Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The camps of the twelve tribes of Israel are arranged around the tabernacle, according to the four regions of the world, in four battle-lines: by which it is tropologically signified that kings, princes, and all the faithful ought to protect and defend the Church.
Vulgate Text: Numbers 2:1-34
1. And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 2. Each one by their troops, signs, and standards, and the houses of their kindred, shall the children of Israel encamp, round about the tabernacle of the covenant. 3. To the East, Judah shall pitch his tents by the troops of his army; and the prince of his sons shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab, 4. and the whole sum of the fighters of his stock, seventy-four thousand six hundred. 5. Next to him encamped those of the tribe of Issachar, whose prince was Nethanel the son of Zuar, 6. and the whole number of his warriors, fifty-four thousand four hundred. 7. In the tribe of Zebulun the prince was Eliab the son of Helon; 8. the whole army of the warriors of his stock, fifty-seven thousand four hundred. 9. All who were numbered in the camp of Judah were one hundred eighty-six thousand four hundred, and by their troops they shall set out first. 10. In the camp of the sons of Reuben, on the southern side, the prince shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur, 11. and the whole army of his warriors who were numbered, forty-six thousand five hundred. 12. Next to him encamped those of the tribe of Simeon, whose prince was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. 13. And the whole army of his warriors who were numbered, fifty-nine thousand three hundred. 14. In the tribe of Gad the prince was Eliasaph the son of Deuel, 15. and the whole army of his warriors who were numbered, forty-five thousand six hundred fifty. 16. All who were enrolled in the camp of Reuben, one hundred fifty thousand and one thousand four hundred fifty, by their troops: they shall set out in second place. 17. Then the tabernacle of the testimony shall be lifted up by the offices of the Levites and their troops: as it is erected, so also shall it be taken down: each one shall set out according to their places and orders. 18. On the western side shall be the camp of the sons of Ephraim, whose prince was Elishama the son of Ammihud. 19. The whole army of his warriors who were numbered, forty thousand five hundred. 20. And with them the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, whose prince was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, 21. and the whole army of his warriors who were numbered, thirty-two thousand two hundred. 22. In the tribe of the sons of Benjamin the prince was Abidan the son of Gideoni, 23. and the whole army of his warriors who were enrolled, thirty-five thousand four hundred. 24. All who were numbered in the camp of Ephraim, one hundred eight thousand one hundred, by their troops: they shall set out third. 25. On the northern side encamped the sons of Dan, whose prince was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. 26. The whole army of his warriors who were numbered, sixty-two thousand seven hundred. 27. Next to him pitched their tents those of the tribe of Asher, whose prince was Pagiel the son of Ochran. 28. The whole army of his warriors who were numbered, forty-one thousand five hundred. 29. Of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali the prince was Ahira the son of Enan. 30. The whole army of his warriors, fifty-three thousand four hundred. 31. All who were numbered in the camp of Dan were one hundred fifty-seven thousand six hundred; and they shall set out last. 32. This is the number of the children of Israel, by the houses of their kindred and the troops of the divided army, six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty. 33. But the Levites were not numbered among the children of Israel; for so the Lord had commanded Moses. 34. And the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses. They encamped by their troops, and set out by their families and the houses of their fathers.
Verse 2: Each One by Their Troops, Signs and Standards, and the Houses of Their Kindred Shall Encamp
In Hebrew, each one by his standard, in the signs of the house of their fathers they shall encamp. Whence it seems that besides one common standard for a single battle-line, there were also other special standards of the houses, that is, of the families, or rather of each individual tribe; therefore each tribe, besides one common and archiducal standard, seems to have had in addition another standard of its own.
Question 1: How Was This Arrangement of the Camps Made?
You ask first, how was this arrangement of the camps and the twelve tribes around the tabernacle made? For an answer, note that the tabernacle and the court surrounding the tabernacle were square or rather rectangular. For the court was one hundred cubits in length and fifty in width; the southern and northern sides therefore (which were the sides of the length) each had one hundred cubits. Whence it follows that the camps of the Hebrews were arranged around the court in a square, and were square-shaped, which is the best formation for camps, says Vegetius in his treatise on military matters.
