God commanded the ancient Israelites to set up their wilderness camp in a particular pattern:
"And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 'Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own standard, beside the emblems of his father’s house; they shall camp some distance from the tabernacle of meeting. On the east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies . . .Those who camp next to him shall be the tribe of Issachar . . .Then comes the tribe of Zebulun . . .'
"'And the tabernacle of meeting shall move out with the camp of the Levites in the middle of the camps; as they camp, so they shall move out, everyone in his place, by their standards.'
"'All who were numbered of the forces with Dan, one hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred - they shall break camp last, with their standards.' These are the ones who were numbered of the children of Israel by their fathers’ houses. All who were numbered according to their armies of the forces were six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty. Thus the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moses; so they camped by their standards and so they broke camp, each one by his family, according to their fathers’ houses." (Numbers 2:1-3, 5, 17, 31-31-32, 34, NKJV)
