Then drew near the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these were the names of his daughters Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah.
Five sisters step forward by name, their family line running back through Manasseh to Joseph. Their father died leaving no son, so the family stood to lose both its name and its share of the promised land.
Scripture lists their names one by one. One writer counts how often those names come up.
They are mentioned five times in the course of biblical history (Numbers 26:33; Numbers 27:1-11; Numbers 36:3-12; Joshua 17:3-6; 1 Chronicles 7:15). This proves the important place they occupy in God's thoughts. Not one of their names is forgotten; they are Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. They recognized that their unusual situation was the result of their father's sin. He was not among those who banded together against the LORD in the company of Korah. Yet he died in the wilderness, and died for his own sin, and that is why he had no sons. Even so, his five daughters want to keep their father's name alive. As true daughters of Israel they value their family line, and so they value their inheritance.
They made their claim in the wilderness. Nobody in Israel had yet set foot on the land they asked for, and they asked in front of everyone.
But consider what a living and practical faith that was! It enabled these women to come forward and stand before all the priests and princes, and the whole vast congregation, to claim a portion of a land they could not yet see. How ridiculous it was, or else how sublime! It depends on how you look at it, for the same action is often sublime towards God and ridiculous towards men. What presumption — yes, that is the word! — for someone to believe he has a right to a portion in the Promised Land. And then to try to make it real, a solid thing! What presumption indeed, or what humility and faith! Is it presumption to believe God's promises?
Death had cut their visible link to a share in the land. Faith refused to treat that as final.
They were sure there was a portion for them in the land of promise. Neither death nor anything that happened in the wilderness could ever take it from them. "Why should the name of our father be taken away from his clan because he had no son?" Could death — could the lack of a male heir — could anything — frustrate the goodness of God? Impossible.
Moses had no ruling ready for their case.
The matter in itself was a small one. But the principle involved was so great and far-reaching that even Moses felt he could not take the responsibility of deciding it. He referred the subject to the judgment of God. So easy is it for the humblest to ask a question which the wisest cannot solve. Rulers are usually careful to protect their reputation for knowing everything. If Moses had been like that, he would never have admitted his inability to solve a difficulty that looked so simple.
No existing rule covered their case. One writer says that is where God's character shows.
There was no son left. This kind of case had never come up before. But as we see, the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain. God cannot be like poor human beings, who say, "You expect more good than I am prepared to give." God could not answer like that. He always gives more. Whatever the petition of faith may be, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it. And so the goodness of God secures their place, though it lies outside the usual routine of law.
Their speaking up did not only settle their own case.
Here we have a great principle laid down about inheritance. Humanly speaking, we would have heard nothing of it without the faith and faithful conduct of these remarkable women. Suppose they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to come forward before the whole congregation to assert the claims of faith. They would have lost their own inheritance and blessing, and all future daughters of Israel in the same position would have lost their portion too.
They gained more than land, and one writer holds them up as an example for readers today.
These five young women valued their inheritance, and they received it from the mouth of the LORD. But they received something of far greater value: their names written in the Holy Scriptures… May God grant that believers today copy the zeal of these sisters. They are heirs of a much better inheritance.
- Loss — Their father died in the wilderness for his own sin and left no son. The family faced losing its name and its portion.
- Faith — They asked for a share in land nobody had yet seen, sure that death could not cancel God's goodness.
- Boldness — They brought the claim in the open, before Moses, the priest, the leaders, and the whole assembly.
- Grace — The answer of grace goes beyond what faith asks. God secured their place outside the usual routine of law.
- Reach — If they had stayed silent, every future daughter in their position would have lost her portion. Instead, their names stand in Scripture.
And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and the whole assembly, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, saying,
The five daughters of Zelophehad bring their case out in the open — before Moses, the priest, the leaders and the whole nation. Why did a family matter belong in front of everyone, and what were they asking for that the law had not yet covered?
They stood before two audiences at once: God, and the watching nation.
