🔢WEB · Numbers 1:14
What does Numbers 1:14 mean?
"Of Gad: Eliasaph the son of Deuel."
— Numbers 1:14 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
Of Benjamin: Abidan the son of Gideoni.
Of Dan: Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
Of Asher: Pagiel the son of Ochran.
Of Gad: Eliasaph the son of Deuel.
Of Naphtali: Ahira the son of Enan.”
These are those who were called of the congregation, the princes of the tribes of their fathers; they were the heads of the thousands of Israel.
Moses and Aaron took these men who are mentioned by name.
Explanation
Numbers 1:14 is a short administrative notice naming one man: Eliasaph, son of Deuel, who was appointed as the leader representing the tribe of Gad. In plain language, this verse is simply identifying who stood as the tribal head for Gad during a specific organizational task that God commanded Moses to carry out.
The context is the opening chapter of Numbers, where God instructs Moses, shortly after the Israelites left Egypt, to take a census of the fighting-age men in each of the twelve tribes. This was done in the wilderness of Sinai, about a year after the exodus, as the nation prepared to organize itself for the journey toward the Promised Land. To carry out this census accurately and fairly, one leader from each tribe was appointed to assist Moses and Aaron. Numbers 1:5-15 lists these twelve men by name, tribe, and father, and Eliasaph son of Deuel is the representative chosen for Gad. He appears again later in Numbers (2:14 and 7:42-47) in connection with Gad's position in the camp and its offering at the tabernacle's dedication.
Theologically, this verse reflects the careful, orderly way God organized His people. Nothing about Israel's community was left random or chaotic — each tribe had structure, representation,
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