The Hebrews report that the Israelites encamped around the tabernacle in such a way that one mile intervened, that is, a space of a thousand paces, and this both for the sake of reverence and for space and convenience; and that this was a sabbath day's journey, beyond which it was not permitted to go further on the sabbath. If this is true, then this expansion of the camps of Israel in the desert was great and of many miles. So God commanded that the ark should precede the camps in the crossing of the Jordan by a space of two thousand cubits, Joshua III, 4: understand this of the camps of the laypeople; for the camps of the Levites guarding the tabernacle were next to it all around, as was also the dwelling of Moses and Aaron.
I say: Around the court was the first square, or the square camp of the Levites: namely Moses and Aaron were to the East, at the entrance of the court; the Gershonites were to the West, the Merarites to the North, the Kohathites to the South; beyond these was the second square, or the square camp of the other Israelites, namely the twelve tribes, which were distributed around the court and the camps of the Levites, so that on each side of the square, or at each region of the world, three tribes were arranged, and consequently the twelve tribes so positioned formed four groups of three, or battle-lines, and in each group of three, or battle-line, the first was some more distinguished tribe, which went before the rest and was as it were the archiducal tribe, so that by this arrangement four more distinguished tribes, as archidukes, fortified the four corners and sides of the army, from which all the other tribes and camps took their name, so that the standard of Reuben, for example, indicated and named all the camps situated to the South. For Reuben was senior to Simeon and Gad, his associates to the South, and so on for the rest. And so to the East was spread the standard of the first battle-line, namely of the archiduke Judah, under which in their order on the same side followed, first Issachar, then Zebulun. To the South was the standard of Reuben, under which behind was Simeon, then Gad. To the West was the standard of Ephraim, under which behind was Manasseh, then Benjamin. To the North finally was the standard of Dan, under which behind was Asher, then Naphtali. As for the Egyptians and other Gentiles who had followed the Hebrews out of Egypt, it is likely that they were intermixed with these; whence they were accustomed to murmur and stir up complaints together with them.
Note: Among all, the archiducal and first tribe, situated to the East, was that of Judah. First, because this tribe was the most numerous and the strongest, and therefore the kingdom was assigned to it by Jacob, Genesis xlix, 10, so that this royal and most valiant tribe might more easily protect its king. Second, because from this tribe Christ was to be born. So Theodoret here, Question III. But the tribe of Dan was to the North, because from the North every evil breaks forth; and from Dan the most wicked Antichrist will be born. So Rupert and Ralph on chapter xxiv of Leviticus.
Note second: This square arrangement and order of the tribes was only in effect when they pitched camp: for when they moved camp, the order was different; for they did not march in a square formation, but in a long and extended one, the individual tribes marching one after another separately, as will be clear from verse 9.
Tropologically, how each person ought to live according to his signs, that is, the order and degree of the vocation, grace, and state given to him, and quietly contain himself therein, Origen teaches here, homily 2.
Question 2: What Insignia Did the Four Archiducal Standards Have?
