental passover, the cloud on the tabernacle, and the silver trumpet for governing the march. So the preparation consists of two parts between which comes that special legislation, and so these three sections correspond to the first part of the short outline.
Sec. IV. (Which corresponds to the second in the short outline.) The march from Sinai to Kadesh-barnea, with the following incidents (Num 10:11-14:45 ): The start and the order of the march, the invitation to Hobab, the journey, sin and chastisement at Kibroth, the sedition of Miriam and Aaron and the sending of the spies and the rejection of the people. That ends that probation. They had violated the covenant. They have to make a new start. In answer to the prayer of Moses God gives them another probation, on the condition that every grown man that left Egypt shall perish and that they must wander until that generation has died. The period of that wandering is divided into the three following sections:
Sec. V. Num 15 only: Legislation on offerings, firstfruits, trespass offering, the presumptuous sin, with the incident of the sabbath breaker and the law of fringes.
Sec. VI. Numbers 16-17. An account of the rebellion of Korah and his confederates against the Aaronic priesthood, and the memorial that follows.
Sec. VII. Further legislation, charge and emoluments of priest, the law of the red heifer and the pollution of death Numbers 18-19). All of the other sections will come in the fourth item of the short outline.
Sec. VIII. This includes the water of Menbah, the brazen serpent, the last marches and the first victories.
Sec. IX. Numbers 22-24. The coming of Balaam and the prophecies of Balaam.
Sec. X. Gives an account of the events that took place on the plains of Moab on the banks of the Jordan (Numbers 25-27). Those events were as follows. The second census of Israel, with a view to allotment of land, the petition of Zelophehad’s daughters and finally the supersession of Moses by Joshua.
Sec. XI. Further legislation. The annual routine of sacrifices Numbers 28-29. The thirtieth chapter tells us about vows like that last section of Leviticus giving us the exception of vows made by women.
Sec. XII. Further events in the plains of Moab, (Numbers 31-32) extirpation of Midian and the settlement of the tribes east of the Jordan.
Sec. XIII. Num 33:1-49 . The great itinerary, showing every stopping place of any length from the time they left Egypt to the river Jordan a remarkable historical document.
Sec. XIV. Num 33:50 , to the end of the book, Final instruction with a view to the conquest of Canaan, as follows: Clearance of the Holy Land, boundaries of the Holy Land, allotment of the Holy Land, reservation of cities for the Levites, cities of refuge and the law of homicides, law of the marriage of heiresses, which relates back to Zeiophehad’s daughters.
Just here you need to read Trumbull’s Kadesh-Barnea. The central place of the book of Numbers is Kadesh-bamea. This is the great camping place they reached after they left Sinai and just before they made their attempt to enter the Holy Land. There occurred the sin of the people, the rejection of the report of the spies, the condemnation to wander thirty eight years, revolving around Kadesh-barnea. Hence explorers have tried harder to locate Kadesh-barnea than any other one place except Sinai.
The census discussed in the first chapter is dated the second year, second month and first day, after they left Egypt. The second census was with reference to the allotment, for they expected in a few days to get to the Holy Land. Of course when they forfeited their right and all those men died of the first census, they had to take a new census, and that is why the name of the book is plural. The census applies to eleven of the tribes, Levi not included, and takes account of the males from twenty years upwards who are able to go to war. That census amounted to 603,550. They took the census of Levi separately and took it twice. First, every male in the tribe of Levi, from one month old up, amounted to 22,000, which was less than any other tribe had from twenty years old up, showing that the tribe of Levi was by all odds the smallest of the tribes. When they took the next census of Levi, they took it of the men from thirty to fifty, to get the men capable of service around the sanctuary. That census amounted to 8,580 males. It seems to me that if there were 8,580 from thirty to fifty, there ought to have been more than 22,000 from one month up.
The next item is the order of camp. The enclosure around the tabernacle faced the east. The whole tribe of Levi, including Moses and Aaron, would occupy the space around the tabernacle just outside of the enclosure. Then on the east of them were Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Judah carrying the banner and leading off. On the west, the tribes descended from Rachel: Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh, Ephraim carrying the banner. The other six tribes occupied the north and south sides. Whenever the pillar of cloud would stop, the Levites would advance and set up the tabernacle just beneath it. I got my first ideas of real organization from the book of Numbers. Moses was a great general, tactician, and strategist. He had commanded the armies of Egypt and knew that one could not move three millions of people without interminable confusion if there was not organization to the smallest detail. All of these details are set forth in the second chapter so far as the tribes are concerned.
The only other item apart from the numbering of the Levites, which I have already given you, is the special direction to number them so that an exchange could be made. All the males of the firstborn belonged to God. When they took the list of all the firstborn of the eleven tribes, they amounted to 22,273, whereas the males from one month old up in Levi, amounted to 22,000. To make the exchange complete, so as to take the tribe of Levi over instead of the firstborn of all the tribes, a compensation had to be paid for the surplus. Levi lacked 273 of coming up to the measure. That compensation was paid to the children of Levi, five shekels for each one of the 273. That covers the third and fourth chapters.
QUESTIONS
1. Give origin of the name “Numbers.”
2. What period of time is covered by the book? (Work out answer from dates given in book.)
3. Give a brief outline of the book.
4. Give a more elaborate analysis of the book.
5. What is the central place of the book of Numbers, and why locate it.
6. Why is the name of the book plural?
7. Why more than one census?
8. Give result of the first census of the twelve secular tribes, comparing it with the second census many years later.
9. Why a separate census of Levi?
10. Why double census of Levi, first, from one month old upward, and second, from thirty years old to fifty?
11. How was the exchange of the firstborn males of Israel for the tribe of Levi made?
12. Describe the order of the entire encampment. (See your Atlas.)
13. What were the duties of the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites, respectively?
Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible
Num 2:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
Ver. 1. And the Lord spake. ] He being the Lord of these hosts of Israel, Exo 12:41 gives order for the marshalling of them in such good array, and all comely equipage, as made them as a city that is compact together; both “beautiful as the moon, and terrible as an army with banners.” Psa 122:3 Son 6:10 This Balaam beheld with admiration. Num 24:5-6
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the LORD [Hebrew. Jehovah.
spake. See note on Num 1:1.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Chapter 2
Now as we get into chapter two, we find God arranges the camp of Israel around the tabernacle. Verse two.
Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with [the sign of their father’s house or] the ensign of their father’s house: far off about the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch ( Num 2:2 ).
So it is interesting, as we get a picture in our minds of the great company of people that were moving through the wilderness. I don’t know if there is any migration in history that actually parallels this particular migration as far as the length of time in which the migration took place and the number of people that were migrating.
But to get the picture of the camp of Israel, first of all, the center of the entire camp was the tabernacle: the place of meeting. And the cloud rested on the tabernacle during the day and the pillar of fire rested on the tabernacle at night. It is very significant that the tabernacle set right in the center of the camp of Israel, because God was desiring to be at the center of the nation, the center of the hearts of these people. So that every man in Israel, when he would get up in the morning and walk out of the tent door looking to the center of the camp, he would see the cloud there resting upon the tabernacle and he was reminded of the centrality of God among these people.
Oh how important it is that God is the centrality of a nation. When a nation is centered around God, that nation is destined for greatness. As long there is that consciousness of God at the center of a people there is always that potential for greatness. It is when people lose the centrality of the concepts of God and God is no longer the center of their life, God is no longer the center of the national life, then that nation is in decline. It is tragic indeed that where once God was the center of our nation and our nation was really founded upon God and our founding fathers sought to bring to these people a consciousness and awareness of God and the need of God in our national life. Printing on our coins “In God We Trust,” which is today become almost a hypocrisy because we’ve come to trust in the coins, in the money, rather than in God.
