Preface:    The people of Israel were tightly organized, having the discipline to move as an army.

The Bible Summary of Numbers 2 (in 140 characters or less): The Israelites shall camp around the tabernacle: Judah to the east, Reuben to the south, Ephraim to the west and Dan to the north.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Numbers. This will be the most extensive examination of Numbers 2, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 2:

Introduction

         vv.     1–

         vv. 

         vv. 

         vv. 

         vv. 

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Numbers 2 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Numbers 2 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Numbers 2

         Introduction         The Prequel of Numbers 2

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Numbers 2

         Introduction         The Places of Numbers 2

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Numbers 2

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Numbers 2

         Introduction         Outlines of Numbers 2 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Numbers 2 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Numbers 1–15)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Numbers 2)

         Introduction 

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         v.      31              Location of the Tribes with regards to the Tabernacle (a graphic)

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         v.      33              Translating the Word Numbered

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         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Numbers 2 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Numbers 2

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Numbers 2

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Numbers 2

         Summary 

         Addendum 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Numbers 2

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Numbers 2

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Numbers 2

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Numbers 2

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An Introduction to Numbers 2

I ntroduction: What is different in Numbers 2, as opposed to Numbers 1, is that the armies are grouped into groups of three. One of those three tribes is the leader. Where exactly these tribes are in relationship to the Tabernacle is given, and then a total of those in the army for each group of three is given. So all of that is new material.

Again, this is something which would have been very impactful at the time that this organization took place. Therefore it was recorded. This indicates to us that Israel indeed had the army at this time that could have gone into Canaan and taken it. What did they lack? They lacked the mental attitude to do it; they lacked the trust in God to do it.

To whom much is given, much is expected. How many generations of Israelites were given all that Gen X was given? They were led out of Egypt. One week they are slaves and the next week they are free. They have seen dozens of great miracles, from the parting of the sea to the giving of the manna six days a week. “God says that we can take the land, therefore, we need to go into the land and take it!” This should have been the attitude of every spy sent into the land and every general of the twelve armies.

Application: As believers, we can be very demanding. There may be all kinds of material wants and social wants that we have, and some of us make deals with God to get these things. Always remember, when God delivers, then you must deliver as well.

Application: As you grow spiritually, you will be blessed. If you have any sense of introspection, you should be able to see where you are and how far God has brought you in this life (if you are a growing believer). When God delivers, then we should be responding to His gifts.

In this way, all Israel should be able to see what God has done for them; and when God tells them to advance their army into the land of Canaan, then that is what they ought to do.

Studying the book of Numbers can be a rather sad affair, given what God has blessed these people with, and given that they could have gone so much further, but they did not.

Chapters 1 and 2 of Numbers would not have been written 500 years later or 1000 years later or even 100 years later. God said of this generation, I loathed this generation. In fact, He said this in the Old and New Testaments. What is being done here, from the human view, is a very big deal. Israel is being prepared to go to war and this affected every adult male (and, by application, every child and female as well). Therefore, we would expect Moses to record this information. This suggests to us that Moses wrote this information as it was taking place. About a month from now, the people of Israel will choose not to go into the land. God will tell them “Get ready, we move out tomorrow,” and almost all Israel cried that night, too afraid to move out. From strictly a human standpoint, a month from now, Moses probably would not have written all of this information about the first army of Israel because they will fail big time. But in the moment, of course this would be recorded.

Now, God the Holy Spirit is able to see what is gong to take place in the future. So why do we have Numbers 1–2 if God knows that these armies will fail? They will not advance a single foot into Canaan. What is being taught here is the principle of universal military service and training. This is all about nationalism.

The Jews in Germany in the 1930s and 1940s did not read the historical trends. If anyone should know, they should know that they are the chosen people of God. As such, Satan is going to go after them with everything that he has. They were not ready for this horrendous series of events. However, present-day Israel is. Everyone is a part of their national army; everyone is ready to defend their state. They know how much hatred is all around them and they are ready and willing to defend their homeland no matter the cost. Today, they understand the importance of having a strong military, which is one aspect of the laws of divine establishment.

On the other hand, the United States is allowing our military to become some massive social experiment in such a way to virtually neutralize our army (which is potentially the greatest army in the world). Those who understand the laws of divine establishment want tough military training with constant advancement in weaponry. Those who do not have a clue want to make sure people are using the correct pronouns and that any crackpot who wants a sex-change operation should have one for free, if in the military.

Timeline for Numbers

There is very little narrative in the book of Numbers; so this information may have been given to Moses in a few days or, at most, a few weeks; and Moses both wrote these things down and informed the people. Because of information previously studied in the introduction, we are not 100% certain if all of this material was given to Moses while in the newly erected Tabernacle. I would lean towards that being the case.

As I have done previously, since this chapters is what God is saying to Moses, I will begin and end the chapter with quotation marks. I will not insert a new set of quotation marks for each new paragraph.

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Here is how others have translated this passage:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Numbers.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so speaks Y^ehowah unto Moses and Aaron, to say, “A man upon his flag in signs to a house of their fathers: and so bivouac sons of Israel from before [and] around to a Tent of Meeting they will bivouac.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  . Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   .

Jerusalem targum                  .

Updated Douay-Rheims         .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: All the children of Israel shall camp by their troops, ensigns, and standards, and the houses of their kindreds, round about the tabernacle of the covenant.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Mar-Yah spoke to Mosha and to Aaron, saying, "The B'nai Yisrael shall encamp every man by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers' houses: at a distance from the Tabernacle shall they encamp around it."