You ask second, what kind of insignia did the standards of these four archiducal tribes have? The Hebrews and the Rabbis writing on this chapter report that these standards had the figures of four animals, namely a lion, a man, an ox, and an eagle. Andreas Masius follows the Hebrews in his commentary on Joshua chapter vi, verse 9, where he says: "The Hebrews report that the first standard of the leading tribe of Judah with its allies had the figure of a lion as its insignia; that the second standard of the Reubenites had the figure of a man with the mandrakes which Reuben had brought to his mother, Genesis xxx, 14; that the third standard of Ephraim had the image of an ox; that the fourth, of the Danites, had the figure of an eagle. These indeed by an apt type signified that our propitiatory, namely Christ, and His ark, namely the Church, which was situated among these four standards, was to be spread to all regions of the world through the signs of the four Evangelists." The same is taught by Villalpando, On the Temple, tome II, part II, book V, disputation 2, chapter xxix, and Jerome Prado in his commentary on Ezekiel chapter I, page 44, who describes these things from the Hebrews as follows: "Each leader of the tribes bore his own insignia, namely the ancestral coats of arms depicted on the standards. To the East, therefore, above the pavilion of Nahshon, firstborn of Judah, shone a standard of green color, which color he adopted because in the green gemstone, namely the emerald, the name of the patriarch Judah was engraved on the Rational of the High Priest, that is, on his pectoral brooch, in which was displayed the right of citizenship and nobility of the Israelites, namely of each of the twelve tribes; on this standard was depicted a lion, the coat of arms and hieroglyphic of the patriarch Judah; for Jacob had compared him to a lion, saying: Judah is a lion's whelp. To the South, above the tent of Elizur the son of Reuben, rose a red standard, reflecting the color of the sardius stone, on which was the name of the father, namely Reuben, written on the Rational; and the symbol depicted on this standard was seen to be a human head, because Reuben was the firstborn and head of the family. To the West, rising high above the tent of Elishama the son of Ephraim was a golden standard, on which was engraved the head of a calf (because his grandfather Joseph, through the vision of calves or oxen, had predicted and provided for the famine of Egypt: whence the Egyptians also worshipped him in the form of an ox, and called him Apis or Serapis, as I said at Genesis XLI, at the end; whence also Moses afterwards, Deuteronomy xxxiii, 17, blessing the tribe of Joseph, namely Ephraim, says: 'The beauty of his firstborn bull'). The golden splendor of the standard of Ephraim rivaled the brilliance of the chrysolite, on which the name of Ephraim was written on the Rational. On the northern side, above the tent of Ahiezer the son of Dan, fluttered a variegated standard of white and red color like jasper (so Prado, but it is more correct that Dan was inscribed on the carbuncle on the Rational, as I said at Exodus xxviii, 18; add that jasper stones are generally green, not white and red), on which the name of Dan was engraved on the Rational: his coat of arms was an eagle, enemy of serpents, chosen by the archiduke in place of the serpent, because the patriarch Jacob had compared the ancestor Dan to a snake, saying: Let Dan be a serpent in the way, a horned viper in the path; in place of which serpent, Ahiezer placed an eagle, which would carry a snake or dragon seized in its talons; which was also the coat of arms of the Lacedaemonians, with which they also sealed letters transmitted to their kinsmen the Jews," as Josephus attests, book XII of Antiquities, chapter v. So in Plutarch we read that an eagle portended to Gaius Marius his return with the greatest glory and triumph, when it had torn apart a snake seized in its talons, and cast it into the waters, and then flown away toward the west:
So Jupiter confirmed the bright omen of the eagle, The Father Himself thundered from the left parts of heaven.
These tribes therefore bore the ancestral coats of arms of their families and forefathers as their insignia and standard: whence in Hebrew these standards are called "signs of their fathers."
Furthermore, Prado holds that these insignia of the four animals are signified by the Psalmist, Psalm LXVII, when speaking of the camps of the Hebrews he says: "Your animals shall dwell (that is, were dwelling) in it," as if to say: In Your inheritance, in Your camps, in Your people, O Lord, there were seen of old in the desert standards decorated with the figures of four animals, namely a man, a lion, an eagle, and a calf. And Prado adds that it clearly appears that these four animal figures were derived from the Cherubim of the ark; for God wished to signify His attributes, majesty, glory, and triumphs through these four animals, as if they were His own coats of arms, and therefore He commanded His Cherubim to be made and fashioned in such a way as to present the appearance of these four animals, as I said at Exodus xxv, 18. Hence He also transferred the same to His camps and His people, and their standards. For these were the camps of God, whose leader and prince was God Himself.
Rightly, therefore, Balaam, admiring the beauty of these camps, sang in Numbers xxiv, 5: "How beautiful are your tabernacles, O Jacob, and your tents, O Israel, like wooded valleys, and gardens beside irrigated rivers, and tabernacles which the Lord has pitched," etc.
Question 3: What Do These Camps and Standards Mystically Signify?