But as you look at the Constitution and as you look at the Bill of Rights and as you listen to the words of the songs of the National Anthem and all, we see how that they put God into the whole warf and woof of the national life of America. And as long as we had that centrality of God, our nation became strong.
In the first public schools in the United States the Bible was the textbook. They taught the children how to read out of the Bible, they taught them the ABC’s out of the Bible. It was the first textbook and in many schools the only textbook. And now our courts have ruled that it is illegal to use the Bible in public schools except to be taught in a class of literature and any expressed faith or belief is illegal. How tragic. Where our nation was really founded with God at the center, we have moved so far. And it is no wonder that we see the national decline that we see today in proportion to our endeavor to put God out of the national life of America. In that same proportion that God is being pushed out, in that same proportion we see our nation in a decline.
Children of Israel had the tabernacle right in the center and the whole camp was encamped about the tabernacle. It was the center of their national existence. It was the center of their national life. What a beautiful place.
So, in chapter two we find out that they placed the tribes all around the tabernacle beginning, first of all, with the tribe of Judah and Issachar and Zebulun. Now these tribes had for their ensign a lion, and they were encamped upon the east side of the tabernacle and the color was green. The color of the flag of these tribes on the east side was green The total of the camp of Judah, Issachar and Zebulun was a hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred in their army. Now these were to set forth first.
Then on the south side of the tabernacle was to be the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, and Gad. The ensign of this tribe had the face of a man. The distinguishing color of the flag was red and they were camped upon the south side of the tabernacle, a total of a hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and fifty in their armies.
On the west side of the tabernacle were the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin. Their ensign had on it the head of a calf and the color of the flag was golden. The total number of the camp of Ephraim was a hundred and eight thousand, one hundred.
Then on the north side, the tribe of Dan and Asher and Naphtali. Their ensign was an eagle. The flag was red and white and the total number of the tribe of Dan was a hundred and fifty-seven thousand, six hundred.
Now with these ensigns, we have first of all a lion, the face of a man and then we have the head of a calf and an eagle. What does that bring to mind? As we read the description of the cherubim in Ezekiel and in Revelation, we realize that these were actually the faces that are on the face of the cherubims. The four faces of the cherubim actually represented the ensigns of the camp of Israel. So you have the concept of the angels of the Lord encamping around about his people. God in the center, the tabernacle, the place of meeting God but encamped around the people of God the ensigns, which are reminding of the cherubim how the angel of the Lord is encamped around about the righteous. And so again, even in the banners and in the ensigns was the reminder of the spiritual nature of these people.
“
Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary
This host of God was not merely a mob or an aggregation of individuals.
It must be a disciplined and ordered company, and here we find the instructions concerning the relative positions to be occupied by the tribes, both in times of encampment and when on the march. It would be an interesting and helpful thing for the reader of this chapter to draw a diagram of the encampment as described.
At the center of everything was the Tabernacle, the very dwelling place of God, as to His manifestation. Around this the Levites were encamped on two sides and at the back. Moses and the priests were to occupy the fourth side close to the courts of worship on the east, confronting the entrance. Outside the enclosure and beyond this encampment of priests and Levites, the tribes of the nation took up their positions. Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun encamped on the east, confronting the entrance to the courts. Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin were on the west; Reuben, Simeon, and Gad on the south; with Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, on the north.
On the march, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun led. Reuben, Simeon, and Gad followed. Then at the center came the Tabernacle priests and Levites. These were followed by Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin; Dan, Asher, and Naphtali marching last in order. Whereas this is a technical chapter with a technical note, one great fact stands out, that, whether encamped or on the march, there was a divine order; and that in each case at the center of everything, the Tabernacle took its place.
Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible
2. The Camp Put in Order
CHAPTER 2
1. The command (Num 2:1-2)
2. The east-side: Judah, Issachar and Zebulun (Num 2:3-9)
3. The south-side: Reuben, Simeon and Gad (Num 2:10-16)
4. The position of the Levites (Num 2:17)
5. The west-side: Ephraim, Manasseh and Benjamin (Num 2:18-24)
6. The north-side: Dan, Asher and Naphtali (Num 2:25-34)
The camp is now divinely arranged and put in order. Nothing was left to themselves. Jehovah spoke and gave the instructions, how every man of the children of Israel was to pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their fathers house over against, round about the tabernacle. The tabernacle where Jehovah dwelt was in the midst. Around this center the tribes were grouped in four camps, an east side, a south side, west side and north side, three tribes on each side. Rabbinical tradition adds many interesting details which may be true. According to this tradition each had its own standard with the crests of its ancestors. On the east, above the tent of Nahshon, there shone a standard of green, because it was on an emerald (the green stone) that the name of Judah was engraved upon the breastplate of the high priest. Upon this standard was a lion, according to the words of Jacob, Judah is a lions whelp. Towards the south, above the tent of Elizur, the son of Reuben, there floated a red standard, the color of the Sardius, the stone upon which Reubens name was written. Upon his standard was a human head, because Reuben was the head of the family. And Reuben means, as we saw in Exodus, Behold a son, typical of Him who became the Son of man. On the west, above the tent of Elishama, the son of Ephraim, there was a golden flag on which was the head of a calf, because it was through the vision of the calves or oxen that Joseph had predicted and provided for the famine in Egypt; and hence Moses, when blessing the tribe of Joseph (Deu 33:17) said, his glory is that of the first-born of a bull. Towards the north, above the tent of Ahiezer, the son of Dan, there floated a motley standard of red and white, like the jasper, in which the name of Dan was engraven upon the breastplate. In his standard was an eagle, the great foe of serpents, because Jacob had compared Dan to a serpent; but Ahiezer had substituted the eagle, the destroyer of serpents, as he shrank from carrying an adder upon his flag. This, we remind our readers, is Jewish tradition, and very interesting.
A little diagram will bring the camp more vividly before us.
The Lord, we repeat, arranged the camp, with Judah facing towards the sunrise; this indicates the promised goal and also reminds us of the rising of the Sun of Righteousness, the coming of the Lord, when the wanderings of His people will end. And Jehovah was in the midst of His people to guide and protect them, to supply their needs. He is still the same. His New Testament people are also put in order by Him, and He is in the midst. However, there are not different standards around which His people gather, but there is only One, which is Christ. We do not think it profitable to enter into some of the rationalistic objections made in connection with this camp and its enormous number of occupants. They say, among other things, that such a mass of people could not possibly have lived for any length of time in the peninsula of Sinai, inasmuch as the natural produce of the desert could not have sustained them. But they forget that the book of Numbers does not say they lived upon what the desert yielded, but that they were miraculously sustained. These objections, whether they come from a vile French infidel or a cultured, higher critic, are the offspring of an unbelieving heart.
Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)
Reciprocal: Num 2:17 – tabernacle Num 7:2 – the princes Num 7:17 – this was the offering Deu 23:12 – General
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Num 2:2. Every manshall pitch by his own standard. Ensigns or colours are useful in war, for distinction and for honour, and serve as rallying points to the host. The rabbins say that the ensign of Judah bore a lion; Reuben a man, with a mandrake, Gen 30:14; Ephraim an ox; Dan an eagle. See Ezekiel 1. Mystically, these wise regulations adumbrated the church of Christ, in the midst of which is the tabernacle of the Most High. Num 2:17 directs the order of their march in the wide wilderness, that they might avoid confusion, and be ready for defence. The camp of Levi was in the centre, and around the tabernacle.
Num 2:14. Reuel. Hebrews Rehuel; Chaldee, Dehuel; the LXX, Raguel. The orthography of all ancient books is very variable, with regard to the names of persons and cities.
Num 2:34. So they pitched by their standards; and by estimation formed a square, each of whose sides was twelve miles. In this order also they marched through the wilderness.
REFLECTIONS.