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     .

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Samaritan Pentateuch           .

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

Let the children of Israel encamp fronting each other, every man keeping his own rank, according to their standards, according to the houses of their families; the children of Israel shall encamp round about the tabernacle of witness.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 

The children of Israel are to put up their tents in the order of their families, by the flags of their fathers' houses, facing the Tent of meeting on every side.

Easy English                          .

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  The LORD said to Moses and Aaron: "The Israelites should make their camps around the Meeting Tent. Each division will have its own special flag, and everyone will camp near their group's flag.

God’s Word™                         The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, "The Israelites will put up their tents with each family under the flag that symbolizes its household. They will put their tents around the tent of meeting, facing it.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The LORD gave Moses and Aaron the following instructions. When the Israelites set up camp, each man will camp under the banner of his division and the flag of his own clan. The camp is to be set up all around the Tent.

The Message                         .

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      .

New Simplified Bible              .

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             .

Contemporary English V.       The LORD told Moses and Aaron how the Israelites should arrange their camp: Each tribe must set up camp under its own banner and under the flags of its ancestral families. These camps will be arranged around the sacred tent, but not close to it.

The Living Bible                     .

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    .

New Living Translation           .

UnfoldingWord (Simplified)    Then Yahweh said this to Aaron and Moses, "When the Israelites set up their tents, they are to set them up in areas that surround the sacred tent, but not close to it. The people of each tribe must set up their tents in a different area. Each tribe must put up a flag in that area that identifies their tribe.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          .

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           .

New Advent (Knox) Bible       .

Translation for Translators     .

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Christian Standard Bible        .

Berean Study Bible                .

Conservapedia                       .

Revised Ferrar-Fenton Bible  .

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           .

The Heritage Bible                          And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,

Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own flag, with the insignia of their father’s house; they shall pitch opposite, and around the tent of appointed meeting.

International Standard V        Encampment Orders

Later, the Lord told Moses and Aaron,

“Every single Israeli [Lit. Each man of the Israelis] is to encamp beneath his standard with the emblem of his ancestral house. The Israelis are to encamp from a distance, [Or in front of] but surrounding the Tent of Meeting.”

Lexham English Bible            .

NIV, ©2011                             .

Unfolding Word Literal Text   .

Urim-Thummim Version         YHWH spoke to Moses and to Aaron saying, Every man from the children of Israel will encamp by his own standard, with the ensign of their father's house, at a distance surrounding the Tabernacle at the Appointed Place they will encamp.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: The sons of Israel will park each at his flag, by family; around the tent of events they shall park.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  Israel’s armies

Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron. He said: “The Israelites are to camp, every man by his own banner, under the flag of his tribe. They are to camp all around the Holy Tent of the Testimony, but at some distance from it.

New American Bible(2011)    .

The Catholic Bible                  .

New Jerusalem Bible             .

NRSV (Anglicized Cath. Ed.) .

Revised English Bible–1989            .

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           .

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Hebraic Roots Bible               .

Kaplan Translation                 .

The Scriptures–2009              And יהוה spoke to Mosheh and to Aharon, saying, “The children of Yisra’ěl are to camp, each one by his own banner, beside the sign of his father’s house. Let them camp around the Tent of Appointment at a distance.”

Tree of Life Version                Adonai said to Moses and Aaron saying, “Let each man encamp under his own standard among the banners of their ancestral house at an appropriate distance around the Tent of Meeting.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            AND JESUS SPOKE TO MOSES AND AARON, SAYING,

LET THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL ENCAMP FRONTING EACH OTHER, EVERY MAN KEEPING HIS OWN RANK, ACCORDING TO THEIR STANDARDS, ACCORDING TO THE HOUSES OF THEIR FAMILIES; THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL SHALL ENCAMP ROUND ABOUT THE TABERNACLE OF WITNESS.

Awful Scroll Bible                   Sustains To Become was to speak to Moses and Aaron, to the intent:

Everyone of the sons of Contends-with-he-mighty was to encamp by their banner, with the ensign of their father's house opposite, on around the tent of the appointed place, even were they to encamp.

Concordant Literal Version    Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying.

Each man under his standard, under the ensigns for their fathers' house, so shall the sons of Israel encamp. From a distance around the tent of appointment shall they encamp.

exeGeses companion Bible   CAMPS OF THE SONS OF YISRA EL

And Yah Veh words to Mosheh and to Aharon,

saying,

Encamp every man of the sons of Yisra El

by his own banner,

with the ensign of the house of their father:

encamp them in front and all around

the tent of the congregation.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And Hashem spoke unto Moshe and unto Aharon, saying,

The Bnei Yisroel shall encamp, each man under his own degel (standard, banner), with the otot (ensigns) of the bais of their avot; some distance from it, around the Ohel Mo'ed must they encamp. [see Yehoshua 3:4]

Rotherham’s Emphasized B.                            § 2. The Order of March—in Five Camps.

Chapter 2.

Then spake Yahweh unto Moses and unto Aaronˎ saying:

<Every man—near his standardˎ with the ensigns belonging to their ancestral houses> shall the sons of Israel encamp,—<at a distance round about the tent of meeting> shall they encamp.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                .

The Expanded Bible              .

Kretzmann’s Commentary    .

Lexham English Bible            The Arrangement of the Camps

Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

“The Israelites [Literally “sons/children of Israel”] will encamp each with his standard, with a banner according to their families; [Literally “the house of their fathers”] they will encamp around the tent of assembly.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               .

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           .

