Hello Reader,
We are one week away from the release of Count the Stars! I wrote this book back in 2025 and have been - very impatiently - waiting for months for all of you to see it. When I first sketched out this series of books on difficult sections of the Bible, I was pretty sure where The Sinews of Scripture was going to go. I had preached on almost a dozen genealogies, so I was very familiar with the passages. However, working on the biblical numbers would be new and fresh work for me. I had a general direction, but needed to do the work to see if my ideas actually fit what the text was saying. It was a delight for me not only to write the book for you, but to learn a lot in the process.
As we approach the release of Count the Stars, I want to share a section where I learned a lot in the writing itself. If you have ever been confused on what to do with the size of all the tribes of Israel, hopefully this helps.
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Comparing Family Size
When God makes his covenant with Abraham, he promises him both land and descendants. Abraham will have a place, a home, where he will live out his calling to be a blessing. He will also have descendants who will be God’s people and through his seed all nations will be blessed. The Bible spends a significant amount of space recording the names and numbers of the descendants of Abraham. In part, this is to show God fulfilling his promise to make a nation out of the children of Abraham and that God continues to protect and preserve this people. Yet, the numbers also communicate something else when we compare them. For instance, comparing the number of children in Abraham’s family points to a pattern of patience, where God’s people are called to patiently wait for God to fulfill his promise. Abraham’s brother Nahor has twelve sons (Gen. 22:20-24), but Abraham has two — Ishmael and Isaac19 — but only one can carry on the covenant — Isaac. Ishmael will have twelve sons (Gen. 25:12-18), but Isaac and Rebekah will struggle with barrenness and have two — Jacob and Esau — but only one is able to carry on the covenant — Jacob. It is not until the children of Jacob that we see the people begin to multiply as God promised. It takes several generations longer for God’s people to experience these blessings than for those out in the world.
Comparison is also helpful in illuminating the significance of the size of the various tribes of Israel. In the book of Numbers, there is a census taken of the people of God. The total number of men aged twenty and older who are available for battle was 603,550 (Num. 1:46). Each of the tribes is listed, but rather than try and do some complicated math to puzzle out some secret meaning from these numbers, we can simply note which tribes are smaller and which tribes are larger. Judah is already the largest by far, with 74,600 members (Num. 1:27), more than the two smallest tribes — Mannasseh and Benjamin — combined (1:34-37). The second-largest tribe, Dan, will face the most tragic fate. Though large at this point, it will not be included in the roster of the people of God in the book of Revelation (Rev. 7:5-8).
At this point, the people of Israel are numerous, but these numbers would dwindle after the exile. The entire number of those who returned from exile from all the tribes is smaller than eight of the tribes’ numbers in the wilderness (42,360, cf. Ezra 6:64). Though Israel has broken the covenant and fallen low, God does not abandon them and he does indeed preserve a remnant.
While the comparison of the temple and tabernacle shows God’s presence and glory in both large and small structures, the comparison of the size of Israel’s tribes reminds us of God’s faithfulness. He is faithful in the times where there is growth and visible success (Numbers) and he faithfully keeps us when we stumble, struggle, and fall (Ezra). Ultimately, he will keep and preserve his people all the way to the end (Rev. 7). What is true for Israel is also true for us as God’s people. God is faithful and will guard and keep us when life is blessed, when we fail, and all the way to the end, when we will see him face to face. As Paul says, “What if some were unfaithful? Will their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God? By no means!” (Rom. 3:3-4).
Thank You
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From the desk of
Stephen C. Shaffer
Author, Pastor-Theologian
www.penielpress.com
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