The Lord by his overruling providence doth as certainly, though with less observation, appoint the bounds of our habitation and our rank in life, as he did the encampments of Israel in the wilderness. It is therefore our duty and interest to be contented with our place, and endeavour to occupy it in a proper manner, without attempting to desert it or wishing to change it; without envying, murmuring, ambition, or covetousness.
If especially he hath allotted our station near to his word and ordinances, and given us precious faith in the divine Redeemer, we have abundant reason to be thankful for such distinguishing grace; and though in a wilderness, in a cottage, in poverty, we have no reason, and surely we shall have no disposition, to envy those who possess stately mansions, elegant gardens, or cultivated estates, but have no lot in Israel, no inheritance in Canaan.
Our God is a God of order, and a God of peace; and he commands that all things in his church should be done decently and in order, and that all things be gone in peace. It would be well if in attempting to accomplish the former purpose, according to their own idea of decency and order, all denominations of christians had not too much lost sight of the latter injunction. It is desirable that all true christians should be of one judgment; but if that cannot be, it is of great importance that they be of one heart, and like these four squadrons of Israel, that they live in peace with one another; and in their different encampments surround the ark, as all of one family, embarked in one common interest, and marching to the same heavenly Canaan. Let them then be upon their guard against the suggestions of those enemies who would persuade them to quarrel about their different ensigns, and to draw the sword of war against their brethren, instead of being valiant for the truth, and against the common enemies of their religion.
The church would then indeed be comely, and terrible also as an army with banners. They would be not the less so for being divided into different companies, encamped or marching separately; provided each division vied with all the others, which should be most zealous for the ark and for the cause of God and truth, and most careful to adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things. Let then brotherly love continue; and may the Lord prosper the attempts, and increase the numbers of those who endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Fuente: Sutcliffe’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Numbers 1 – 2
We now enter upon the study of the fourth grand division of the Pentateuch, or five books of Moses; and we shall find the leading characteristic of this book quite as strongly marked as that of any of the three books which have already engaged our attention. In the Book of Genesis, after the record of creation, the deluge, and the Babel dispersion, we have God’s election of the seed of Abraham. In the book of Exodus, we have redemption. Leviticus gives us priestly worship and communion. In Numbers we have the walk and warfare of the wilderness. Such are the prominent subjects of these most precious sections of inspiration, while, as might be expected, many other points of deepest interest are collaterally introduced. the Lord, in His great mercy, has led us through the study of Genesis, Exodus, and Leviticus; and we can reckon on Him, with confidence, to conduct as through the Book of Numbers. May His Spirit lead the thoughts, and guide the pen, so that not a sentence may be committed to writing that is not in strict accordance with His holy mind! May every page and every paragraph bear the stamp of His approval, and be, at once, conducive to His glory, and the permanent profit of the reader!
“And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names, every male by their polls; From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel; thou and Aaron shall number them by their armies.” Num. 1: 1-3.
Here we find ourselves, at once, “in the wilderness, where those only are to be taken account of who are “able to go forth to war.” This is strongly marked. In the book of Genesis the seed of Israel were in the loins of their father Abraham. In the Book of Exodus they were in the brick-kilns of Egypt. In Leviticus they were gathered round the tabernacle of the congregation. In Numbers they are seen in the wilderness. Then, again, in full keeping with the above, and in confirmation thereof, in Genesis we hearken to the call of God in election; in Exodus we gaze upon the blood of the Lamb in redemption; in Leviticus we are almost entirely occupied with the worship, and service of the sanctuary. But no sooner have we opened the book of Numbers than we read of men of war, of armies, of standards, of camps, and trumpets sounding alarm.
All this is highly characteristic, and marks off the book on which we are now entering as one of special interest, value, and importance to the Christian. Each book of the Bible, each section of the inspired canon, has its own distinct place and object. Each has its own niche assigned to it by its divine Author. We must not entertain, for a moment, the thought of instituting any comparison in point of intrinsic value, interest, and importance. all is divine, and therefore perfect. The Christian reader fully and heartily believes this. He reverently sets his seal to the truth of the plenary inspiration of holy scripture – of all scripture, and of the Pentateuch amongst the rest; nor is he to be moved, one hairs breadth, from this by the bold and impious attacks of infidels, ancient, medieval, or modern. Infidels and rationalists may traffic in their unhallowed reasonings. They may exhibit their enmity against the book and its author; but the pious “Christian rests, not withstanding all, in the simple and happy belief that “All scripture is given by inspiration God.”
But while we must utterly reject the idea of any comparison as to authority and value, we may, with, much profit, compare the contents, design, and scope of the various books of the Bible. And the more profoundly we meditate upon these, the more forcibly shall we be struck with the exquisite beauty, infinite wisdom, and wonderful precision of the volume a whole, and of each distinct division the thereof. The inspired writer never swerves from the direct object of the book, whatever that object may be. You will never find anything in any one book of the Bible which is not in the most perfect harmony with the main design of that book;. To prove and illustrate this statement would lead us through the entire canon of holy scripture, and hence we shall not attempt it. The intelligent Christian does not need the proof, however much he might be interested in the illustration. He takes his stand upon the great fact that the book, as a whole, and in all its parts, is from God; and His heart reposes in the conclusion, that in that whole, and in each of those parts, there is not a jot or a tittle which is not in every way worthy of the divine Author.
Hear the following words from the pen of one who expresses himself as “deeply convinced of the divine inspiration of the scriptures, given to us of God, and confirmed in this conviction by daily and growing discoveries of their fullness, depth, and perfectness, ever more sensible, through grace, of the admirable perfection of the parts, and the wonderful connection of the whole.” “The scriptures,” says this writer, “have a living source, and living power has pervaded their composition: hence their infiniteness of bearing, and the impossibility of separating any one part from the whole, because one God is the living centre from which all flows; one Christ the living centre round which all its truth circles, and to which it refers, though in various glory; and one Spirit the divine sap which carries its power from its source in God to the minutest branches of the all-uniting truth, testifying of the glory, the grace, and the truth of Him whom God sets forth as the object, and centre, and head of all that is in connection with Himself, of Him who is, withal, God over all, blessed for evermore. …..The more – beginning from the utmost leaves and branches of this revelation of the mind of God, by which we have been reached when far from Him – we have traced it up towards its centre, and thence looked down again towards its extent and diversity, the more we learn its infiniteness, and our own feebleness of apprehension. We learn, blessed be God, this, that the love which is its source is found in unmingled perfectness and fullest display of those manifestations of it which have reached us even in our ruined state. The same perfect God of love is in it all. But the unfoldings of divine wisdom in the counsels in which God has displayed Himself remain ever to us a subject of research, in which every new discovery, by increasing our spiritual intelligence, makes the infiniteness of the whole, and the way in which it surpasses all our thoughts, only more and more clear to us.”
It is truly refreshing to transcribe such lines from the pen of one who has been a profound student of scripture for forty years. They are of unspeakable value, of a moment when so many are ready to cast a slight upon the sacred volume. Not that we are, in any wise, dependent upon human testimony in forming our conclusions as to the divine origin of the Bible, inasmuch as these conclusions rest upon a foundation furnished by the Bible itself. God’s word, as well as His work, speaks for itself; it carries its own credentials with it; it speaks to the heart; it reaches down to the great moral roots of our being; it penetrates the very innermost chambers of the soul; it shows us what we are; it speaks to us as no other book can speak; and, as the woman of Sychar argued that Jesus must be the Christ because He told her all things that ever she did, so may we say in reference to the Bible, It tells us all that ever we did, is not this the word of God? No doubt it is only by the Spirit’s teaching that we can discern and appreciate the evidence and credentials with which holy scripture presents itself before us; but still it does speak for itself, and needs not human testimony to make it of value to the soul. We should no more think of having our faith in the Bible established upon man’s testimony in its favour than we should think of having it shaken by his testimony against it.