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kaplan Translation                 The Camp: Judah to the East

God spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

The Israelites shall camp with each person near the banner having his paternal family's insignia. They shall camp at a specified distance around the Communion Tent. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Numbers through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

specified distance

2000 cubits (3000 feet or approximately 7/16 mile); see Numbers 35:5; Joshua 3:4 (Tanchuma 9; Rashi). Neged in Hebrew (cf. Ibn Ezra). Or, 'near each other' (Septuagint).

NET Bible®                             .

New American Bible(2011)    .

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. .

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

A Faithful Version                  . Pitch

C. Thomson Updated OT       .

Charles Thomson OT            And when the Israelites had done according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, then the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, Let the children of Israel encamp close to one another, by divisions, by standards, by the houses of their families, facing the tabernacle of the testimony. All around it the Israelites shall encamp. Numbers 1:54 is included for context.

Context Group Version          . round about

English Standard Version      .

Green’s Literal Translation    . afar off

Legacy Standard Bible           .

Literal Standard Version        And YHWH speaks to Moses and to Aaron, saying, “The sons of Israel encamp, each by his standard, with ensigns of the house of their fathers; they encamp around, from in sight of the Tent of Meeting.”

Modern English Version         .

Modern Literal Version 2020  And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, The sons of Israel will encamp every man by his own banner, with the ensigns of their fathers' houses. They will encamp all around opposite the tent of meeting.

New American Standard B.    .

New European Version          .

New King James Version       .

Niobi Study Bible                   .

Revised Mechanical Trans.    ...and YHWH spoke to Mosheh and to Aharon saying, each by his banner, with the signs according to the house of their fathers, the sons of Yisra'eyl will camp, opposite all around the appointed tent they will camp,...

Updated Bible Version 2.17   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      And Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: Everyone of the sons of Israel shall encamp by his own standard, next to the emblems of his father's house; they shall encamp at a distance from the tent of meeting.

Webster’s Bible Translation  .

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young's Updated LT              .

The gist of this passage: 

Translation: And so Y^ehowah speaks unto Moses and Aaron, saying,...

What other book testifies to God speaking to man?

We were given all kinds of information in Numbers 1:1 as to when and where this all takes place. However, we are back to the point where God speaks to Moses and Aaron, but without any additional information (not that it would make any difference). It has been my assumption that most of the time, Moses speaks with God in the Tabernacle.

Translation: ...“The sons of Israel will encamp each man by his (own) standard with the ensigns of the houses of their fathers.

God has assigned the Israelites specific places to be, which is going to be the bulk of this chapter. It is not clear to me whether this flag or standard is for all Israel or one for every tribe. I am not sure at all what the ensigns are. The word is ʾôwth (אוֹת) [pronounced oath] and it means, sign, a distinguishing mark; token, pledge; remembrance; assurance; a miraculous sign. The word is in the plural. Strong’s #226 BDB #16.

God was attempting to get this army ready for military discipline, although it will become clear, later in this book, that this generation is not ready yet to be so trained. As a military organization, most of this military-aged men will fail.

Translation: They will encamp from a distance around the Tent of Meeting. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Facing from a distance from is the prefixed preposition mîn and the preposition/adverb neged (נֶגֶד) [pronounced NEH-ged]. Mîn is a preposition which invovles separation and neged means in front of, opposite to, in the sight of. Strong’s #5048 BDB #617. The Levites were to be close to the tabernacle, thus protecting the other Israelites from God's wrath (Num. 1:53); so this short word tells us that the Israelites were to face the tabernacle and camped a distance away from it. We find a similar usage in Genesis 1:16 Deuteronomy 32:52. A more interesting usage of the same combination can be found in Deuteronomy 28:66 and 2Kings 2:15 (spiritual separation or aloofness is the key in these passages).

The various tribes are to camp out around the Tent of Meeting, and exactly where will be the subject of this chapter.

Numbers 2:1–2 And so Y^ehowah speaks unto Moses and Aaron, saying, “The sons of Israel will encamp each man by his (own) standard with the ensigns of the houses of their fathers. They will encamp from a distance around the Tent of Meeting. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

What we are reading here is specifically for this and the next generation of Israelites (that is what the book of Numbers is all about).

There have been allegations that Moses did not write the books of the Law (well, he did not write Genesis); and there is the claim that a variety of people wrote these books. This is based upon the evidence that some chapters feature the name Y^ehowah more often than the name Elohim, and vice versa for other chapters. Based upon that evidence, there has been a whole big theory developed that two people or two sets of people, writing hundreds of years after Moses, wrote the Law, and then another person or group of people shuffled those chapters together and that is how we ended up with the Torah. This is a ridiculous theory, and yet, it is taught at most seminaries. There is very little proof for this theory, but the key is Leviticus 26. God promises Israel discipline, and then describes what would happen to Israel in the future. Well, if you start with the assumption that there is no God or there is no way a god can predict the future, then you make the assumption that these chapters had to be written after the fact.

Now, when it comes to these various individuals or groups—there is absolutely no record of them. So, a nation which is quite OCD when it comes to recording their history, leaves out the actual writing of the Torah and all those involved in writing it. That is if you follow the that theory. As many pastors have found out—often the hard way—if they begin to teach this nonsense in their church, their congregation will just melt away. They will go elsewhere. If they here teaching like this, many of them will go elsewhere and quickly. If you are a pastor and you don’t believe me, very likely you are well-educated in the JEPD theory. Try teaching that as truth a Sunday or two, and watch your congregation disappear.

The other approach is to accept that Moses or Moses through Joshua, wrote Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy; and that these were written at the time that these events took place. Throughout the Law, you will find instances of God saying, “Write this down, Moses.”

