Add parallel Print Page Options

Further Ruling About Daughters’ Inheritance

36 The heads of the ancestral family of the children of Gilead son of Machir son of Manasseh, from the sons of Joseph, came and spoke before Moses and before the princes of the chiefs of the fathers of Bnei-Yisrael. They said, “My lord, Adonai commanded to give the land by lot as an inheritance to Bnei-Yisrael. My lord was also commanded by Adonai to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad to his daughters.

“If they become wives of men from other tribes of Israel, their inheritance will be taken from our ancestral inheritance and added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry. So it will be deducted from the allotment of our inheritance. When the Jubilee year comes, their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry and deducted from the inheritance of our ancestral tribe.”

Then Moses commanded Bnei-Yisrael at the mouth of Adonai, “What the tribe of the descendants of Joseph is saying is correct. This is the word that Adonai commands for the daughters of Zelophehad saying: They may become wives to whomever they please, as long as they marry within the family of the tribe of their father. So no inheritance may be passed from tribe to tribe among Bnei-Yisrael—each one of Bnei-Yisrael will each keep the inheritance of the tribe of his ancestors. Every daughter receiving an inheritance in one of the tribes of Bnei-Yisrael should marry within the family of her father’s tribe, so that Bnei-Yisrael will each possess the inheritance of his fathers. No inheritance may pass from tribe to another tribe, for each tribe of Bnei-Yisrael is to keep its inheritance.”

10 So Zelophehad’s daughters did just as Adonai commanded Moses. 11 Zelophehad’s daughters—Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah and Noah—married sons of their uncles. 12 They married within the families of the sons of Manasseh son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained within the tribe of their ancestral family.

13 These are the mitzvot and judgments that Adonai gave by Moses’s hand to Bnei-Yisrael, on the plains of Moab at Jericho along the Jordan.

Inheritance of Zelophehad’s Daughters(A)

36 The family heads of the clan of Gilead(B) son of Makir,(C) the son of Manasseh, who were from the clans of the descendants of Joseph,(D) came and spoke before Moses and the leaders,(E) the heads of the Israelite families. They said, “When the Lord commanded my lord to give the land as an inheritance to the Israelites by lot,(F) he ordered you to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad(G) to his daughters. Now suppose they marry men from other Israelite tribes; then their inheritance will be taken from our ancestral inheritance and added to that of the tribe they marry into. And so part of the inheritance allotted to us will be taken away. When the Year of Jubilee(H) for the Israelites comes, their inheritance will be added to that of the tribe into which they marry, and their property will be taken from the tribal inheritance of our ancestors.”

Then at the Lord’s command Moses gave this order to the Israelites: “What the tribe of the descendants of Joseph is saying is right. This is what the Lord commands for Zelophehad’s daughters: They may marry anyone they please as long as they marry within their father’s tribal clan. No inheritance(I) in Israel is to pass from one tribe to another, for every Israelite shall keep the tribal inheritance of their ancestors. Every daughter who inherits land in any Israelite tribe must marry someone in her father’s tribal clan,(J) so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of their ancestors. No inheritance may pass from one tribe to another, for each Israelite tribe is to keep the land it inherits.”

10 So Zelophehad’s daughters did as the Lord commanded Moses. 11 Zelophehad’s daughters—Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milkah and Noah(K)—married their cousins on their father’s side. 12 They married within the clans of the descendants of Manasseh son of Joseph, and their inheritance remained in their father’s tribe and clan.(L)

13 These are the commands and regulations the Lord gave through Moses(M) to the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.(N)