It is of the very last possible importance, at all times, but more especially at a moment like the present, to have the heart and mind established in the sound truth of the divine authority of holy scripture – its plenary inspiration – its all-sufficiency for all purposes, for all people, at all times. There are two hostile influences abroad, namely, infidelity, on the one hand, and superstition, on the other. The former denies that God has spoken to us in His word. The latter admits that He has spoken, but it denies that we can understand what He says, save by the interpretation of the Church.
Now, while there are very many who recoil with horror from the impiety and audacity of infidelity, they do not see that superstition, just as completely, deprives them of the scriptures. For wherein, let us ask, lies the difference between denying that God has spoken, and denying that we can understand what He says? In either case: are we not deprived of the word of God? Unquestionably. If God cannot make me understand what He says – if He cannot give me the assurance that it is He Himself who speaks, I am, in no wise, better off than if He had not spoken at all. If God’s word is not sufficient, without human interpretation, then it cannot be God’s word at all. That which is insufficient is not God’s word. We must admit either of two things, namely, that God has not spoken at all, or if He has spoken, His word is perfect. There is no neutral ground in reference to this question. Has God given us a revelation? Infidelity says, “No.” superstition says, “Yes, but you cannot understand it without human authority.” Thus are we, in the one case as well as in the other, deprived of the priceless treasure of God’s own precious word; and thus, too, infidelity and superstition, though apparently so unlike, meet in the one point of depriving us of a divine revelation. But, blessed be God, He has given us a revelation. He has spoken, and His word is able to teach the heart and the understanding also. God is able to give the certainty that it is He who speaks, and we do not want any human authority to intervene. We do not want a poor rush-light to enable us to see that the sun is shining. The beams of that glorious Luminary are quite enough without any such miserable addition. All we want is to stand in the sunshine and we shall be convinced that the sun shines. If we retire into a vault or into a tunnel, we shall not feel his influence; and just so is it with regard to scripture, if we place ourselves beneath the chilling and darkening influences of superstition or infidelity, we shall not experience the genial and enlightening power of that divine revelation.
Having said thus much as to the divine volume as a whole, we shall now proceed to consider the contents of the section which lies open before us. In Numbers 1 we have the declaration of the pedigree;” and in Numbers 2, the recognition of the “standard.” “And Moses and Aaron took these men which are expressed by their names: and they assembled all the congregation together on the first day of the second month, and they declared their pedigrees after their families, by the house of their fathers; according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, by their polls. as the Lord commanded Moses, so he numbered them in the wilderness of Sinai.” Num. 1: 17-19.
Has this any voice for us? Does it convey any great spiritual lesson to our understanding? assuredly it does. In the first place, it suggests this important question to the reader, “Can I declare my pedigree?” It is greatly to be feared there are hundreds, if not thousands, of professing Christians who are wholly incompetent to do so. They cannot say with clearness and decision, “Now are we the sons of God.” (1 John 3: 2) “We are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” ” And if ye are Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Gal. 3: 26, 29) ” For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God…..The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the sons of God.” Rom. 8: 14, 16.
This is the Christian’s “pedigree,” and it is his privilege to be able to “declare” it. He is born from above – born again – born of water and the spirit, i.e., by the word and by the Holy Ghost. (Compare, diligently, John 3: 5; James 1: 18; 1 Peter 1: 23; Eph. 5: 26) The believer traces his pedigree directly up to a risen Christ in glory. This is Christian genealogy. So far as our natural pedigree is concerned, if we trace it up to its source, and then declare it honestly, we must see and admit that we are sprung from a ruined stock. Ours is a fallen family. Our fortunes are gone; our very blood attainted; we are irrecoverably ruined; we can never regain our original position; our former status and the inheritance which belonged to it are irretrievably lost. A man may be able to trace his genealogical line throughout a race Of nobles, of princes, or of kings; but is he is finally to “declare his pedigree,” he cannot stop short of a fallen, ruined, outcast head. We must get to the source of a thing to know what it really is. It is thus God looks at and judges of things, and we must think with Him if we would think aright. His judgement of men and things must be dominant for ever. Man’s judgement is only ephemeral, it lasts but for a day; and hence, according to faith’s estimate, the estimate of sound sense, “It is a small thing to be judged of man’s day.” (1 Cor. 4: 3) Oh! how small! Would that we felt more deeply how small a thing it is to be judged of man’s judgement, or, as the margin reads it, of man’s day! Would that we walked, habitually, in the real sense of the smallness thereof! It would impart a calm elevation and a holy dignity which would lift us above the influence of the scene through which we are passing. what is rank in this life? What importance can attach to a pedigree which, if honestly traced, and faithfully declared, is derived from a ruined stock? A man can only be proud of his birth when he stops short of his real Origin: as born in sin and shapen in iniquity.” Such is man’s origin – such his birth. Who can think of being proud of such a birth, of such an origin? Who but one whose mind the god of this world hath blinded?
But how different with the Christian! His pedigree is heavenly. His “genealogical tree strikes its roots into the soil of the new creation. Death can never break the line, inasmuch as it is formed in resurrection. We cannot be too simple as to this. It is of the utmost importance that the reader should be thoroughly clear on this foundation point. We can easily see from this first chapter of Numbers, how, essential it was that every member of the congregation of Israel should be able to declare his pedigree Uncertainty, on this point, would have proved disastrous; it would have produced hopeless confusion. We can hardly imagine an Israelite, when called to declare his pedigree, expressing himself in the doubtful manner adopted by many Christians now-a-days. We cannot conceive his saying, well, I am not quite sure. Sometimes I cherish the hope that I am of the stock of Israel, but at other times, I am full of fear that I do not belong to the congregation Of the Lord at all. I am all in uncertainty and darkness. Can we conceive of such language. Assuredly not. Much less could we imagine anyone maintaining the monstrous notion that no one could possibly be sure as to whether he was a true Israelite or not until the day of judgement.
All such ideas and reasonings – all such doubts, fears, and questions, we may rest assured, were foreign to the mind of the Israelite. Every member of the congregation was called to declare his pedigree, ere taking his place in the ranks as a man of war. Each one was able to say, like Saul of Tarsus, “Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel,” &c. All was settled and clear, and necessarily so if there was to be any real entrance upon the walk and warfare of the wilderness.
Now, may we not legitimately ask, “If a Jew could be certain as to his pedigree, why may not a Christian be certain as to his? Reader, weigh this question, and if you are one of that large class of persons who are never able to arrive at the blessed certainty of their heavenly lineage, their spiritual birth, pause, we beseech you, and let us reason with you on this momentous point. It may be you are disposed to ask, “How can I be sure that I am, really and truly, a child of God, a member of Christ, born of the word and Spirit of God? I would give worlds, were they mine, to be certain as to this most weighty question.”
Well, then, we would earnestly desire to help you in this matter. Indeed one special object before us in penning these “Notes” is to assist anxious souls, by answering, as the Lord may enable us, their questions, solving their difficulties, and removing the stumbling-blocks out of their way.
And, first of all, let as point out one special feature which belongs to all the children of God, without exception. It is a very simple, but a very blessed feature. If we do not possess it, in some degree, it is most certain we are not of the heavenly race; but if we do possess it, it is just as certain that we are, and we may, therefore, without any difficulty or reserve, “declare our pedigree.” now what is this feature? What is this great family characteristic? Our Lord Jesus Christ supplies the answer. He tells as that “Wisdom is justified of all her children.” (Luke 7: 35; Matt. 11: 19) all the children of Wisdom, from the days of Abel down to the present moment, have been marked by this great family trait. There is not so much as a single exception. All God’s children – all the sons of Wisdom have always exhibited, in some degree, this moral feature – they have justified God. Let the reader consider this. It may be he finds it hard to understand what is meant by justifying God; but a passage or two of holy scripture will, we trust, make it quite plain. We read in Luke 7 that “all the people that heard Jesus, and the publicans, justified God, being baptised with the baptism of John. But, the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptised of him.” (ver. 29, 30) Here we have the two generations brought, as it were, face to face. The publicans justified God and condemned themselves. The Pharisees justified themselves and judged God. The former submitted to the baptism of John – the baptism of repentance. The latter refused that baptism – refused to repent – refused to humble and to judge themselves.