Now why did I start writing about the JEPD theory all of a sudden? Primarily because the words that you are reading would not have been written 400 years later or 800 years later or whatever. The people who are alive right now, who are receiving this teaching from Moses, are a unique generation. They are a loathed generation (as we can read many times in both the Old and New Testaments); but they are also unique. There are things which happened to them that were not a part of any other generation’s experience. What we read here is an example of this. We are not reading instructions for Israel to guide Israel in its future right here. We are reading about a generation of adult slaves who are being told exactly what God wants them to do while in the desert. This is not going to be a repeated experience. This is the experience of one generation at one particular point in history.

Another way to view the book of Numbers is, we are seeing two generations of Israelites. There is Gen X, those who are included in the census in Numbers 1; and the generation of promise (the next generation), who are their sons and grandsons. This second generation will be discussed in Numbers 26. That is when they will have grown up (Numbers 26 takes place about 39 years later), and this new generation will enter the land under Joshua’s leadership, and they will take the land of promise. They will conquer the land of promise, just as God will tell this first generation to do.

Whereas Leviticus takes place over the period of a month or two; the book of Numbers documents Israel one year after the Exodus to about 2 months out from the land of promise, a period of 39 years. This is the story of two generations, Gen X and the generation of promise. The first generation fails, and the next generation will succeed (which is the book of Joshua).

But the more narrow point that I am making is, if this book were written hundreds of years later, why on earth would all this information be given about the generation which failed? I understand the documentation if this is taking place and being recorded while it is taking place; but what is recorded here has little meaning to people living 600 years in the future from this time.

We have run into something like this previously at the end of the book of Exodus. God first told Moses how to build the Tabernacle; and then great detail is given to the actual building of the Tabernacle. For someone living at that time, these are two very different sets of events; but to someone writing about this 800 years later, they would never separate this into two events.

You live in a house. Now, if you bought that house already built, then you never think about the people who built it or the steps involved to build your house. Now, you may run into a feature of your house that you think is great or stupid, but you never give a lot of thought to the man who wrote the plans for your house and what was going on in his mind and his life at the time of making these plans. This is how a normal person thinks. You see the house, you see its faults and its good points, but your mind does not constantly go back to the actual people building that house and what they did and thought and experienced while building it. 99% of the time, if you stood behind someone who worked on your house building it, you would not know him from Adam. A normal person sees a house as it is the day he moves in. Unless you were somehow involved with the building process, you do not think about the building process.

Well, similarly, if someone wrote the book of Exodus 800 years after the fact, they would not have separated God’s plans from the construction of the Tabernacle from the finished product of the Tabernacle (in fact, another problem with this theory is, the people who supposedly wrote the Law of Moses (the J and E guys) they have never seen the Tabernacle before in their lives. They might not have any reason to know that it even existed. And yet, they write about it in the greatest detail you could imagine.

Again, chapters like this one and like those at the end of Exodus make a lot of sense if they were written by Moses at the time that these events took place. They make a lot less sense writing about them hundreds of years later.

Numbers 2:1–2 Jehovah spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “The sons of Israel will camp in such a way that each man will be by his own standard with the ensigns of the house of his fathers. The entire congregation will encamp around the Tent of Meeting, a reasonable distance away. (Kukis paraphrase)

Each tribe had a ensign or a banner, different from the other tribes; and each trio of tribes had a standard which they rallied around. The ensign was carried at the head of each tribe and possibly for each subdivision of a tribe; the standard was a much larger field sign. We are not told in the Bible what these flags looked like (if they were flags; however, they were probably more similar to Egyptian standards than our modern flags. Egpytian standards were made of wood and/or metal and the top was shaped like some sacred entity. Freeman gives us some various pictures in his books and at the end of a stick there might be a carved bird or an animal, the head of a Pharaoh or some other symbol.

Jewish tradition, which is not always correct (and rarely has a basis in Bible doctrine) has it that each banner was the color of whatever stone on the high priest's breastplate represented that particular tribe. I don't particularly but that nor is it important, as it is not covered in the Bible. There is also a tradition the the standard fo Judah had the figure of a lion on it; Reuben the figure of a man; Ephraim, the figure of an ox; and Dan, the figure of an eagle (to correspond with Ezekiel 1:10 and Rev. 4:7). This is more reasonable and satisfying than the first tradition, but, again, has no basis in fact.

The direction of God in our lives is pervausive. It encompasses every portion of our lives. For a new Christian, this is frightening, and for those who are unsaved, it might even put you off. However, God's desire for us is the absolute best and he works in every aspect of our lives. Here he organizes the way that the Israelites will camp. Up until this time, they have just been traveling as a huge swath of men, women and livestock in a width of several miles without any sort of real organization. For our God is not God of confusion...let all things be done properly and in an orderly manner (I Cor. 14:33a, 40b).

——————————

Here is how others have translated this passage:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And the ones bivouacking eastward, toward the east, a flag of a camp of Judah to their armies. And a leader to sons of Judah Nahshon ben Aminadab. And his army and their being visited: four and seventy a thousand and six hundreds. And the ones bivouacking upon a tribe of Issachar; a leader to sons of Issachar Nethanel ben Zuar. And his army and their being visited four and fifty a thousand and four hundreds. A tribe of Zebulun; a leader to sons of Zebulun Eliab ben Helon. And his army and their being visited seven and fifty a thousand and four hundreds. All their being visited to a camp of Judah one hundred a thousand and eighty a thousand and six a thousand and four hundreds to their armies. First they will pull up stakes.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Jerusalem targum                  .