Consider what a living and practical faith that was. It enabled these women to come forward and stand before all the priests and princes, and the whole vast assembly. They came to claim a portion of a land not yet visible. How supremely ridiculous it was, or else how sublime! It depends on how you look at it. The same action is often sublime towards God and ridiculous towards men.
Their stand decided more than their own case.
Suppose they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to come forward before the whole assembly and press the claims of faith. Then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing. And all future daughters of Israel in the same position would have lost their portion too. Instead they acted in the precious energy of faith. They preserved their inheritance. They got the blessing. They received testimony from God. Their names shine on the page of inspiration.
Their case had a painful background, and nothing moved until they brought it to God themselves.
They recognised that their situation came from their father's sin. Even so, they wanted to keep his name alive; they valued their family line and so their inheritance. The Lord waits to set their situation in order until they express this need before Him. He answers them when they stand at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and when Moses "brought their cause before Jehovah" (v. 5). God says: "The daughters of Zelophehad speak right." Wherever there is zeal to take hold of God's blessings and promises, an answer is sure.
Of all the people they stood before, Moses was the one expected to rule on it. He could not.
Noble words — words that went right up to the throne and to the heart of the God of Israel. It was a most powerful testimony delivered in the hearing of the whole assembly. Moses was taken aback. Here was something beyond the range of the lawgiver.
What he did next is the model for anyone handed a question they cannot settle.
The matter in itself was a small one. But the principle behind it was great and far-reaching. Even Moses felt he could not take the responsibility of deciding it. He referred the subject to the judgment of God. How easy it is for the humblest person to ask a question the wisest cannot solve! Rulers are usually careful to guard their reputation for knowing everything. If Moses had been like them, he would never have admitted that he could not solve a difficulty that looked so simple.
Nothing in the law so far had covered daughters without brothers. They counted on God anyway.
This was a case which had not yet arisen; but as we see, the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain. God can never be like a poor man who says, "You expect more good than I am prepared to give." God could not answer like that. He always gives more. Whatever the petition of faith may be, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it. So God's goodness secures the place of the daughters of Zelophehad, though it lies outside the usual routine of law.
Israel was still outside the land when the five women asked for their share in it.
In Numbers 27 we find that this gave rise to legislation in Israel, though they had not yet reached the land where the inheritance was to be. So these daughters were women of faith who relied on the promise of God. They took it for granted that the inheritance would come, and asked that their father's portion should not be lost. Faith is always right and it commands a blessing.
- Stand. Faith came out of hiding. It took its place in public — at the entrance of the tent of meeting, before priest, leaders and nation.
- Speak. God left their case open until they spoke. He waits to be asked before He gives what He means to give.
- Beyond law. The question was beyond what Moses could decide. He carried it to the Lord instead of guessing — the pattern for anyone out of their depth.
- More than asked. They had no precedent to lean on, only God's own character. The answer of grace went further than they asked.
- For all who follow. Five women refused to stay quiet, and God gave a lasting rule for every family in Israel in the same position.
Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the band of them that banded themselves together against Jehovah in the band of Korah; but he died in his own sin, and he had no sons.
Five sisters stand before Moses, the priest, the princes and the whole assembly. Their case rests on a few facts about their dead father: how he died, the rebellion he stayed out of, and the sons he never had. By the law as it stood, his family line had no claim on the promised land. Everything hangs on God's answer.
The sisters do not hide their father's failure. They name it, and they also clear him of Korah's rebellion against the Lord. One writer links that sin to the position his daughters were now in.
First, they recognized that their difficult position was the result of their father's sin. He "was not among the company of those who gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah," yet he "died in the wilderness," and "died for his own sin," and that was why "he had no sons" (v. 3). Even so, his five daughters want to keep their father's name alive. As true daughters of Israel they value their family line, and so they value their inheritance.
They asked while Israel was still outside the land. No one had fought for it yet, and no one had divided it up.