Here we have the two great classes into which the whole human family has been divided, from the days of Abel and Cain down to the present day; and here, too, we have the simplest possible test by which to try our “pedigree.” Have we taken the place of self-condemnation? Have we bowed in true repentance before God? This is to justify God. The two things go together – yea, they are one and the same. The man who condemns himself justifies God; and the man who justifies God condemns himself. On the other hand, the man who justifies himself judges God; and the man who judges God justifies himself.
Thus it stands in every case. And be it observed that the very moment we take the ground of repentance and self judgement, God takes the ground of a Justifier. God always justifies those who condemn themselves. All His children justify Him, and He justifies all His children. The moment David said, “I have sinned against the Lord,” the answer was, “the Lord hath put away thy sin.” Divine forgiveness follows, with the most intense rapidity, human confession.
Hence it follows that nothing can be more foolish than for any one to justify himself, inasmuch as God must be justified in His sayings, and overcome when He is judged. (Comp. Psalm 51: 4; Rom. 3: 4) God must have the upper hand in the end, and then all self justification shall be seen in its true light. The wisest thing therefore is to condemn ourselves. This is what all the children of wisdom do. Nothing is more characteristic of the true members of wisdom’s family then the habit and spirit of self-judgement. Whereas, on the other hand, nothing so marks all those who are not of this family as a spirit of self-vindication.
These things are worthy of our most earnest attention. Nature will blame anything and everything, any one and every one but itself. But where grace is at work, there is ever a readiness to judge self, and take the lowly place. This is the true secret of blessing and peace. All God’s children have stood on this blessed ground, exhibited this lovely moral trait, and reached this grand result. we cannot find so much as a single exception in the entire history of Wisdom’s happy family; and we may safely say, that if the reader has been led, in truth and reality, to own himself lost – to condemn himself – to take the place of true repentance-then is he, in very deed, one of the children of Wisdom, and he may therefore, with boldness and decision, “declare his pedigree.”
We would urge this point at the outset. It is impossible for any one to recognise and rally round the proper “standard” unless he can declare his “pedigree.” In short, it is impossible to take up a true position in the wilderness so long as there is any uncertainty as to this great question. How could an Israelite of old have taken his place in the assembly – how could he have stood in the ranks – how could he expect to make any progress through the wilderness, if he could not distinctly declare his pedigree? Impossible. Just so is it with Christians now. Progress in wilderness life – success in spiritual warfare, is out of the question if there be any uncertainty as to the spiritual pedigree. We must be able to say, “we know that we have passed from death unto life” – “We know that we are of God” – “We believe and are sure, ere there can be any real advance in the life and walk of a Christian.
Reader, say, can you declare your pedigree? Is this a thoroughly settled point with you? Are you clear as to this in the very depths of your soul? When you are all alone with God, is it a perfectly settled question between you and Him? Search and see. Make sure work of it. Do not slur the matter over. Build not upon mere profession. Say not “I am a member of such a church; I receive the Lord’s supper; I hold such and such doctrines; I have been religiously brought up I live a moral life; I have done nobody any harm; I read the Bible and say my prayers; I have family worship in my house; I give largely in the cause of philanthropy and religion.” All this may be perfectly true of you, and yet you may not have a single pulse of divine life, a single ray of divine light. Not one of these things, not all of them put together, could be accepted as a declaration of spiritual pedigree. There must be the witness of the spirit that you are a child of God, and this witness always accompanies simple faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. “He that believeth in the Son of God hath the witness in himself.” (1 John 5: 10) It is not, by any means, a question of looking into your own heart for evidences. It is not a building upon frames, feelings, and experiences. Nothing of the sort. It is a childlike faith in Christ. It is having eternal life in the Son of God. It is the imperishable record of the Holy Ghost. It is taking God at His word. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into judgement (krisin), but is passed from death unto life.” John 5: 24.
This is the true way to declare your pedigree; and be assured of it, you must be able to declare it ere you can “go forth to war.” We do not mean to say you cannot be saved without this. God forbid we should say any such thing. We believe there are hundreds of the true Spiritual Israel who are not able to declare their pedigree. But we ask, Are such able to go forth to war? Are they vigorous military men? Far from it. They cannot even know what true conflict is; on the contrary, persons of this class mistake their doubts and fears, their dark and cloudy seasons , for true Christian conflict This is a most serious mistake; but alas! a very common one. We continually find a, low, dark, legal condition of soul defended on the ground of Christian conflict, whereas, according to the New Testament, true Christian conflict or warfare is carried on in a region were doubts and fears are unknown. It is when we stand in the clear daylight of God’s full salvation-salvation in a risen Christ – that we really enter upon the warfare proper to us as Christians. Are we to suppose, for a moment, that our legal struggles, our culpable unbelief, our refusal to submit to the righteousness of God, our questionings and reasonings, can be viewed as Christian conflict? By no means. All these things must be regarded as conflict with God; whereas Christian conflict is carried on with Satan. “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against wicked spirits in high places.” Eph. 6: 12.
This is Christian conflict. But can such conflict be waged by those who are continually doubting whether they are Christians or not? We do not believe it. Could we imagine an Israelite in conflict with Amalek in the wilderness, or with the Canaanites in the land of promise, while yet unable to “declare his pedigree” or recognise his “standard?” The thing is inconceivable. No, no; every member of the congregation, who was able to go forth to war was perfectly clear and settled as to those two points. Indeed he could not go forth if he were not so.
And, while on the important subject of Christian conflict, it may be well to call the reader’s attention to the three portions of New Testament scripture in which we have three distinct characters of conflict presented, namely, Romans 7: 7-24; Galatians v. 17; Ephesians 6: 10-17. If the reader will just turn, for a moment, to the above scriptures, we shall seek to point out the true character of each.
In Romans 7: 7-24 we have the struggle of a soul quickened but not emancipated – a regenerated soul under the law. The proof that we have before us, here, a quickened soul is found in such utterances as these, “That which I do, I allow not” – “to will is present with me” – “I delight in the law of God after the inward man.” None but a regenerated soul could speak thus. The disallowance of the wrong, the will to do right, the inward delight in the law of God – all these are the distinct marks of the new life – the precious fruits of regeneration. No unconverted person could truthfully use such language
But, on the other hand, the proofs that we have before us, in this scripture, a soul not fully emancipated, not in the joy of known deliverance, not in the full consciousness of victory, not in the assured possession of spiritual power – the plain proofs of all this we have in such utterances as the following, “I am carnal, sold under sin” – “what I would that do I not; but what I hate that do I” – “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me?” Now, we know that a Christian is not “carnal,” but spiritual; he is not “sold under sin,” but redeemed from its power; he is not a “wretched man” sighing for deliverance, but a happy man who knows himself delivered. He is not an impotent slave, unable to do the right thing, and ever compelled to do the wrong; he is a free man! endowed with power in the Holy Ghost, and able to say, “I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4.