Targum (Onkelos)                  .

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   .

Aramaic Targum                    .

The Psalms Targum              .

Updated Douay-Rheims         .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) On the east Juda shall pitch his tents by the bands of his army: and the prince of his sons; shall be Nahasson the son of Aminadab.

And the whole sum of the fighting men of his stock, were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

Next unto him they of the tribe of Issachar encamped, whose prince was Nathanael, the son of Suar.

And the whole number of his fighting men were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

In the tribe of Zabulon the prince was Eliab the son of Helon.

And all the army of fighting men of his stock, were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

All that were numbered in the camp of Juda, were a hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred: and they by their troops shall march first.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Those who encamp on the east side toward the sunrise shall be of the standard of the camp of Yudah, according to their divisions: and the prince of the children of Yudah shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

His division, and those who were numbered of them, were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

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.

His division, and those who were numbered of it, were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

The tribe of Zebulun: and the prince of the children of Zebulun shall be Eliab the son of Helon.

His division, and those who were numbered of it, were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

All who were numbered of the camp of Yudah were one hundred eighty-six thousand four hundred, according to their divisions. They shall set out first.

Original Aramaic Psalms        .

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Plain English Aramaic Bible   .

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     .

Samaritan Pentateuch           .

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And they that encamp first toward the east shall be the order of the camp of Judah with their army, and the prince of the sons of Judah, Nahshon the son of Aminadab.

His forces that were numbered were seventy-four thousand six hundred.

And they that encamp next shall be of the tribe of Issachar, and the prince of the sons of Issachar shall be Nathanel the son of Zuar.

His forces that were numbered were fifty-four thousand four hundred.

And they that encamp next shall be of the tribe of Zebulun, and the prince of the sons of Zebulun shall be Eliab the son of Helon.

His forces that were numbered were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.

All that were numbered of the camp of Judah were one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred: they shall move first with their forces.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             Those whose tents are on the east side, looking to the dawn, will be round the flag of the children of Judah, with Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, as their chief. 

The number of his army was seventy-four thousand, six hundred. 

And nearest to him will be the tribe of Issachar, with Nethanel, the son of Zuar, as their chief. 

The number of his army was fifty-four thousand, four hundred. 

After him, the tribe of Zebulun, with Eliab, the son of Helon, as their chief. 

The number of his army was fifty-seven thousand, four hundred. 

The number of all the armies of Judah was a hundred and eighty-six thousand, four hundred. They go forward first.

Easy English                          .

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  "The flag of the camp of Judah will be on the east side, where the sun rises. The people of Judah will camp near its flag. The leader of the people of Judah is Nahshon son of Amminadab. There are 74,600 men in his division.

"The tribe of Issachar will camp next to the tribe of Judah. The leader of the tribe of Issachar is Nethanel son of Zuar. There are 54,400 men in his division.

"The tribe of Zebulun will also camp next to the tribe of Judah. The leader of the tribe of Zebulun is Eliab son of Helon. There are 57,400 men in his division.

"The total number of men in Judah's camp is 186,400. All these men are divided into their different tribes. Judah will be the first group to move when the people travel from one place to another.

God’s Word™                         "On the east side, facing the rising sun, the armies led by Judah will camp under their flag. The leader for the people of Judah is Nahshon, son of Amminadab. The total number of men in his army is 74,600.

"Next to them will be the tribe of Issachar. The leader for the people of Issachar is Nethanel, son of Zuar. The total number of men in his army is 54,400.

"Then will be the tribe of Zebulun. The leader for the people of Zebulun is Eliab, son of Helon. The total number of men in his army is 57,400.

"The grand total of all the troops in Judah's camp is 186,400. They will be the first group to move out.

Good News Bible (TEV)         On the east side, those under the banner of the division of Judah shall camp in their groups, under their leaders, as follows:

                                                        Tribe                    Leader                                             Number

JudahNahshon son of Amminadab74,600

                                                        Issachar              Nethanel son of Zuar                       54,400

                                                        Zebulun               Eliab son of Helon                           57,400

                                                        Total:                                                                   186,400

The division of Judah shall march first.

The Message                         .

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      .

New Simplified Bible              .

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             .

Contemporary English V.       Judah and the tribes that march with it must set up camp on the east side of the sacred tent, under their own banner. The 74,600 troops of the tribe of Judah will be arranged by divisions and led by Nahshon son of Amminadab. On one side of Judah will be the tribe of Issachar, with Nethanel son of Zuar as the leader of its 54,400 troops. On the other side will be the tribe of Zebulun, with Eliab son of Helon as the leader of its 57,400 troops. These 186,400 troops will march into battle first.

The Living Bible                     .

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    .

New Living Translation           .

The Passion Translation        .

Unfolding Bible Simplified      The people of the tribe of Judah must set up their tents on the east side of the sacred tent, close to their tribal flag. Nahshon son of Amminadab, will be the leader of the 74,600 men of the tribe of Judah.  

The people of the tribe of Issachar will set up their tents beside Judah. Nethanel son of Zuar will be the leader of the 54,400 men of the tribe of Issachar.  

The people of the tribe of Zebulun will set up their tents beside Issachar. Eliab son of Helon, will be the leader of the 57,400 men of the tribe of Zebulun.  

So there will be 186,400 troops on the east side of the sacred tent. Whenever the Israelites move to a new location, those three tribes must go in front of the others.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          .

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           .

New Advent (Knox) Bible       .

Translation for Translators     .