But think what a living, practical faith there was in these women… They came forward and stood before all the priests and princes, and the whole vast assembly, to claim a share of a land they could not yet see. How ridiculous it was — or how magnificent! It depends on how you look at it, for the same act is often magnificent towards God and ridiculous towards men. What presumption (yes, that is the word!) for someone to believe he has a right to a share in the promised land, and to try to make it real and solid! What presumption indeed, or what humility and faith! Is it presumption to believe God's promises?
Two facts stood against them: their father was dead, and there was no son. They treated neither as final.
God always rewards a bold and simple faith. It glorifies God, and God honours it… God delights in a faith that takes hold of all He has given and keeps a tight grip on it. Even in the face of nature's weakness and death, such faith refuses to give up one hair's breadth of the inheritance God has given. What if Zelophehad's bones lay rotting in the dust of the wilderness? What if no male heir appeared to carry on his name? Faith could rise above all these things, and count on God's faithfulness to make good everything His word had promised.
The written law had no rule for this case. What God gave went beyond it.
Before Israel enters the land, the daughters of Zelophehad claim their father's inheritance. Through that claim God proves the sovereignty of grace, and makes provision in a case where the law made none… Under the law only sons could inherit. Was this inheritance to be lost, swallowed up by others? No. Grace gives these daughters their father's inheritance, and grace made it a "statute of judgment." Here already, in picture form, is the great truth that in Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female. All believers are sons, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.
Had they kept quiet, the loss would not have stopped with them. Their willingness to speak in public turned one family's problem into settled law.
Suppose they had listened to the voice of fear and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to come forward before the whole assembly and press the claims of faith. Then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing. And every later daughter of Israel in the same position would have lost her portion too. Instead they acted in the precious energy of faith. They kept their inheritance. They got the blessing. God bore witness to them. Their names shine on the page of inspiration, and by God's own authority their action became a pattern for all future generations.
One writer carries this over to believers now:
In all of this it is taught that there is to be no difference as regards the inheritance of men and women. There are differences in responsibility and order in family life, in the church and in public life. Yet all believers share alike in the great blessing God gives them: an inheritance "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4).
- Honesty. They name their father's sin and clear him of Korah's revolt. Faith need not hide the past to make its claim.
- Loss. Death and the lack of a son left them, by law, with no title to anything in the land.
- Claim. They asked for a share of a land no one had seen yet. Weakness and death did not cancel God's promise.
- Grace. God made provision where the law had made none, and His answer went further than what they asked.
- Reach. Five women spoke up, and their case became a standing rule for every family in Israel.
Why should the name of our father be taken away from his family, because he has no son? Give unto us a possession among the brethren of our father.
Israel is about to divide the land. Five sisters step forward with a case the law had never covered. Their father Zelophehad is dead, he left no son, and his name looks set to vanish. Can death cancel what God has promised? And what does God do when faith asks for more than the rules allow?
The sisters were not disputing a known rule. There was no rule to dispute.
Up to this time there had been no provision for such a case. The son or sons were to inherit the family property, but nothing had been said about daughters where there were no sons. Moses did not act on his own view of the case. Nor did he act on what others might think fair and reasonable. He admitted that he had no wisdom of his own, and he laid the matter before the Lord. I wish we would all do the same when we cannot find the mind of God in a hard case. The Lord answered at once: "The daughters of Zelophehad are right." He told Moses to give them "possession of an inheritance among their father's brothers," and at the same time He announced a standing rule for the people of Israel to cover every such case that might arise.
To human eyes, death had cut their link to the land. The sisters refused to treat that as final.
Here were those daughters of Joseph, robbed of their father, helpless and desolate as nature sees it. Death had snapped the link that seemed to tie them to the inheritance of God's people. What then? Were they content to give up — to fold their arms in cold indifference? … They were sure there was a portion for them in the land of promise. Neither death nor anything that happened in the wilderness could ever deprive them of it. … Could death, or the lack of a son, or anything else, frustrate the goodness of God? Impossible.
The daughters themselves trace their strange position back to their father's sin. It did not lessen their care for his name.
