Grids

Spread across the entire text of the Bible are a series of stories that list 12 or 13 things. These lists invariably map to the 12 (or 13) tribes. This section lists as many of those stories as we could find.

Caution

We were trying to find and grid as many of these as we could find. Some are great. Some are very low quality. This was a phase for us and it would cause us to think about the low quality grids as identified here.

Here is the list of articles that make up this section. You can select from the list or read through in order.

Phil Stone 2022-04-12

  • Master Tribal Grid

    Many places in the text provide lists of 7 or 12 things. Those lists often map to the tribes. The following table shows many of those lists and the matched tribes. (1,337 words)

  • Holidays

    Each tribe has a holiday (holy day) on the annual calendar. The following table explores. (725 words)

  • Plagues

    The plagues on Egypt are traditionally thought to be ten, but they map the 13 tribes when we share the wind/locust plague with two tribes and add the plundering of Egypt of gold and silver and the drowning of the Egyptian army in the Red Sea. The following table explores. (819 words)

  • 10 Commandments

    The "10 Commandments" map to the 13 tribes. The map is possible when the opening thought for the commandments is given to the first tribe and the commandments with a double "thou shalt not" (2 & 10) are shared. The following table explores. (985 words)

  • Tent

    Exodus chapters 36 through 39 list the items of the Tent that Oholiab and team built. The following table maps those items to the tribes. (735 words)

  • Atonement

    The description of how the priest is to atone for himself and the nation at large is given in Leviticus 16. The process is quite complex and follows 13 steps which map to the tribes. Each step in the ritual, then, acts out or reveals the main aspect of that tribe. What better way to atone for each of the tribes. (1,547 words)

  • Battles

    12 distinct battles to take Canaan are recorded in Joshua. These map to the 13 tribes where the last battle is given to Benjamin and Dan. (788 words)

  • Judges

    The judges in the book of Judges map to the tribes of Israel. (1,136 words)

  • Elijah

    The stories of Elijah run the 13 tribes of Israel. (976 words)

  • Elisha

    The stories of Elisha run the 13 tribes of Israel. There's some interesting correspondence back to Elijah. (835 words)

  • The Righteous Man

    Ezekiel 18 lists the characteristics of a righteous man. Each characteristic maps to the tribes. (789 words)

  • Isaiah's Leaders

    Isaiah 3's leaders also follow the tribes. (171 words)

  • Isaiah's Towns

    Isaiah 10 talks about a list of places the Assyrian army went in route to Jerusalem where they were finally defeated by the angel of god. There are 13 places they made it to, before being turned back. (439 words)

  • Isaiah's Animals

    Isaiah 11 talks about a list of animals hanging together that would not normally. Once again, this list, as so many others, is a list of 13 that map to the tribes. (496 words)

  • Nehemiah's City Gates

    The book of Nehemiah describes 12 unique gates around the city of Jerusalem. We know from Revelation 21 that each tribe has a specific gate into the city. The following table shows how the gates given in order of appearance in Nehemiah 3 and 12 map to the tribes. (788 words)

  • The 12 Apostles

    The 12 apostles are commonly thought to map to the 12 tribes of Israel, and rightfully so. The challenge is figuring out how they map since the Gospels list the apostles in different orders at different times. (428 words)

  • Gifts and Body

    First Corinthians 12 talks about spiritual gifts and the parts of the Body of Christ. The context assumes the gifts map to the parts, but it is not easy to see how. (1,927 words)

  • Love

    First Corinthians chapter 13 is a well known passage defining love. There are 13 distinct aspects of love given in the passage, mapping 1 to 1 with the 13 tribes. (659 words)

  • Fruits of the Flesh/Spirit

    Galatians chapter 5 lists the fruits of the flesh and the fruits of the Spirit. Together the lists run the tribes twice, giving 2 views to the tribes. (1,465 words)

  • Hebrews Hall Of Faith

    Hebrews 11, "The Hall of Faith," maps to the 13 tribes. (1,620 words)

  • By Law

    First Timothy lists the types of people the law is for. This is another list that maps to the tribes. (551 words)

  • Living Sacrifice

    Romans 12 says to present yourself as a living sacrifice. This, of course, also maps to the tribes. (512 words)

  • Elders & Deacons

    Two passages of Scripture provide prerequisites for serving as a "Elder" or a "Deacon." There are also prerequisites. Of course these lists also map to the tribes. (904 words)

  • Prayer for the Colossians

    Paul offers a prayer for the "holy brothers and believers in Jesus" who are at Colosse. The items in the prayer map to the 13 tribes. (1,099 words)

  • Jesus Is

    After offering prayer for the Colossians, Paul describes 13 aspects of Jesus that, of course, run the 13 tribes. (942 words)

  • Members of Land and Skies

    Colossians 3 has two lists that align. The first list describes 13 patterns of sin. The second list describes 13 new patterns to adopt to overcome the first. Both lists map to the 13 tribes, revealing specific areas of weakness and strength in each tribe. (1,483 words)

  • Colossians Greetings

    The letter to the Colossians ends with news about folks and what they are doing and greetings. Normally this boilerplate passage does not hold a lot of obvious value for Bible study, but this list of names maps to the 13 tribes, unlocking some meaning that's otherwise not accessible. In particular, many of these names occur elsewhere in the Bible, in stories that may turn out to have tribal significance after learning this map at the end of Colossians. (2,041 words)

  • Books

    The 13 tribes map to the 66 books of the Protestant Bible. Since 13 does not divide evenly, there must be a trick. There is. This article explores. (1,449 words)