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Berean Study Bible                .

Christian Standard Bible        .

Conservapedia Translation    .

Revised Ferrar-Fenton Bible  .

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           .

The Heritage Bible                          And they of the flag of the camp of Judah shall pitch by their hosts on the east side toward the rising of the sun, and Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, shall be prince of the children of Judah.

And his host and those who were visited of them, seventyfour thousand, six hundred.

And those who pitch next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar; and Nethaneel, the son of Zuar, shall be prince of the children of Issachar.

And his host and those who were visited of him, fifty-four thousand, four hundred.

And the tribe of Zebulun: Eliab, the son of Helon, shall be prince of the children of Zebulun.

And his host and those who were visited of him, fifty-seven thousand, four hundred.

All who were visited in the camp of Judah were one hundred and eighty-six thousand, four hundred, by their hosts. These shall pull up first.

International Standard V        Eastern Encampment Order

“The encampment of Judah is to settle east toward the sunrise [Lit. east] under their standard. The leader of Judah is to be Amminadab’s son Nahshon. Those in his division number 74,600. [Cf. Num 1:27]

“The tribe of Issachar is to encamp beside Judah. [Lit. him] The leader of Issachar is to be Zuar’s son Nethanel. Those in his division number 54,400. [Cf. Num 1:29]

“Next is to be [Lit. Then] the tribe of Zebulun. The leader of Zebulun is to be Helon’s son Eliab. Those in his division number 57,400. All those numbered by division in the camp of Judah total 186,400. They are to be the first to travel.”

H. C. Leupold                         .

Lexham English Bible            .

NIV, ©2011                             .

Unfolding Bible Literal Text    .

Urim-Thummim Version         And those encamping Eastward towards the point of sunrise are of the standard of the tribe of Judah, by their hosts and the commander of the sons of Judah is Nahshon, son of Aminadab. And his army, and those that were registered with them were 74,600. Those that encamp next to him will be the tribe of Issachar, and Nethaneel the son of Zuar will be commander for the children of Issachar. And his army, and those that were registered with them were 54,400. Then the tribe of Zebulun, and Eliab the son of Helon will be commander of the children of Zebulun. And his army, and those that were registered with them were 57,400. All that were registered in the camp of Judah were 186,400, throughout their armies. These are the first to march out.

Wikipedia Bible Project          The Wikipedia Bible Project quits the book of Numbers with v. 8; there is nothing after v. 9 (I looked three or four chapters ahead).

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)           Those who are to camp on the east side, towards the sunrise: the camp of Judah around his banner, in battle arrangement. Leader of the sons of Judah: Nahshon son of Amminadab. His command: 74,600 men.

Encamped next to him:

The tribe of Issachar. Leader of the sons of Issachar: Nethanel son of Zuar. His command: 54,400 men.

The tribe of Zebulun. Leader of the sons of Zebulun: Eliab son of Helon. His command: 57,400.

The assembled strength of the camp of Judah numbers in all 186,400. These are to be first in marching.

New American Bible (2011)   .

The Catholic Bible                  .

New Jerusalem Bible             .

NRSV (Anglicized Cath. Ed.) .

Revised English Bible–1989   .

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           .

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Hebraic Roots Bible               .

Kaplan Translation                 Camping to the east (the direction of sunrise) shall be the divisions under the banner of Judah.

The leader of Judah's descendants was Nachshon son of Aminadab.

The tally of his division was 74,600.

Camping near him shall be the tribe of Issachar, and the leader of Issachar's descendants was Nethanel son of Tzar.

The tally of his division was 54,400.

[With them shall be ] the tribe of Zebulun, and the leader of Zebulun's descendants was Eliav son of Chelon.

The tally of his division was 57,400.

The entire tally for the divisions in Judah's camp was thus 186,400.

On the march, they shall go first.

The Scriptures–2009              And on the east side, towards sunrise: those of the banner of the camp of Yehuah camp according to their divisions. And the leader of the children of Yehuah: Nashon, son of Amminaa.  And his army with their registered ones: seventy-four thousand six hundred.  And those camping next to him is the tribe of Yissasar, and the leader of the children of Yissasar: Nethan’ěl, son of Tsu‛ar.  And his army with its registered ones: fifty-four thousand four hundred.  Then the tribe of Zeulun, and the leader of the children of Zeulun: Eliya, son of ělon.  And his army with its registered ones: fifty-seven thousand four hundred.  All the registered ones of the camp of Yehuah, according to their divisions: one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred. These depart first.

Tree of Life Version                Those camping on the east—toward the sunrise—will be of the standard of Judah, according to their divisions. Nachshon son of Amminadab, is the prince of the sons of Judah. His division, by their number, is 74,600. Camping next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar. The prince of the sons of Issachar is Nethanel son of Zuar. Their division, by their number, is 54,400. Next, the tribe of Zebulun. The prince of the sons of Zebulun is Eliab son of Helon. His division, by count, is 57,400. All those numbered to Judah’s camp, by their divisions, are 186,400. They are to advance first.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            .

Awful Scroll Bible                   On the east, even the rising of the sun, the banner of the camp of Judah is to be encamping their host, and Nahshon, son of Amminadab, is to be the lifted up one of the sons of Judah.

His host that is being reviewed, are seventy and four thousand, and six hundred.

Those encamping by him is the branch of Issachar, and Nethaneel, son of Zuar, is to be the lifted up one of the son of Issachar.

His host that is being reviewed, are fifty and four thousand, and four hundred.