We cannot here attempt to enter upon a full exposition of this most important scripture; we merely offer a suggestion or two which may help the reader to seize its scope and import. We are fully aware that many Christians differ widely as to the interpretation of this chapter. Some deny that it presents the exercises of a quickened soul; others maintain that it sets forth the experiences proper to a Christian. We cannot accept either conclusion. We believe it exhibits to our view the exercises of a truly regenerated soul, but of a soul not set free by the knowledge of its union with a risen Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost. Hundreds of Christians are actually in the seventh of Romans but their proper place is in the eighth. They are, as to their experience, under the law. They do not know themselves as sealed by the Holy Ghost. They are not in possession of full victory in a risen and glorified Christ. They have doubts and fears, and are ever disposed to cry out “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver we? But is not a Christian delivered? Is he not saved? Is he not accepted in the Beloved? Is he not sealed by that Holy Spirit of promise? Is he not united to Christ? Ought he not to know and enjoy, and to confess all this? Unquestionably. Well then he is no longer, as to his standing, in the seventh of Romans. It is his privilege to sing the song of victory at heaven’s side of the empty tomb of Jesus, and to walk in the holy liberty wherewith Christ makes His people free. The seventh of Romans is not liberty at all, but bondage, except indeed at the very close, where the soul is able to say, “I thank God.” No doubt, it may be a very wholesome exercise to pass through all that is here detailed for us with such marvellous vividness and power; and, furthermore, we must declare that we should vastly prefer being honestly in the seventh of Romans to being falsely in the eighth. But all this leaves wholly untouched the question as to the proper application of this profoundly interesting passage of scripture.
We shall now glance, for a moment, at the conflict in Galatians 5: 17 we shall quote the passage. “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.* This passage is often quoted to account for continual defeat, whereas it really contains the secret of perpetual victory. In verse 16 we read, “This I say, then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” This makes it all so clear. The presence of the Holy Ghost secures power. We are assured that God is stronger than the flesh, and therefore, where He is in conflict the triumph is secured. And be it carefully noted that Galatians 5: 17 does not speak of the conflict between the Two natures, the old and the new, but between the Holy Ghost and the flesh. This is the reason why it is added, “In order that ye may not do the things that ye would.” If the Holy Ghost were not dwelling in us, we should be sure to fulfil the lust of the flesh; but, inasmuch as He is in us to carry on the warfare, we are no longer obliged to do wrong, but blessedly enabled to do right.
{*We ought, perhaps, to inform the reader that many able scholars render the last clause of Galatians 5: 17 thus, “In order that we may not do the things that we would.” We assuredly believe this rendering.. to be in full keeping with the spirit of the context; though we are, each day, more convinced of the unrivalled excellence of our precious English Bible.}
Now this precisely marks the point of difference between Romans 7: 14, 15 and Galatians 5.17. In the former we have the new nature, but not the power of the indwelling Spirit. In the latter, we have not only the new nature, but also the power of the Holy Ghost. we must ever bear in mind that the new nature in a believer is dependent. It is dependent upon the Spirit for power, and upon the word for guidance. But, clearly, where God The Holy Ghost is, there must be power. He may be grieved and hindered; but Galatians 5: 16 distinctly teaches that if we walk in the Spirit, we shall have sure and constant victory over the flesh. Hence, therefore, it would be a very serious mistake indeed to quote Galatians 5: 17 as a reason for a low and carnal walk. Its teaching is designed to produce the direct opposite.
And now one word on Ephesians 6: 10-17. where we have the conflict between the Christian and wicked spirits in heavenly places. The Church belongs to heaven, and should ever maintain a heavenly walk and conversation. It should be our constant aim to make good our heavenly standing – to plant the foot firmly upon our heavenly inheritance, and keep it there. This the devil seeks to hinder, in every possible way, and hence the conflict; hence too “the whole armour of God,” by which alone we can stand against our powerful spiritual foe.
It is not our purpose to dwell upon the armour, as we here merely called the reader’s attention to the above three scriptures in order that he may have the subject of conflict, in all its phases, fully before his mind, in connection with the opening lines of the Book of Numbers. Nothing can be more interesting; nor can we possibly over estimate the importance of being clear as to the real nature and ground of Christian conflict. If we go forth to war without knowing what the war is about, and in a state of uncertainty as to whether our “pedigree” is all right, we Shall not make much headway against the enemy,
But, as has been already remarked, there was another thing quite as necessary for the man of war as the clear declaration of his pedigree, and that was the distinct recognition of his standard. The two things were essential for the walk and warfare of the wilderness. Moreover, they were inseparable. If a man did not know his pedigree, he could not recognise his standard, and thus all would have been plunged in hopeless confusion. In place of keeping rank, and making steady progress, they would have been in each other’s way, and treading one upon another. Each had to know his post and keep it – to know his standard and abide by it. Thus they moved on together; thus progress was made, work done. and warfare carried on. The Benjaminite had his post, and the Ephraimite had his, and neither was to interfere with, or cross the path of, the other. Thus with all the tribes, throughout the camp of the Israel of God. Each had his pedigree, and each had his post; and neither the one nor the other was according to their own thoughts; all was of God. He gave the pedigree, and He assigned the standard. Nor was there any need of comparing one with another, or any ground of jealousy one of another; each had his place to fill, and his work to do, and there was work enough and room enough for all. There was the greatest possible variety, and yet the most perfect unity. “Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house.” “and 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.” (Num. 2: 2, 34)
Thus, in the camp of old, as well as in the Church now, we learn that “God is not the author of confusion.” Nothing could be more exquisitely arranged than the four camps, of three tribes each, forming a perfect square, each side of the square exhibiting its own specific standard. “Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house: over against the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch.” The God of the armies of Israel knew how to marshal His hosts. It would be a great mistake to suppose that God’s warriors were not ordered according to the most perfect system of military tactics. We may plume ourselves upon our progress in arts and sciences, and we may fancy that the host of Israel presented a spectacle of rude disorder and wild confusion, compared with what may be seen in modern times. But this would be an empty conceit. We may rest assured that the camp of Israel was ordered and furnished in the most perfect manner, for the simplest and most conclusive of all reasons, namely, that it was ordered and furnished by the hand of God. Grant us but this, that God has done anything, and we argue, with the most perfect confidence, that it has been perfectly done.
This in a very simple, but a very blessed principle. Of course it would not satisfy an infidel or a sceptic; what would? It is the province and prerogative of a sceptic to doubt everything, to believe nothing. He measures everything by his own standard, and rejects whatever he cannot reconcile with his own notions. He lays down, with marvellous coolness, his own premises, and then proceeds to draw his own conclusions. But if the premises are false, the conclusions must be false likewise. And there is this invariable feature attaching to the premises of all sceptics, rationalists, and infidels, they always leave out God; and hence all their conclusion’s must be fatally false. On the other hand, the humble believer starts with this great first principle, that God Is; and not only that He is, but that He has to do with His creatures; that He interests Himself in, and occupies Himself about, the affairs of men.
What consolation for the Christian! But infidelity will not allow this at all. To bring God in is to upset all the reasonings of the sceptic, for they are based upon the thorough exclusion of God.
However, we are not now writing in order to meet infidels, but the edification of believers, and it is sometimes well to call attention to the thorough rottenness of the whole system of infidelity; and surely in no way can this be more clearly or forcibly shown than by the fact that it rests entirely upon the exclusion of God. Let this fact be seized, and the whole system crumbles into dust at our feet. If we believe that God is, then, assuredly, everything must be wicked in relation to Him. We must look at all from His point of view. Nor is this all. If we believe that God is, then we must see that man cannot judge Him. God must be the judge of right or wrong, of what is and what is not worthy of Himself. So also in reference to God’s word. If it be true that God is, and that He has spoken to us, He has given us a revelation, then, assuredly, that revelation is not to be judged by man’s reason. It is above and beyond any such tribunal. Only think of measuring God’s word by the rules of human arithmetic! and yet this is precisely what has been done in our own day, with this blessed Book of Numbers with which we are now engaged, and with which we shall proceed, leaving infidelity and its arithmetic aside.