First, they recognised that their unusual position was the result of their father's sin. He was not among those who banded together against the Lord with Korah. Yet he died in the wilderness, and he died in his own sin, and that is why he had no sons (v. 3). Even so, his five daughters want to keep their father's name alive. As true daughters of Israel they value their family line, and so they value their inheritance. The Lord waits to put their situation in order until they express this need before Him.
This was new ground for Israel. The way God met it shows what He is like.
There was no son left. This was a case which had not yet arisen; but as we see, the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain. God can never be like poor man, who says, "You expect more good than I am prepared to give." God could not answer like that. He always gives more. Whatever the petition of faith may be, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it.
Their courage did more than secure their own portion.
Suppose they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to come forward before the whole congregation to assert the claims of faith. Then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing. And all future daughters of Israel in the same position would have lost their portion too. Instead they acted in the precious energy of faith. They kept their inheritance; they got the blessing; they received testimony from God; their names shine on the page of inspiration. Their conduct supplied, by divine authority, a precedent for all future generations.
Later the heads of these families raised a second worry. If the sisters married outside the tribe, the family inheritance would be split up.
The faith of the daughters was most lovely. But there was a danger. Faith had lifted them to a high place, and there they might forget the claims of others and move the landmarks which guarded the inheritance of their fathers. … We need guarding on every side, so that the integrity of faith and the testimony stay whole. We are not to force things through with a high hand and a strong will, however strong our faith may be. We should always be ready to submit ourselves to the adjusting power of the whole truth of God.
- Ask — the portion was theirs by promise. The Lord still waited until they asked before He put their case in order.
- Inquire — Moses met a question the law had not covered. He took it to the Lord instead of judging it himself.
- Receive — God gave more than they asked. Grace never stops where faith stops asking.
- Extend — God turned their case into a standing rule. One bold asking won the portion of every daughter after them.
- Guard — faith's high place must still bow to the whole truth of God. It never presses its own claim at the cost of others.
And Moses brought their cause before Jehovah.
Five sisters whose father died without a son asked for a share in the land. No rule covered their case, so Moses did not decide it himself — he took it to God.
Their appeal left Moses with nothing to go on. One commentator notes it was not the first such moment in Numbers:
Noble words! Words that went right up to the throne and to the heart of the God of Israel. It was a most powerful testimony delivered in the hearing of the whole congregation. Moses was taken aback. Here was something beyond the range of the lawgiver. Moses was a servant, and a blessed and honoured servant too. But again and again in this remarkable Book of Numbers, this wilderness book, questions come up that he cannot deal with. Two of them are the defiled men in chapter 9, and the daughters of Zelophehad in the passage before us.
Three paths lay open to Moses: his own opinion, what others thought fair, or God's mind. He chose the last:
Up to this time there had been no provision for such a case. The son or sons were to inherit the property, but nothing had been said about daughters where there were no sons. Moses did not act on his own view of the case. He did not act on what others might think were fair and reasonable principles. He admitted that he had no wisdom of his own, and laid the matter before the Lord. I wish we would all follow his example when we cannot find the mind of God in some special difficulty.
The same writer turns this into a rule for anyone:
Nothing about the people of God can be settled by human wisdom. Every difficulty must be laid before the Lord. If we lack wisdom, the Lord is always ready to give, and to give generously. Nothing that affects the welfare of His people is too small to bring before Him. For us to try to act without His mind is to take His place.
One writer comments on another hard case that Israel brought to Moses and left with God. He draws out the rule:
Here comes out a very important principle — what is to be done where we have no clear word from the Lord, so far as we know. There is always one great safeguard: to wait. Never be in a hurry to devise a remedy, or to exercise discipline, without the word of the Lord. What is done cannot be undone. It is better to wait and take the place of ignorance — but an ignorance that is confident that the Lord hears and cares for us… No one can wait on the Lord and be put to shame.
