“ Speak to the Israelites. Get 12 walking sticks from them. Get one from the leader of each of Israel’s tribes. Write the name of each man on his walking stick.

“你晓谕以色列人，从他们手下取杖，每支派一根；从他们所有的首领，按着支派，共取十二根。你要将各人的名字写在各人的杖上，

“你要吩咐以色列人，从他们当中取杖，每父家一根；从他们所有的领袖，按着父家，共取十二根。你要把各人的名字写在他的杖上，

“你要吩咐以色列人，从他们当中取杖，每父家一根；从他们所有的领袖，按着父家，共取十二根。你要把各人的名字写在他的杖上，

“你叫以色列各支派的首领每人拿一根杖来，共十二根，你要在上面写上他们各人的名字。

“你要吩咐以色列人，要从他们手中取杖，按着父家每支派一根，从他们所有的领袖，按着他们的父家，共取十二根杖，你要把各人的名字写在各人的杖上；

「你曉諭以色列人，從他們手下取杖，每支派一根；從他們所有的首領，按着支派，共取十二根。你要將各人的名字寫在各人的杖上，

「你要吩咐以色列人，從他們當中取杖，每父家一根；從他們所有的領袖，按着父家，共取十二根。你要把各人的名字寫在他的杖上，

「你要吩咐以色列人，從他們當中取杖，每父家一根；從他們所有的領袖，按着父家，共取十二根。你要把各人的名字寫在他的杖上，

「你叫以色列各支派的首領每人拿一根杖來，共十二根，你要在上面寫上他們各人的名字。

“你要吩咐以色列人，要從他們手中取杖，按著父家每支派一根，從他們所有的領袖，按著他們的父家，共取十二根杖，你要把各人的名字寫在各人的杖上；

『你要告訴以色列人從他們各族取手杖，每一個父系的家屬一根手杖，從他們的眾首領、按着父系的家屬、共取十二根手仗。你要將各人的名字寫在各人的手杖上；

爾諭以色列人、由之取杖、按宗族之牧伯、取杖十二、宗族各一、書名其上、

告以色列族云、爾各支派牧伯、取杖十有二、書名其上、支派各一、

爾告以色列人云、各支派當給爾一杖、乃諸支派之牧伯所當給、共十二杖、當書各牧伯之名於其杖上、或作告以色列人當自各支派取一杖即取自各支派牧伯共十二杖於各杖上書各牧伯之名

“ Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes. Write the name of each man on his staff.

“ Speak to the people of Israel, and get from them staffs, one for each fathers’ house, from all their chiefs according to their fathers’ houses, twelve staffs. Write each man’s name on his staff,

“ Tell the people of Israel to bring you twelve wooden staffs, one from each leader of Israel’s ancestral tribes, and inscribe each leader’s name on his staff.

“ Speak to the Israelites and take one staff from them for each ancestral tribe, twelve staffs from all the leaders of their tribes. Write each man’s name on his staff.

“ Speak to the sons of Israel, and obtain from them a staff for each father’s household: twelve staffs, from all their leaders for their fathers’ households. You shall write each man’s name on his staff,

“ Speak to the children of Israel, and get from them a rod from each father’s house, all their leaders according to their fathers’ houses— twelve rods. Write each man’s name on his rod.

Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of them rods, one for each fathers’ house, of all their princes according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod.

“ Speak to the Israelites and take one staff from them for each ancestral house, 12 staffs from all the leaders of their ancestral houses. Write each man’s name on his staff.

Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod according to the house of[ their] fathers, of all their princes according to the house of their fathers twelve rods: write thou every man’s name upon his rod.

“ Speak to the Israelites, and receive from them a staff from each tribe, one from every tribal leader, twelve staffs; you must write each man’s name on his staff.

“ Speak to the children of Israel, and take rods from them, one for each fathers’ house, of all their princes according to their fathers’ houses, twelve rods. Write each man’s name on his rod.

One of its main branches was Zedekiah. Fire spread from it and burned up its fruit. None of its branches is good enough to be made into a ruler’s scepter.’ This is a song of sadness. And that is how it should be used.”

The groups of the camp of Judah went first. They marched out under their flag. Nahshon was their commander. He was the son of Amminadab.Nethanel was over the group of the tribe of Issachar. Nethanel was the son of Zuar.Eliab was over the group of the tribe of Zebulun. Eliab was the son of Helon.The holy tent was taken down. The men of Gershon and Merari started out. They carried the tent.The groups of the camp of Reuben went next. They marched out under their flag. Elizur was their commander. He was the son of Shedeur.Shelumiel was over the group of the tribe of Simeon. Shelumiel was the son of Zurishaddai.Eliasaph was over the group of the tribe of Gad. Eliasaph was the son of Deuel.The men of Kohath started out. They carried the holy things. The holy tent had to be set up before they arrived.The groups of the camp of Ephraim went next. They marched out under their flag. Elishama was their commander. He was the son of Ammihud.Gamaliel was over the group of the tribe of Manasseh. Gamaliel was the son of Pedahzur.Abidan was over the group of the tribe of Benjamin. Abidan was the son of Gideoni.Finally, the groups of the camp of Dan started out. They marched out under their flag. They followed behind all the other groups and guarded them. Ahiezer was their commander. He was the son of Ammishaddai.Pagiel was over the group of the tribe of Asher. Pagiel was the son of Okran.Ahira was over the group of the tribe of Naphtali. Ahira was the son of Enan.