We feel it very needful, in our notes and reflections on this book, as well as on every other book, to remember two things, namely, first, the book; and secondly, the soul: the book and its contents the soul and its necessities. There is a danger of becoming so occupied with the former as to forget the latter. And, on the other hand, there is the danger of becoming so wholly engrossed with the latter as to forget the former. Both must be attended to. And we may say that what constitutes an efficient ministry, whether written or oral, is the proper adjustment of these two things. There are some ministers who study the word very diligently, and, it may be, very profoundly. They are well versed in biblical knowledge; they have drunk; deeply at the fountain of inspiration. All this is of the utmost importance, and of the very highest value. A ministry without this will be barren indeed. If a man does not study his Bible diligently and prayerfully, he will have little to give to his readers or his hearers; at least little worth their having. Those who minister in the word must dig for themselves, and “dig deep.”
But then the soul must be considered – its condition anticipated, and its necessities met. If this be lost sight of, the ministry will lack point, pungency, and power. It will be inefficient and unfruitful. In short, the two things must be combined and properly adjusted. A man who merely studies the book will be unpractical, a man who merely studies the soul will be unfurnished. A man who duly studies both will be a good minister of Jesus Christ.
Now, we desire, in our measure, to be this to the reader; and hence as we travel, in his company, through the marvellous book which lies open before us, we would not only seek to point out its moral beauties, and unfold its holy lessons, but we would also feel it to be our bounden duty to put an occasional question to him or her, as to how far those lessons are being learnt, and those beauties appreciated. We trust the reader will not object to this, and hence, ere we close this our first section, we would ask him a question or two thereon.
And first, then, dear friend, art thou clear and settled as to thy “pedigree?” Is it a settled thing that thou art on the Lord’s side? Do not, we beseech thee, leave this grand question unsettled. We have asked it before, and we ask it again. Dost thou know – canst thou declare thy spiritual pedigree? It is the first thing for God’s warrior. It is of no use to think of entering the militant host so long as you are unsettled as to this point. We say not that a man cannot be saved without this. Far be the thought. But he cannot take rank as a man of war. He cannot do battle with the world, the flesh, and the devil, so long as he is filled with doubts and fears as to whether he belongs to the true spiritual stock. If there is to be any progress, if there is to be that decision, so essential to a spiritual warrior, we must be able to say, “We know that we have passed from death unto life” – “We know that we are of God.”
This is the proper language of a man of war. Not one of that mighty host that mustered “over against the tabernacle of the congregation” would have understood such a thing as a single doubt, or shadow of a doubt as to his own very pedigree. Doubtless, he would have smiled, had any one raised a question on the subject. Each one of the six hundred thousand knew well whence he had sprung, and, therefore, where he was to take his stand. And just so with God’s militant host now. Each member thereof will need to possess the most unclouded confidence as to his relationship, else he will not be able to stand in the battle.
And then as to the “standard.” What is it? Is it a doctrine? Nay. Is it a theological system? Nay. Is it an ecclesiastical polity? Nay. Is it a system of ordinances, rites, or ceremonies. Nothing of the sort, God’s warriors do not fight under any such banner. What is the standard of God’s militant host? Let us hear and remember. It is Christ. This is the only standard of God and the only standard of that warrior band which musters in this wilderness world, to wage war with the hosts of evil, and fight the battles of the Lord. Christ is the standard for everything. To have any other would only unfit us for that spiritual conflict to which we are called. What have we, as Christians, to do with contending for any system of theology church organisation? Of what account, is our estimation, are ordinances, ceremonies, or ritualistic observances? are we going to fight under such banners as these? God forbid! Our theology is the Bible. Our church organisation is the one God, formed by the presence of the Holy Ghost, and united to the living and exalted Head in the heavens. To contend for anything less than these is entirely below the mark of a true spiritual warrior.
Alas! alas! that so many who profess to belong to the Church of God should so forget their proper standard, and be found fighting under another banner. we may rest assured it super-induces weakness, falsifies the testimony, and hinders progress. If we would stand in the day of battle, we must acknowledge no standard whatsoever but Christ and His word – the living Word, and the written word. Here lies our security in the face of all our spiritual foes. The more closely we adhere to Christ and to Him alone the stronger and safer we shall be. To have Him as a perfect covering for our eyes – to keep close to Him – fast by His side, this is our grand moral safeguard. “The Children of Israel shall pitch their tents, every man by his own camp, and every man by his own standard throughout their hosts.”
Oh! that thus it may be throughout all the host of the Church of God! May all be laid aside for Christ! may He be enough for our hearts. As we trace our “pedigree” up to Him, may His name be inscribed on the “standard” round which we encamp in this wilderness, through which we are passing home to our eternal rest above! Reader, see to it, we beseech thee, that there be not one jot or tittle inscribed on thy banner save Jesus Christ – that name which is above every name, and which shall yet be exalted for ever throughout the wide universe of God.
Fuente: Mackintosh’s Notes on the Pentateuch
Num 2:1-34. The Position of the Tribes in the Camp and on the March.The encampment, when stationary, was arranged as a quadrilateral, containing within it the Tabernacle, surrounded by the consecrated tribe of Levi, and having each of its four sides constituted by the camps of three tribes. On the E. (or front) were Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun (descended from Leah, Gen 29:35; Gen 30:18-20); on the S. were Reuben. Simeon (also descended from Leah, Gen 29:32 f.), and Gad (descended from Zilpah, Gen 30:10 f.); on the W. were Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin (descendants of Rachel, Gen 30:24; Gen 35:16-18; Gen 41:51 f.); on the N. were Dan, Asher, and Naphtali (descended from either Zilpah or Bilhah, Gen 30:5 f., Gen 30:12 f., Gen 30:7 f.). The four groups of tribes were reckoned as the camps of Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, and Dan respectively. When the encampment was in motion, Judahs camp went first, followed by Reubens; then came the Levites with the Tabernacle; behind it followed Ephraims camp; whilst Dans camp closed the rear. A somewhat different arrangement is described in ch. 10.
Num 2:2. standard: better, company or division (LXX, ), a meaning more appropriate in Num 2:3 and suitable in Num 2:17 f., Num 2:25; Num 2:31; Num 2:34.ensigns: the use of a pennon or other device attached to a spear is said to be still a custom of the Arabs, to mark the site of a camp.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
THE ORDERING OF THE CAMP
(vs.1-34)
The Lord now gives instructions to Moses as to the positions of all the tribes when camped and the order of their marching. Judah is mentioned first, his name appropriately meaning “praise.” His tribe was directly in front of the tabernacle, toward the east (v.3), set back at sufficient distance to allow full room for the sons of Aaron near the tabernacle entrance, their family being spread across the east side of the tabernacle court (ch.3:38).
The standard of Judah included two other tribes, Issachar and Zebulon (vs.5-7), one encamped on each side of Judah. All of this is typical of God’s maintaining spiritual order in the church, not a precise physical order, but an order that glorifies His name through the subject obedience of His saints in unity and devotion to His name. We have seen the meanings of the leader’s names in chapter 1, and these have full significance as regards their assigned places.
The standard of Judah was always in the lead when the tribes set out to march, for the spirit of praise to God is of first importance in travel or in warfare. When Jehoshaphat’s army went out with singers praising the Lord, the victory was soon gained (2Ch 20:21-22). The total number of men under Judah’s standard was 186,400 (v.9).
The tribe of Reuben was in the middle on the south side, and under his standard were also the tribes of Simeon and Gad on either side (vs.10-16), the total number of men in the three tribes 151,450. These under Reuben’s standard followed those under Judah’s standard when they broke camp.
Just as the tabernacle was in the center of the camp, so its place in traveling was in the center (v.17), with the Levites accompanying it. For it was the very heart of the camp, the dwelling of God, who was in the midst of Israel. Six tribes preceded it in traveling, and six followed.
The standard of the camp of Ephraim was on the west side, and with Ephraim were Manasseh and Benjamin (vs.18-23). The armies of these three totaled 108,100. These followed the Levites in traveling.