You ask third, what do these camps and standards mystically signify? Villalpando responds first, following Philo, that symbolically in these camps of God the whole world is represented, and the insignia of the twelve tribes signify the twelve signs of the Zodiac. For Judah has the form of the lion, Reuben of Aquarius, Ephraim of the bull, Dan of the scorpion seized by the eagle. See the rest in the plan and image set forth by him, folio 470, where he also teaches that through the four regions and through the four battle-lines, both of the Levites and of the camps, the four elements are signified, namely through Moses and Aaron, who were to the East, fire; through the Gershonites, who were to the West, earth; through the Kohathites, who were to the South, air; through the Merarites, who were to the North, water.
Allegorically, these camps signify the Church of Christ, of which it is said in Canticles vi, 3: "Beautiful as the moon, chosen as the sun, terrible as an army set in battle array"; hence also God is called Sabaoth, that is, of battle-lines and armies; for this reason also these camps were around the tabernacle, that is, the temple of God, and were proportioned to it, and thus they themselves presented the appearance of a temple or Church, just as conversely the temple itself reflected the appearance of camps. Whence II Chronicles xxxi, 2, it is said that Hezekiah appointed Levites who "should sing in the gates of the camp of the Lord," that is, of the temple. Moses therefore is Christ, who in the midst of the twelve Patriarchs and tribes, that is, the twelve Apostles, was seen in Judea, and worshipped as the true creator of the new heaven and the new earth, attended as if by four Cherubim-Evangelists, whom He sent to evangelize to the four regions of the world. Hence the Cherubim had the appearance of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle, through which the four Evangelists are foreshadowed and depicted, as is clear from Apocalypse IV, 7, and all the Fathers universally teach this.
Archidamus, as Plutarch reports in the Laconian Sayings, when asked how much territory the Spartans possessed, replied: "As much as we can reach with our spear." So the Church occupies as many regions as she has subdued by fighting against demons, unbelievers, and the impious, so that she can say with Jacob: "I give you one portion, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow," Genesis xlviii, 22; these therefore are the camps, these the battle-lines of the Church. King Agis, when he was prevented from fighting at Mantinea because the enemy outnumbered them, said: "It is necessary that he who wishes to rule over many should fight against many." So the twelve Apostles, fighting against the whole world, subdued it for themselves and for Christ. A Spartan woman, handing a shield to her son setting out for war, said: "Your father always preserved this, and so either do the same yourself, or perish." Let the Church now say the same to every faithful person. Another woman, who was present at a solemn procession wearing a crown, upon hearing that her son had fallen victorious in battle, without removing her crown said boastfully to those nearby: "It is far more glorious, dear friends, to die fighting victoriously in battle than to survive by conquering." Let the Martyr say the same, who perishes by suffering, and the teacher and preacher who dies laboring for the glory of God.
On the contrary, Damatria killed her son who had returned to her, because he had conducted himself timidly and unworthily in war. Another Spartan woman wrote to her son who had been saved by flight: "An evil report is being spread about you; either wash it away or cease to live." Another, when her sons had fled from battle and come to her, said: "Where did you want to flee to, wretched slaves? Is it back here (showing her womb) whence you came?" Another, seeing her son arriving from flight, asked what was the state of their country; and when he replied that the citizens had been killed, she struck him dead with a roof-tile, saying: "So they sent you to us as the messenger of such ill-fated news?" When someone told a mother that her brother had died an honorable death: "Is it not shameful," she said, "that you missed the opportunity of such companionship?" What shall the faithful now say, what shall the soldier in the camps of the Church say? Let him say indeed with the Maccabees: Let us die bravely in battle, and let us not bring disgrace upon our glory. Let us expand the kingdom of Christ, let us evangelize throughout the whole world; if we fall, if we are killed, we shall rise again as Martyrs.