God knew the question was coming. He did not publish the ruling in advance. A commentator sees deliberate purpose in that timing:
Observe that the Lord did not anticipate the difficulty. He knew it would arise, but He waited until His servant brought it to Him before He gave His mind in the matter. He foresaw the second question just as much as the first. But He would have His people always depending on Him, and so He gave only the word for the moment — the wisdom as it was needed.
God answered that second question the same way — only when His people came and asked.
God did more than grant what they asked. He declared the women right. A commentator builds on that answer, quoting it in an older wording:
"The daughters of Zelophehad speak right." They always do so. Their words are words of faith, and as such are always right in the judgement of God… It is utterly impossible for faith to overdraw its account in God's bank. God could no more disappoint faith than He could deny Himself. He can never say to faith, "You have miscalculated; you are taking too high and too bold a stand; so come down, and lower your expectations."
Because they spoke, and because Moses asked, the benefit reached far past them:
Suppose they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to come forward before the whole congregation to assert the claims of faith. Then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing — and all future daughters of Israel in the same position would have lost their portion too.
- Asked — Five women spoke up for a portion no law had promised them, and their appeal reached the throne of God.
- Stumped — The case lay beyond the lawgiver; Moses met a question his office could not answer.
- Brought — He did not rule by his own view or by what others thought fair. He admitted he had no wisdom of his own, and laid the case before the Lord.
- Waited — When you have no clear word, the safeguard is to wait. God held back the ruling until His people asked, to keep them depending on Him.
- Granted — Faith cannot overdraw its account with God. The answer these five sisters received became the rule for every generation after them.
And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,
The daughters of Zelophehad had just made a claim no law covered, and Moses had no ruling to give them. Here the Lord Himself answers. His reply is both an answer to faith and a new rule for Israel.
The Lord speaks here because Moses refused to speak first.
Up to this time there had been no provision for such a case. The son or sons were to inherit the property, but there was no word about daughters where there were no sons. Moses did not act on his own view of the case, nor on what others might think fair and reasonable principles. He admitted that he had no wisdom of his own, and laid the matter before the Lord. I wish we might all follow his example when we cannot work out the mind of God in some special difficulty.
That admission cost Moses something.
The matter in itself was a small one. But the principle involved was so great and far-reaching that even Moses felt he could not take the responsibility of deciding it on himself. He referred the subject to the judgment of God (Numbers 27). It is that easy for the humblest person to ask a question the wisest cannot solve. Rulers are usually careful to protect their reputation for knowing everything. If Moses had been like that, he would never have admitted that he could not solve such a simple-looking difficulty.
God knew the problem was coming. Yet He said nothing until Moses asked, and that timing is deliberate.
Notice also that the Lord did not anticipate the difficulty. He knew it would arise, but He waited until His servant brought it to Him before He gave His mind in the matter. He foresaw the second question just as much as the first. But He wanted His people in constant dependence. So He gave only the word for the moment — the wisdom they needed at the time.
The same silence raises a practical question for us.
And here comes out a very important principle — what is to be done where we have no clear word of the Lord as far as we know. There is always one great safeguard: to wait. Never be in a hurry to devise a remedy, or to exercise discipline, without the word of the Lord. What is done cannot be undone. It is better to wait and take the place of ignorance — but an ignorance that is confident the Lord hears us and cares for us.
The Lord does more than allow their claim. In the next verse He says the daughters "are right" — older translations read "speak right."
"The daughters of Zelophehad speak right." They always do. Their words are words of faith, and as such are always right in God's judgment. It is a terrible thing to limit "the Holy One of Israel." He delights to be trusted and used. It is completely impossible for faith to overdraw its account in God's bank. God could no more disappoint faith than He could deny Himself. He can never say to faith, "You have miscalculated; you take too high — too bold a stand; so come down, and lower your expectations."
No law covered what they asked for.
There was no son left. This was a case that had not yet arisen; but as we see, the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain. It is impossible for God to be like poor man, who says, "You expect more good than I am prepared to give." God could not make such an answer. He always gives more. Whatever the petition of faith may be, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it. And so the daughters of Zelophehad have their place secured to them in the goodness of God, though outside the usual routine of law.
