And by the border of Dan, from the east side unto the west side, Asher one.
Ezekiel's book closes with a map: tribal portions laid out from the far north of the land southward, with Asher placed just under Dan. When was this ever true, why is Asher up there, and what decides how near a tribe sits to God's house?
The order here does not match Israel's history at any point. One commentator lays the two side by side and shows how far apart they are:
Any fair mind must see it. The way the tribes were spread through the land, from Joshua's day to the collapse of the kingdom, is wholly different from what this prophecy predicts. And no one can point to anything like it since. So Dan is in the far north, not Naphtali as in the old days; next Asher, and only then Naphtali. Again Manasseh is not split by the Jordan, but is like all the other tribes, and Reuben is no longer east of the Jordan...
The phrase "from the east side to the west" describes the shape of every portion in this list. What does that look like on the ground?
The end of the book of Ezekiel describes a fresh division of the land among the twelve tribes of Israel. In the kingdom to come, each tribe's inheritance will be a parallel strip of land. Each strip runs eastward from the Mediterranean Sea to the River Jordan. The whole land from north to south will consist of twelve belt-like portions. Near Jerusalem, the Lord's own portion divides them — the holy offering. It will be for the prince, the priests and the Levites, with the sanctuary in the middle.
Each tribe receives "one portion." Who decided which one?
When the land is "divided by lot" in a future day, that really means the land will be "allotted." God Himself has fixed the place of each of the twelve tribes.
Asher is named second because Dan comes first. Dan at the head of this list is the surprise of the chapter:
When the tribes are listed in Revelation 7 as the servants of God, Dan is left out. Idolatry is the sin that hatches all other sins in its nest... Still, such is the grace of God! In Ezekiel's prophecy of the restoration of the tribes, the question is not service but mercy. So Dan is the first named and the first provided for — the worst sinner of all. Yet how fitting that he is the least near to the sanctuary.
Coming early in the list is not the same as sitting near the centre. One writer reads the whole arrangement by distance from the temple:
Here the temple and the city, the priests, Levi, and the Prince form the centre of the land. Their position settles the order of the tribes... Notice that the sons of the lawful wives are closest to the sanctuary, and the sons of the servant women at the furthest edges. Judah and Benjamin — the "Lawgiver" and the "Son of my right hand" — hold the places nearest the sanctuary, to the north and to the south. Here the matter is government, and they represent it... Dan, the last tribe to the north, stands as far from the sanctuary as possible... This is perhaps why Asher, who on a symmetrical plan should be found after Gad to the south, is added to the north instead. That makes Dan's distance stand out even more.
Asher's name itself points to what this redrawn land will feel like for the people living in it:
Asher was Zilpah's second son, and his name means "happy." The prophecy about him points to the rich provision God will make for the nation of Israel — even "royal dainties" — when they are restored to their land in the millennium. What a contrast to their years of deprivation and desolation!
- Future. This map matches no period of Israel's past. Dan heads the list, Asher follows, Naphtali comes third.
- Measured. Every tribe receives a strip running east to west, one portion each, laid out by God rather than left to chance.
- Merciful. Revelation 7 leaves Dan out of God's servants. Here the question is mercy, not service — so Dan comes first.
- Ordered. Nearness to the sanctuary marks rank, not a high place in the list. The sons of the wives sit close in; the sons of the servant women sit at the edges. Asher's move to the north pushes Dan furthest of all.
- Happy. Asher's name means happy. His portion in that day speaks of rich provision after long desolation.
And by the border of Asher, from the east side even unto the west side, Naphtali one.
Ezekiel's closing vision hands out the land tribe by tribe. Here Naphtali gets its share, next to Asher, running clean across the country from east to west. The wording is flat and legal. Yet the map it draws matches nothing in Israel's past. So when, and for whom, is this allotment meant?
The simplest test is to lay this chapter beside Israel's actual settlement of the land. One writer does that and finds the two do not match:
Any fair mind must see this. The way the tribes were spread through the land, from Joshua to the ruin of the kingdom, is completely different from what is predicted here. And no one can point to anything since that matches the prophecy. So Dan is in the far north, not Naphtali, as it was of old; next Asher, and only then Naphtali.
The phrase "from the east side to the west" describes the shape of every tribe's holding. Each one is a band stretching the full width of the country:
The end of the book of Ezekiel describes a fresh division of the land among the twelve tribes of Israel (Ezek. 47:13 – 48:35). In the millennial kingdom, the tribal inheritances will form parallel strips of land, running east from the Mediterranean Sea to the River Jordan. From north to south the whole land will consist of twelve belt-like portions. Near Jerusalem these are divided by Jehovah's portion, called the holy oblation or heave-offering. It will be for the prince, the priests and the Levites, with the sanctuary in the middle. Of this allotment Jehovah said, "Joseph shall have two portions" (Ezek. 47:13), that is, one for Manasseh and one for Ephraim. Levi is not counted with the twelve, but has his share in the holy heave-offering, land devoted to Jehovah's service.
Naphtali's neighbours are named, not negotiated. The phrase "divided by lot" sounds like chance. One writer explains what it really means here:
The land being "divided by lot" in a future day means instead that the land will be "allotted." God Himself has directed where each of the twelve tribes will live.
This chapter measures every tribe's place from one fixed point at the centre. Naphtali's spot in the far north fits a pattern:
Here the temple and the city, the priests, Levi, and the Prince form the centre of the land. Their position settles the order of the tribes. Their places start from both sides of this centre and run north and south. Notice that the sons of the lawful wives are closest to the sanctuary, and the sons of the maidservants at the farthest edges. Judah and Benjamin, the "Lawgiver" and the "Son of my right hand," take the places nearest the sanctuary, to the north and to the south. The subject here is government, and they represent it... Then come the sons of the maidservants. Gad, the son of Zilpah, to the south has, as usual, a place somewhat apart. He corresponds to Naphtali, son of Bilhah, in the north.
The name Naphtali carries a story. One writer reads it as a struggle already finished:
This brings us to Naphtali, which means "my wrestling." The idea is not that the wrestling is still going on. It has reached its end in victory, and that brings freedom. It expresses the blessedness of the new place a man now finds himself in. Moses says of Naphtali, "satisfied with favor, and full of the blessing of the LORD." So he becomes like "a doe let loose," with all fear removed and his tongue set free to speak good words.
A list of borders looks like an odd way to end a book of prophecy. But the last thing named is God's presence in the city, and everything has been building toward it:
This then is the last and chief glory — the presence of Jehovah in the city of His choice. In this Israel will boast above all their privileges, and rightly, for it is the completion and crown of all. What a bright end to their long wanderings and their many sorrows!
- Fresh map. Naphtali sits third from the north, after Dan and Asher. That order matches no period of Israel's history, so the vision looks forward, not back.
- Fresh measure. Every tribe gets one strip running the full width of the land, from sea to river. The holy portion and sanctuary sit in the middle.
- Fresh hand. The boundaries are not left to chance; God Himself appoints where each tribe will live.
- Fresh centre. Nearness to the sanctuary sets each tribe's place, and Naphtali, son of a maidservant, still holds a real share at the northern edge.
- Fresh name. "My wrestling" ends in victory. The struggling tribe rests satisfied with favor, in a land whose centre is the presence of God.