Read & explore together
The Portions for the Tribes
Ezekiel 48:1–7 lists the first seven tribal portions in a future land arrangement. The passage reads like careful teaching, showing order, named tribes, and repeated boundaries stretching from east to west.
Understanding the passage
The setting of this message
These verses open a list of tribal portions by naming places on the northern edge and then assigning one portion after another. The passage itself focuses on boundaries, direction, and the sequence of tribes, rather than telling a story or explaining how the arrangement came about.
Ezekiel 48:1–7Main takeaway
This passage presents an ordered distribution of land in which each named tribe receives one portion marked out with clear boundaries.
Explore the message
Open a card to explore the full explanation and its Bible references.
01A northern starting lineThe passage begins by naming the tribes and locating the first portion from the north end.
Explanation
The passage begins by naming the tribes and locating the first portion from the north end. Several place names mark that northern border: Hethlon, the entrance of Hamath, Hazar Enan, Damascus, and Hamath. Dan is then assigned one portion. The verse also notes that this portion has east and west sides.
02A repeated pattern of bordersAfter Dan, the wording becomes highly regular. Each tribe lies "by the border" of the tribe just named, and each portion runs "from the east side to the west side".
Explanation
After Dan, the wording becomes highly regular. Each tribe lies "by the border" of the tribe just named, and each portion runs "from the east side to the west side". This repetition makes the arrangement sound deliberate and measured, with each tribe receiving one portion in sequence.
03The sequence of tribesThe tribes named in these verses are Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, and Judah.
Explanation
The tribes named in these verses are Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, and Judah. The text does not pause to describe differences in size or status here. Instead, each tribe is given the same simple statement: "one portion", which highlights an ordered allocation.
04What this passage emphasisesThese verses emphasise structure more than explanation. The main details are names, borders, directions, and portions.
Explanation
These verses emphasise structure more than explanation. The main details are names, borders, directions, and portions. Because the text repeats east to west and one portion so often, readers can notice that the arrangement is not random. It is set out clearly, tribe by tribe, from north downward.
Questions to explore
Pause, look back at the verses and talk together.
01What details show where the first tribal portion begins?
Look at the named places in the opening verse and notice that Dan is placed from the north end with east and west sides.
02What words are repeated for nearly every tribe, and what do they suggest about the arrangement?
Notice the repeated phrases "by the border", "from the east side to the west side", and "one portion".
03Which tribes are named in order in this part of the list?
Read each verse in sequence and write the seven tribal names exactly as they appear.
Read the Bible passage
World English Bible ClassicScripture quotation · Public domain
Ezekiel 48:1–7
1“Now these are the names of the tribes: From the north end, beside the way of Hethlon to the entrance of Hamath, Hazar Enan at the border of Damascus, northward beside Hamath (and they shall have their sides east and west), Dan, one portion.
2“By the border of Dan, from the east side to the west side, Asher, one portion.
3“By the border of Asher, from the east side even to the west side, Naphtali, one portion.
4“By the border of Naphtali, from the east side to the west side, Manasseh, one portion.
5“By the border of Manasseh, from the east side to the west side, Ephraim, one portion.
6“By the border of Ephraim, from the east side even to the west side, Reuben, one portion.
7“By the border of Reuben, from the east side to the west side, Judah, one portion.