On the north side the tribe of Dan bore the standard that included also Asher and Naphtali (vs.25-30). Their armies together comprised a total of 157,600 men, and were last in order to travel. All the numbered men therefore totaled 603,550, as chapter 1:46 reported, and chapter 2:32 confirms. Again, we are reminded that this did not include the Levites (v.33), nor of course women and children. The total of the congregation must have been between two and three million. what a company for Moses to lead through the wilderness! But this illustrates the care of God in providing the best order possible. Certainly in the Church of God today He exercises no less wisdom in providing a spiritual order that will glorify His name, and He expects in the gatherings of the assembly a becoming recognition of His order, as 1Co 14:40 shows. “Let all things be done decently and in order.”
Fuente: Grant’s Commentary on the Bible
The placement of the tribes ch. 2
The twelve tribes excluding the Levites camped in four groups of three tribes each on the tabernacle’s four sides. The Levites camped on all four sides of the tabernacle but closer to the sanctuary than the other tribes (Num 2:17). This arrangement placed Yahweh at the center of the nation geographically and reminded the Israelites that His rightful place was at the center of their life nationally and personally.
"The Egyptians characteristically placed the tent of the king, his generals, and officers at the center of a large army camp, but for the Israelites another tent was central: the sanctuary in which it placed God to dwell among his people. From him proceeds the power to save and to defend, and from this tent in the middle he made known his ever-saving will." [Note: B. Maarsingh, Numbers: a practical commentary, p. 15.]
"This picture of the organization of Israel in camp is an expression of the author’s understanding of the theology of the divine presence. There are barriers which divide a holy God from a fallible Israel. The structure of the tent itself and the construction of the sophisticated priestly hierarchy has the effect, at least potentially, of emphasizing the difference and distance between man and God. This is valuable to theology as a perspective, but requires the compensating search for nearness and presence. The . . . author sought to affirm this in and through his insistence that God is to be found, tabernacled among his people, at the center of their life as a community." [Note: Budd, p. 25.]
The tribes to the east and south marched ahead of the tabernacle, whereas those on the west and north marched behind it while Israel was in transit. The tabernacle faced east (i.e., "orient") to face the rising sun, as was customary in the ancient world.
"According to rabbinical tradition, the standard of Judah bore the figure of a lion, that of Reuben the likeness of a man or of a man’s head, that of Ephraim the figure of an ox, and that of Dan the figure of an eagle . . ." [Note: Keil and Delitzsch, 3:17. Cf. Ezekiel 1:10; Revelation 4:7.]
The early Christians used these same symbols to represent the four Gospels. They used a lion to stand for Matthew, an ox for Mark, a man for Luke, and an eagle for John. These animals symbolize aspects of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ that each evangelist stressed.
God evidently arranged the tribes in this order because of their ancestry.
|
Judah, Issachar, Zebulun |
Descendants of Leah |
|
Reuben, Simeon, Gad |
Descendants of Leah and her maid Zilpah |
|
Ephraim, Manasseh, Benjamin |
Descendants of Rachel |
|
Dan, Asher, Naphtali |
Descendants of the maids Bilhah and Zilpah |
"It will be seen from this arrangement that the vanguard and rearguard of the host had the strongest forces-186,400 and 157,600 respectively-with the smaller tribal groupings within them and the tabernacle in the center." [Note: James Philip, Numbers, p. 43.]
Moses did not explain the relationship of the tribes that camped on each side of the tabernacle to one another. Some scholars believe they were as my diagram above indicates while others feel that Judah, Reuben, Ephraim, and Dan were in the center of their groups. [Note: E.g., Leon Wood, A Survey of Israel’s History, p. 152; and Ashley, p. 74.]
"Further, the placement on the east is very significant in Israel’s thought. East is the place of the rising of the sun, the source of hope and sustenance. Westward was the sea. Israel’s traditional stance was with its back to the ocean and the descent of the sun. The ancient Hebrews were not a sea-faring people like the Phoenicians and the Egyptians. For Israel the place of pride was on the east. Hence there we find the triad of tribes headed by Judah, Jacob’s fourth son and father of the royal house that leads to King Messiah." [Note: Allen, p. 715.]
". . . the Genesis narratives devote much attention to the notion of ’the east,’ a theme that also appears important in the arrangement of the tribes. After the Fall, Adam and Eve, and then Cain, were cast out of God’s good land ’toward the east’ (Num 3:24; Num 4:16). Furthermore, Babylon was built in the east (Gen 11:2[, 9]), and Sodom was ’east’ of the Promised Land (Num 13:11). Throughout these narratives the hope is developed that God’s redemption would come from the east and that this redemption would be a time of restoration of God’s original blessing and gift of the land in Creation. Thus, God’s first act of preparing the land-when he said, ’Let there be light’ (Num 1:3)-used the imagery of the sunrise in the east as a figure of the future redemption. Moreover, God’s garden was planted for humankind ’in the east’ of Eden (Num 2:8), and it was there that God intended to pour out his blessing on them.
"Throughout the pentateuchal narratives, then, the concept of moving ’eastward’ plays an important role as a reminder of the Paradise Lost-the garden in the east of Eden-and a reminder of the hope for a return to God’s blessing ’from the east’-the place of waiting in the wilderness. It was not without purpose, then, that the arrangement of the tribes around the tabernacle should reflect the same imagery of hope and redemption." [Note: John H. Sailhamer, The Pentateuch as Narrative, pp. 371-72.]
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
3. THE CAMP
Num 2:1-34
The second chapter is devoted to the arrangement of the camp and the position of the various tribes on the march. The front is eastward, and Judah has the post of honour in the van; at its head Nahshon son of Amminadab. Issachar and Zebulun, closely associated with Judah in the genealogy as descended from Leah, are the others in front of the tabernacle. The right wing, to the south of the tabernacle, is composed of Reuben, Simeon, and Gad, again connected by the hereditary tie, Gad by descent from the “handmaid of Leah.” The seniority of Reuben is apparently acknowledged by the position of the tribe at the head of the right wing, which would sustain the first attack of the desert clans; for dignity and onerous duty go together. The rear is formed by Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, connected with one another by descent from Rachel. Northward, on the left of the advance, Dan, Asher, and Naphtali have their position. Standards of divisions and ensigns of families are not forgotten in the description of the camp; and Jewish tradition has ventured to state what some of these were. Judah is said to have been a lion (compare “the lion that is of the tribe of Judah,” Rev 5:5); Reuben, the image of a human head: Ephraim, an ox; and Dan an eagle. If this tradition is accepted, it will connect the four main ensigns of Israel with the vision of Ezekiel in which the same four figures were united in each of the four living creatures that issued from the fiery cloud.
The picture of the great organised camp and orderly march of Israel is interesting: but it presents a contrast to the disorganised, disorderly condition of human society in every land and every age. While it may be said that there are nations leagued in creed, allied by descent, which form the van; that others, similarly connected more or less, constitute the right and left wings of the advancing host; and the rest, straggling far behind, bring up the rear-this is but a very imaginative representation of the fact. No people advances as with one mind and one heart; no group of nations can be said to have a single standard. Time and destiny urge on the host, and all is to be won by steady resolute endeavour. Yet some are encamped, while others are moving about restlessly or engaged in petty conflicts that have nothing to do with moral gain. There should be unity; but one division is embroiled with another, tribe crosses swords with tribe. The truth is that as Israel came far short of real spiritual organisation and due disposition of its forces to serve a common end, so it is still with the human race. Nor do the schemes that are occasionally tried to some extent promise a remedy for our disorder. For the symbol of our most holy faith is not set in the midst by most of those who aim at social organisation, nor do they dream of seeking a better country, that is, a heavenly. The description of the camp of Israel has something to teach us still. Without the Divine law there is no progress, without a Divine rallying-point there is no unity. Faith must control, the standard of Christianity must show the way: otherwise the nations will only wander aimlessly, and fight and die in the desert.