The Lord's reply did not stop with five women. It became legislation, and later it spread wider still.
What they did brought out a fresh truth, which was to become the basis of a divine rule for all future generations. The Lord commanded Moses, saying, "If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter."
Their faith and their confidence in Jehovah's commandment to Moses had a further result. The same rule about female descendants spread throughout all Manasseh, even beyond the Jordan. "The daughters of Manasseh received an inheritance along with his sons." So the rule given to a few became the privilege of all.
- Asked — Faith raised a question no law had yet answered.
- Referred — Moses would not settle it by his own judgment. He admitted he did not know, and brought it to God.
- Withheld — God foresaw the difficulty but waited for Moses to ask. He gives wisdom as it is needed, to keep His people dependent.
- Answered — The Lord granted the claim and called it right. Faith cannot ask more than grace is ready to give.
- Enlarged — One family's case became a rule for Israel. The privilege of a few became the portion of all.
The daughters of Zelophehad speak right thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father's brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them.
Zelophehad died leaving no son, and his daughters asked Moses for a share of the land Israel had not yet entered. God did more than allow it: He called their request right and told Moses to hand them their father's portion. (Older translations read "the daughters of Zelophehad speak right," the wording quoted below.)
They had nothing to go on but God's promise about a land they had never seen:
Clearly these daughters were women of faith who relied on the promise of God. They took it for granted that the inheritance would materialise, and asked that their father's portion should not be lost. The answer of God was, "The daughters of Zelophehad speak right." Faith is always right and it commands a blessing. The inheritance was to be theirs.
God never tells faith that it has asked for too much:
"The daughters of Zelophehad speak right." They always do so. Their words are words of faith, and, as such, are always right in the judgement of God... He delights to be trusted and used. It is utterly impossible for faith to overdraw its account in God's bank. God could no more disappoint faith than He could deny Himself. He can never say to faith, "You have miscalculated; you take too lofty — too bold a stand; so come down and lower your expectations."
Standing up to claim it took courage:
But consider what a living and practical faith that was which enabled these women... to come forth and stand before all the priests and princes, and the whole vast congregation, in order to claim a portion of a land not yet visible. How supremely ridiculous it was, or else how sublime! It depends on how you look at it, because the same action is often sublime towards God and ridiculous towards men. What presumption (yes, that is the term!) for anyone to believe they are entitled to a portion in the Promised Land, and to try to make a reality — a substance — of it! What presumption indeed, or what humility and faith! Is it presumption to believe God's promises?
The law made no provision for daughters. One writer sees that gap as the place where grace acted:
By the law only sons could inherit. Is this inheritance to be lost, swallowed up by others? No, grace gives these daughters their father's inheritance, and grace made it a "statute of judgment." Already we are given, in shadow, the great truth that in Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female; all believers are sons, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.
Moses had no answer of his own. What he did next is an example for anyone who is stuck:
Moses did not act on his own view of the case, or on what others might think were fair and reasonable principles. Instead, admitting that he had no wisdom of his own, he laid the matter before the Lord. How good it would be if we all followed his example when we cannot find the mind of God in some special difficulty.
The Lord's answer did not stop at a yes:
The Lord waits to set their situation in order until they express this need before Him... Wherever there is zeal to take hold of God's blessings and promises, an answer is sure. But the Lord gives them much more than they were asking.
Their case became law for Israel, so silence would have cost others too:
If they had listened to the voice of timidity and unbelief — if they had refused to come forward before the whole congregation and press the claims of faith — then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing. And every future daughter of Israel in the same position would have lost her portion too. Instead, by acting in the precious energy of faith, they kept their inheritance. They got the blessing. They received testimony from God. Their names shine on the pages of Scripture.