More particularly, St. Ambrose, book II On Solomon, chapter II, compares Christ to the eagle fighting with the dragon, which was the coat of arms of Dan, when he says: "Just as the eagle devours serpents and digests their venom with its internal heat, so also Christ our Lord, having struck down the dragon, that is, having torn apart the devil, when He assumed a human body for Himself, extinguished that sin which held men enslaved, like a pernicious poison, just as the Apostle says: And concerning sin, He condemned sin in His flesh."
But Rabanus here more aptly adapts each detail individually as follows. This battle-line of camps, he says, is the Church, of both the New and Old Testaments. The Levites are the priests and clergy: they guard the sacred things and fight for them, and the people surround and protect them, coming to the Church from the four regions of the world; on each of the four sides there is a trinity of tribes, that is, the faith of the Most Holy Trinity; the twelve princes are the twelve Apostles, by whose prayers and teaching the Church is fortified.
To the East is Judah, because from Judah Christ arose, whose name is the Orient. Again, through the East, where the entrance of the tabernacle was, is signified the primitive Church and the beginning of the conversion of the faithful to Christ: here is Judah, that is, confession; and Issachar, that is, reward; and Zebulun, that is, the dwelling-place of fortitude: because the Confessors of Christ have entrance into the Church, which is the strongest house of God, through Christ, so that they may labor in it for an eternal reward.
The Southern side signifies the ancient people of God, once illuminated by God: here are Reuben, Simeon, and Gad; because the Holy Fathers, who had well sharpened the gaze of their minds to see the will of God the Father, duly expended their zeal for obedience upon Him, girding themselves with the arms of justice against the roaring lion and the noonday demon, and as it were said to themselves: Be Reuben, that is, see that you are a son of the eternal Father; to whom you must be Simeon, that is, obedient; so that you may be Gad, that is, girded against the demons. Again, be Reuben, that is, see that you beget sons for God.
The North signifies the multitude of the Gentiles, who had been torpid in the darkness and cold of unbelief until Christ: here is Dan, that is, judgment; Asher, that is, blessed; and Naphtali, that is, wrestling, or expanded: because when the Jews spurned the word of the Lord, by the just judgment of God, the people of the Church, expanded through the multitude of believing Gentiles and wrestling, does not cease to hope for and seek eternal blessedness.
The West, or the last part of the tabernacle, signifies the completion of the Church, which will come to pass at the end of the world, when all Israel shall be saved: here are Ephraim, that is, growing; Manasseh, that is, forgetfulness; and Benjamin, that is, son of the right hand: because then in the persecution of the Antichrist the elect will be tested and will grow in merits, and then the hour will be at hand when, with the impious consigned to the oblivion of perpetual death, the just will be placed at the right hand of God, to reign forever with the Lord. Thus far Rabanus.
Question 4: What Do These Camps Signify Tropologically and Anagogically?
It is asked fourth, what do these camps signify tropologically and anagogically? For the literal sense here is easy; but the spiritual sense, which is hidden here, is illustrious. I respond: Every faithful and holy soul is a tabernacle of God, as I said at Exodus xxvi, 1. The aspect toward the East signifies the illumination and purification of the mind, which is accomplished by Judah, that is, by true confession; and by Zebulun, that is, by strong penance; and by Issachar, that is, by the hope of reward. The southern side signifies the inflaming and ardor of the mind, which is accomplished by Reuben, that is, vision and the begetting of children in the Spirit; and by Simeon, that is, obedience; and by Gad, that is, fortitude in adversity. The North signifies the temptations of the devil and of other enemies, against which we are fortified by the camps of Dan, that is, by the fear of the last judgment; and of Naphtali, that is, by continual struggle; and of Asher, that is, by the memory of eternal blessedness. The West signifies the perfection of the soul, which is bestowed by Ephraim, that is, the fruits and continual increase of good works; and by Manasseh, that is, forgetfulness of temporal things; and by Benjamin, that is, the right hand and power of our Father God: almost all of these things are found in Abulensis here, last Question.