Then the branch of Zebulun, and Eli-ab the son of Helon, is to be the lifted up one of the son of Zebulun.

His host that is being reviewed, are fifty and seven thousand, and four hundred.

They being reviewed of the camp of Judah, are a hundred thousand and eighty thousand, and six thousand, and four hundred, by their armies, even were they to first pull out.

Concordant Literal Version    Those encamping eastward, toward the sunrise, are under the standard of the camp of Judah, by their militia hosts. The prince for the sons of Judah is Nahshon son of Aminadab;" his militia host and their mustered ones are seventy-four thousand six hundred. Those encamping next to him are the stock of Issachar. The prince for the sons of Issachar is Nathanael son of Zuar; his militia host and its mustered ones are fifty-four thousand four hundred. The stock of Zebulun:The prince for the sons of Zebulun is Eliab son of Helon; his militia host and its mustered ones are fifty-seven thousand four hundred. All the ones being mustered of the camp of Judah are a hundred eighty-six thousand four hundred, by their militia hosts. As the first shall they journey.

exeGeses companion Bible   And on the east side toward the rising,

pitch the banner of the camp of Yah Hudah

throughout their hosts:

and hierarch of the sons of Yah Hudah

is Nahshon the son of Ammi Nadab:

and his host and their mustered:

seventy-four thousand and six hundred.

And next to him, pitch the rod of Yissachar:

and hierarch of the sons of Yissachar

is Nethan El the son of Suar:

and his host and their mustered:

fifty-four thousand and four hundred.

Then the rod of Zebulun:

and hierarch of the sons of Zebulun

is Eli Ab the son of Helon:

and his host and their mustered:

fifty-seven thousand and four hundred.

All their mustered in the camp of Yah Hudah:

a hundred thousand and eighty thousand

and six thousand and four hundred

throughout their hosts:

these pull stakes first.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the degel (standard, banner) of the machaneh of Yehudah encamp by their tzvaos: and Nachshon ben Amminadav shall be Nasi of the Bnei Yehudah.[Bereshis 49:10]

And his tz'va (host), and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred.

And those that do encamp next unto him shall be the tribe of Yissakhar; and Netanel ben Tzuar shall be Nasi of the Bnei Yissakhar.

And his tz'va (host), and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred.

Then the tribe of Zevulun; and Eliav ben Helon shall be Nasi of the Bnei Zebulun.

And his tz'va (host), and those that were numbered thereof, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred.

All that were numbered in the machaneh of Yehudah were an hundred thousand and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, by their tzvaos. These shall set forth first.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. .

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                .

The Expanded Bible              .

Kretzmann’s Commentary    

Lexham English Bible            The ones who encamp on the eastern side, toward the sunrise, will be of the standard of the camp of Judah according to their divisions; and the leader of the descendants of Judah will be Nahshon son of Amminadab, and his division and the ones counted [Literally “the ones counted of them,” or “the ones mustered of them”] are seventy-four thousand six hundred. And the ones who encamp next to him will be the tribe of Issachar. And the leader of the descendants of Issachar will be Nethanel son of Zuar, and his division are fifty-four thousand four hundred. For the tribe of Zebulun: the leader of the descendants of Zebulun will be Eliab son of Helon, and his division and the ones counted [Literally “the ones counted of him,” or “the ones mustered of him”] are fifty-seven thousand four hundred. All those counted from the camp of Judah are one hundred and eighty-six thousand four hundred. They will set out first according to their divisions.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               .

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           .

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kaplan Translation                 .

NET Bible®                             .

New American Bible (2011)   .

New Catholic Bible                 .

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. ||And they who encamp eastwardsˎ towards sunrise|| [shall be] the standard of the camp^a of Judahˎ by their hosts,—even the prince of the sons of Judah, Nashônˎ son of Amminadab; and his hostˎ ||even they who are numbered of them||,—seventy-four thousandˎ and six hundred. ||Then they who encamp by himˎ the tribe of Issachar||,—even the prince of the sons of Issachar, Nethanêlˎ son of Zuar; and his hostˎ even ||they who are numbered of them||,—fifty-four thousandˎ and four hundred. The ||tribe^b of Zebulun|| even the prince of the sons of Zebulun, Eliabˎ son of Hêlôn; and his host, ||even they who are numbered of him|| fifty-seven thousandˎ and four hundred. <All they who are numbered to the camp of Judahˎ a hundred and eighty-six thousandˎ four hundredˎ by their hosts> shall firstʹ set forward.

^a Note the difference between “camp” and “tribe”; each camp consisting of three tribes.

^b Some cod. (w. Sam.) have: “Then the tribe.” Cp. vers. 14, 22, 29—G.n.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

A Faithful Version                  And those who pitch on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall be those of the banner of the camp of Judah, throughout their armies. And Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be leader of the sons of Judah." 

And his army, and those that were numbered of them, were seventy-four thousand, six hundred. 

"And those that pitch next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar. And Nethaneel the son of Zuar shall be captain of the sons of Issachar." 

And his army, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty-four thousand, and four hundred. 

"And the tribe of Zebulun: the leader of the sons of Zebulun shall be Eliab the son of Helon." 

And his army, and those numbered of them, were fifty-seven thousand and four hundred. 

"All that were numbered of the camp of Judah were a hundred and eighty-six thousand and four hundred by their armies. They shall set forth first.