A later ruling limited their marriages to their father's tribe, so that the land would stay in the family:
Some would have thought this an unwelcome restriction. But it was absolutely necessary, so that the property would not be transferred away; and every right and privilege carries a restraint with it... It is typical of Zelophehad's daughters that they accept the condition laid on them and keep it with loyalty and submission, though they had not yet seen so much as a grain of soil of their promised possession.
- Asked — They spoke up in public for an inheritance they had never seen. Faith that counts on God's promise is "always right in the judgement of God."
- Referred — Moses had no answer, so he brought their case to the Lord. That is the pattern when the rules settle nothing.
- Granted — The law made no provision for daughters. Grace did, and gave them more than they asked for.
- Extended — What God ruled for these women became a statute for all Israel. Their boldness won portions for people they never met.
- Guarded — They then accepted a limit on their marriages, so the inheritance stayed whole. Faith holds its privileges and its restraints together.
And unto the children of Israel shalt thou speak, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter.
Numbers 27:8 is where a private request turns into public law. The daughters of Zelophehad asked that their father's portion not be lost, and God answers with a rule for every household in Israel.
Under the law, land passed from father to son. What happens when a family has no son at all?
Turn to Israel, before they enter the land. The daughters of Zelophehad claim their father's inheritance. Through that claim God proves the sovereignty of grace, and makes provision in a case where the law made none... Zelophehad had no sons, and no one to carry on the family name. By the law only sons could inherit. Is this inheritance to be lost, swallowed up by others? No. Grace gives these daughters their father's inheritance, and grace made it a "statute and rule." Here, in shadow, is the great truth that in Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female. All believers are sons, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.
One writer notes that no law yet covered this, and that God's answer went further than the sisters asked:
There was no son left. This case had never come up before. But as we see, the daughters of Zelophehad counted on God, and not in vain... He always gives more. Whatever may be the petition of faith, the answer of grace never fails to go beyond it. And so the goodness of God secured their place for them, though outside the usual routine of law.
God's answer goes to the whole nation, not only to one family:
So from one particular case God draws a general principle, and it at once becomes binding. In the same way we recall the institution of the Supper, the first day of the week, the collections, and a special case of discipline at Corinth. All of these became general obligations.
Another writer weighs what their silence would have cost:
Suppose they had listened to the voice of fear and unbelief. Suppose they had refused to stand before the whole congregation and press the claims of faith. Then they would have lost their own inheritance and blessing. And every future daughter of Israel in the same position would have lost her portion too.
The rule keeps going past verse 8 and names who inherits next:
Further, the Lord instructed that the normal practice in Israel would give an inheritance to a daughter if there was no son to inherit it (v.9). If a man had no daughter, his inheritance would pass to his brothers. If he had no brothers, it would pass to his nearest living relative or relatives (vs.8-11).
Israel had not yet entered the land, so the sisters were asking for a portion no one had yet received:
Clearly then, these daughters were women of faith who relied on the promise of God. They took it for granted that the inheritance would come, and they asked that their father's portion should not be lost. God's answer was, "The daughters of Zelophehad are right." Faith is always right and it commands a blessing.
From that verdict one writer draws a wider principle:
It is utterly impossible for faith to overdraw its account in God's bank. God could no more disappoint faith than He could deny Himself. He can never say to faith, "You have miscalculated. Your stand is too high and too bold. Come down, and expect less."
The same writer carries the inheritance question into our own day and asks how believers marry:
Christians, is it not the same with us about marriage? Marriage must stay within the bounds of the family of God, and within the realm of faith. Otherwise disorder will quickly enter the Assembly, and it will lose part of its heavenly inheritance, or see it reduced.
- Claim — The daughters of Zelophehad asked for a portion they could not yet see. Commentators call that faith resting on God's promise.
- Grace — The law made no provision for their case. Grace made one, and gave more than they asked.
- Statute — God turned one family's problem into a standing rule, drawing a general principle from a single case.
- Reach — Their courage won more than their own land. Every later daughter in the same position kept her portion because they spoke.
- Marriage — The same principle still speaks: marry within the family of God, or the whole Assembly loses part of its inheritance.