Ahira

Ahira the son of Enan is the prince and military captain of the tribe of Naphtali during the wilderness period. He surfaces in four passages of Numbers, each tied to the organization of the camp: the census of the heads of the tribes, the marching order east of the tabernacle, the dedication offerings of the princes, and the order of the host on the march.

Prince of Naphtali in the Census

When Yahweh tells Moses to take the head-count of the sons of Israel, the men named to assist him are listed by tribe, one prince to each. For Naphtali the appointed man is Ahira: "Of Naphtali: Ahira the son of Enan" (Num 1:15). His patronymic — son of Enan — fixes his identity in the tribal genealogy and recurs in every later mention.

Captain of the Tribal Host

In the camp arrangement, Naphtali is grouped with Dan and Asher on the north side of the tabernacle. Ahira appears as the named leader of the Naphtalite contingent: "And the tribe of Naphtali: and the prince of the sons of Naphtali will be Ahira the son of Enan" (Num 2:29). The order of march under the standard of Dan repeats this assignment when the host moves out: "And over the host of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali was Ahira the son of Enan" (Num 10:27).

Offering at the Dedication of the Altar

The princes of the tribes each bring an identical oblation on successive days at the dedication of the altar. Ahira's day is the twelfth — the last in the sequence — and the offering is recorded in full: "On the twelfth day Ahira the son of Enan, prince of the sons of Naphtali: his oblation was one silver platter, the weight of which was a hundred a thirty [shekels], one silver bowl of seventy shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary; both of them full of fine flour mingled with oil for a meal-offering; one golden spoon of ten [shekels], full of incense; one young bull, one ram, one he-lamb a year old, for a burnt-offering; one male of the goats for a sin-offering; and for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, five he-lambs a year old: this was the oblation of Ahira the son of Enan" (Num 7:78-83).

The closing formula — "this was the oblation of Ahira the son of Enan" — matches the pattern used for each of the other princes, framing Ahira's gift within the shared tribal contribution to the sanctuary.