C. Thomson Updated OT       .

Charles Thomson OT            And they who encamp first, towards the east, shall be the division of the camp of Judas with their army; and the chief of the children of Judas shall be Naasson, son of Aminadab; his army; even they who were reviewed, being seventy four thousand six hundred; and they who encamp adjoining, shall be the division of the tribe of Issachar, and the chief of the Issacharites shall be Nathaniel, son of Sogar; his army; even they who were reviewed, being fifty four thousand four hundred; and they who encamp adjoining, shall be the division of the tribe of Zabulon, and the chief of the Zabulonites shall be Eliab, son of Chailon; his army; even they who were reviewed, being fifty seven thousand four hundred; all those of the camp of Judas who have been reviewed, amounting to one hundred and eighty six thousand four hundred, with their army, shall march in the van.

Context Group Version          .

English Standard Version      . listed

Green’s Literal Translation    .

Legacy Standard Bible           .

Literal Standard Version        .

Modern English Version         .

Modern Literal Version 2020  And those who encamp on the east side toward the sunrise will be those of the banner of the camp of Judah, according to their armies. And the ruler of the sons of Judah will be Nahshon the son of Amminadab. And his army and those who were numbered of them, were seventy-four thousand and six hundred.

And those who encamp next to him will be the tribe of Issachar. And the ruler of the sons of Issachar will be Nethanel the son of Zuar. And his army and those who were numbered of it, were fifty-four thousand and four hundred.

Then the tribe of Zebulun. And the ruler of the sons of Zebulun will be Eliab the son of Helon. And his army and those who were numbered of it, were fifty-seven thousand and four hundred.

All who were numbered of the camp of Judah were a hundred eighty-six thousand and four hundred, according to their armies. They will pull out first.

New American Standard B.    .

New European Version          .

New King James Version       .

Niobi Study Bible                   .

Owen's Translation                .

Revised Mechanical Trans.    ...and the ones camping to the east, toward the sunrise, is the banner of the camp of Yehudah, by their armies, and the captain for the sons of Yehudah is Nahhshon the son of Amiynadav, and his army and their registered ones are seventy-four thousand and six hundred, and the ones camping by him, the branch of Yis'sas'khar, and the captain for the sons of Yis'sas'khar is Nataneyl the son of Tso'ar, and his army and his registered ones are fifty-four thousand and four hundred. The branch of Zevulun, and the captain for the sons of Zevulun is Eli'av the son of Hheylon, and his army and his registered ones are fifty-seven thousand and four hundred. All the registered ones for the camp of Yehudah are a hundred thousand and eighty thousand and six thousand and four hundred for their armies, they will journey first.

Updated Bible Version 2.17   .

Webster’s Bible Translation  . counted

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young’s Updated LT             .

The gist of this passage: 

3-9

Translation: And the ones bivouacking eastward toward the east, [under] the flag of the camp of Judah regarding their armies.

To the east of the Tabernacle is the army of Judah. They will be associated with two other tribes.

Translation: The leader to the sons of Judah [is] Nahshon ben Aminadab.

Their leader is Nahshon ben Aminadab, who was also named in the previous chapter.

Numbers 2:3 And the ones bivouacking eastward toward the east, [under] the flag of the camp of Judah regarding their armies. The leader to the sons of Judah [is] Nahshon ben Aminadab. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This chapter will be very much like the portion of the previous chapter which was very repetitious. Yahweh will position these men around the camp. You would expect the leading division to be Reuben, as he was the first-born, but it is Judah. "Judah, your brothers will praise you; you hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons will bow down to you. Judah is a lion's whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who [dares] wake him up? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet until Shiloh comes, and to him will be the obedience of the peoples." (Jacob speaking to his sons in Genesis 49:8–10). Reuben was the eldest and he should have been in the lead of the first division. However, when the brothers plotted against Joseph and were about to kill them, Reuben, as the first-born, should have put a stop to it. He meekly offered that they should not kill Joseph rather than take a stand as a leader (Genesis 37:18–30). The next two oldest, Levi and Simeon, viciously killed every man in a city to avenge the rape of their sister, whereas there was but two guilty parties, the rapist, and his overindulgent father, Shechem (Genesis 34). This left Judah, who, although not perfect (Genesis 38:1–24), he could at least admit to being wrong and he did not continue with his injustice against Tamar (Genesis 38:25–26). What these brothers did, did not determine the future of their tribe; however, it set up a pattern or precedence for their progeny. I know you are wondering about the Levites and how we see this pattern in them...fast forward to the time of our Lord and examine the priests in the gospels—Jesus was persecuted and physically attacked by them on several occasions (Matt. 16:21 Mark 11:27 14:55–56 John 18:19–24). As we have seen, Judah will be the line of Christ.

Translation: And his army being numbered [is] seventy-four thousand, six hundred.

The army of Judah is 74,600. This number was given in the previous chapter.

Translation: And the ones bivouacking with the tribe of Issachar; the leader for the sons of Issachar [is] Nethanel ben Zuar.

One of the tribes with Judah is Issachar, and their leader is Nethanel ben Zuar (also named in the previous chapter).

Notice that our order is different than we had in Num. 1.

Translation: And his army being numbered [is] fifty-four thousand, four hundred.

His army numbers 54,400 (as in the previous chapter).

God has certain men that He would like to function together as a unit.

Translation: The tribe of Zebulun; the leader for the sons of Zebulun [is] Eliab ben Helon.

The third tribe is Zebulun, with its leader, Eliab ben Helon (previously named).

Notice that the sentence structure is not as repetitive. Judah, Issachar and Zebulun are all sons of Leah.

Translation: And his army being numbered [is] fifty-seven thousand, four hundred.

His army numbers 57,400 (as previously given).

So far, all of this is in accord with the Septuagint.