The tribe of Dan was to receive the northernmost section of the Promised Land. The order of tribes from north to south, north of the sacred district, was Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben and Judah--seven tribal allotments of equal size (47:14). Since they will be of equal size, and since the east-west width of the Promised Land would vary depending on the latitude of each allotment, the north-south distance would also vary somewhat.
The order of these tribes does not conform to any other in Scripture. These tribal allotments are not like those that Joshua assigned nor are they as large (cf. Josh. 14-22). There is a general progression from the most unfaithful tribe, Dan, to the most faithful, Judah. Judah, from which Messiah came, received the blessing of being adjacent to the holy allotment. The tribes that descended from Jacob's concubines (Dan, Asher, Naphtali, and Gad) received land to the far north and far south. Those that descended from Jacob's wives received land toward the center of the land (cf. Gen. 35:23-26).