Anagogically, these camps signify the heaven of the Blessed and the heavenly city. Whence in Apocalypse xxi, 16, it is said to be set in a square, just like these camps; and to have twelve gates, namely three on each side and region, inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: for the twelve tribes signify all true Israelites, that is, the elect, who will rule in that city. And so one will enter into heaven through the gate of Levi, or as Levi, a priest who governed his priesthood well; one will enter through Judah, or as Judah, a prince who governed his people well; they will enter as Simeon, who were obedient to their superiors; they will enter as Issachar, or Manasseh, monks and religious, who trample present pleasures underfoot, with their hope fixed on an eternal reward; they will enter through the gate of Ephraim, who have abounded in the fruits of mercy; through Dan, just judges. Gather and apply the rest from the tropology assigned shortly before. So Origen, homily 1, and from him Rabanus.
Verse 9: They Shall Set Out First in Their Companies
Not that these tribes set out simultaneously at an equal pace: for this would often have been impossible because of the narrowness of the roads, but rather that those born from the tribe of Judah were first and went before all the other tribes. The twelve tribes, therefore, were distributed into four battle-lines, which proceeded in this order. The first battle-line, and the strongest, was the tribe of Judah: this was not accompanied at an equal pace, but Issachar followed close behind at the rear, then Zebulun: and so these three tribes formed one, namely the first battle-line, of 186 thousand warriors, as is clear from verse 9. The second battle-line was the tribe of Reuben, which followed the tribe of Zebulun: after Reuben marched Simeon, after him Gad: and this second battle-line, equally with the first, was triple, namely formed from the three aforementioned tribes, and contained 150 thousand warriors, as is clear from verse 16. After this second battle-line, in the middle of all the camps, the Levites marched with the tabernacle, carrying it dismantled into parts and distributed among various groups. After the Levites came the third battle-line of Ephraim, to which was joined and in succession the battle-line of Manasseh, then Benjamin; this battle-line contained 108 thousand warriors, as is clear from verse 24. After this followed the fourth battle-line of Dan, to whose rear was joined Asher, then Naphtali. Naphtali therefore closed the entire column and all the other tribes; this battle-line contained 157 thousand warriors, as is clear from verse 31.
Verse 17: And the Tabernacle of the Testimony Shall Be Taken Up Through the Offices of the Levites
That is, the tabernacle, once dismantled, will be carried by the Levites according to their distinct ministries, which God distributed to each group in the following chapter.
Note: The Levites marched in the safest position, namely in the middle of the camps, when they were setting out: for before them they had two battle-lines, namely the six tribes already mentioned; behind them they had likewise two battle-lines, namely six other tribes; whence in Hebrew it reads, the tabernacle of the testimony shall set out, and the camp of the Levites in the middle of the camps. Understand this not as though all the Levites were simultaneously in the exact middle, as some have supposed, but that the Gershonites and Merarites followed the first battle-line, or first three tribes; while the Kohathites followed the second battle-line and were precisely in the middle of the camps, as is expressly narrated in chapter x, verses 17 and 21. So Andreas Masius in his commentary on Joshua chapter vi.
As It Is Set Up, So Shall It Be Taken Down. — These words are not in the Hebrew at this point, but in chapter IV, whence they appear to have been transferred here by the Latin translator for the sake of clarity and light.
Verse 29: Naphtali
Note: For the sake of harmony God gave a suitable order to these four tribes, namely that, since there were four sons of Jacob's handmaids — of Bilhah, Dan and Naphtali; and of Zilpah, Gad and Asher — and therefore one had to be joined to the battle-line (since each consisted of only three tribes) and standard of another, Gad was joined to Reuben, while Dan and Naphtali, the sons of Bilhah, embraced Asher, the son of Zilpah, between them, for the sake of love and union.
Question 5: In What Order Did the Tribes March?
You ask fifth, in what order did the individual tribes march on the journey? Abulensis here responds, Question I, from the Hebrews, that each soldier had his own assigned place in the camps: but this does not seem necessary. For the difficulty here is this: whether from each camp, that is, from each side, the individual tribes and individual soldiers marched in a square formation, or rather in a long and extended line? I respond that the individual tribes marched one after another separately, not in a square formation, but in a long and extended line, as will be clear from verse 9.