Lord, be like a shepherd to your people. Take good care of them. They are your flock. They live by themselves in the safety of a forest. Rich grasslands are all around them. Let them eat grass in Bashan and Gilead just as they did long ago.

“ You can be sure that testing will come. Why does the sword look down on the scepter? Because even the scepter will not continue to rule,” announces the Lord and King.

But take this walking stick in your hand. You will be able to do signs with it.”

“ Here are the names of the men who must help you.“ From the tribe of Reuben will come Elizur, the son of Shedeur.From the tribe of Simeon will come Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai.From the tribe of Judah will come Nahshon, the son of Amminadab.From the tribe of Issachar will come Nethanel, the son of Zuar.From the tribe of Zebulun will come Eliab, the son of Helon.From the tribe of Ephraim will come Elishama, the son of Ammihud. From the tribe of Manasseh will come Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur. Ephraim and Manasseh are Joseph’s two sons.From the tribe of Benjamin will come Abidan, the son of Gideoni.From the tribe of Dan will come Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.From the tribe of Asher will come Pagiel, the son of Okran.From the tribe of Gad will come Eliasaph, the son of Deuel.From the tribe of Naphtali will come Ahira, the son of Enan.”These were the men appointed from the community. They were the leaders of the tribes of their people. They were the heads of the major families in Israel.

The Lord said to him,“ What do you have in your hand?”“ A walking stick,” he said.

Evil people will not always rule the land the Lord gave to those who do right. If they did, those who do right might do what is evil.

The Lord will make your royal authority spread out from Zion to other lands. He says,“ Rule over your enemies who are all around you.”

It is sharpened to kill people. It flashes like lightning.” ’ ” The people say,“ Should we take delight in the scepter of the Lord’ s royal son? The sword looks down on every scepter like this.”

The groups of the camp of Judah must be on the east side. They must set up camp toward the sunrise. They must camp under their flag. The leader of the tribe of Judah is Nahshon, the son of Amminadab.There are 74,600 men in Nahshon’s group.The tribe of Issachar will camp next to them. The leader of the tribe of Issachar is Nethanel, the son of Zuar.There are 54,400 men in Nethanel’s group.The tribe of Zebulun will be next. The leader of the tribe of Zebulun is Eliab, the son of Helon.There are 57,400 men in Eliab’s group.So a total of 186,400 men will be set apart for the camp of Judah. They will be arranged group by group. They will start out first.The groups of the camp of Reuben will be on the south side. They will be under their flag. The leader of the tribe of Reuben is Elizur, the son of Shedeur.There are 46,500 men in Elizur’s group.The tribe of Simeon will camp next to them. The leader of the tribe of Simeon is Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai.There are 59,300 men in Shelumiel’s group.The tribe of Gad will be next. The leader of the tribe of Gad is Eliasaph, the son of Deuel.There are 45,650 men in Eliasaph’s group.So a total of 151,450 men will be set apart for the camp of Reuben. They will be arranged group by group. They will start out second.Then the camp of the Levites will start out. The tent of meeting will go with them. They will march in the middle of the other camps. They will start out in the same order as they do when they set up camp. Each one will be in their own place under their flag.The groups of the camp of Ephraim will be on the west side. They will be under their flag. The leader of the tribe of Ephraim is Elishama, the son of Ammihud.There are 40,500 men in Elishama’s group.The tribe of Manasseh will be next to them. The leader of the tribe of Manasseh is Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur.There are 32,200 men in Gamaliel’s group.The tribe of Benjamin will be next. The leader of the tribe of Benjamin is Abidan, the son of Gideoni.There are 35,400 men in Abidan’s group.So a total of 108,100 men will be set apart for the camp of Ephraim. They will be arranged group by group. They will start out third.The groups of the camp of Dan will be on the north side. They will be under their flag. The leader of the tribe of Dan is Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.There are 62,700 men in Ahiezer’s group.The tribe of Asher will camp next to them. The leader of the tribe of Asher is Pagiel, the son of Okran.There are 41,500 men in Pagiel’s group.The tribe of Naphtali will be next. The leader of the tribe of Naphtali is Ahira, the son of Enan.There are 53,400 men in Ahira’s group.

“ Son of man, get a stick of wood. Write on it,‘ Belonging to the tribe of Judah and the Israelites who are connected with it.’ Then get another stick. Write on it,‘ Ephraim’s stick. Belonging to the tribes of Joseph and all the Israelites connected with them.’Join them together into one stick in your hand.“ Your people will ask you,‘ What do you mean by this?’Tell them,‘ The Lord and King says,“ I am going to get the stick of Joseph and the Israelites connected with it. That stick is in Ephraim’s hand. I am going to join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them a single stick of wood in my hand.” ’Show them the sticks you wrote on.

The right to rule will not leave Judah. The ruler’s scepter will not be taken from between his feet. It will be his until the king it belongs to will come. The nations will obey that king.