Numbers Chapter 27

This chapter is about Zelophehad’s daughters & Joshua succeeding Moses. No, Moses doesn’t die in this chapter. He didn’t die until Deuteronomy 32:48-52. This chapter is actually very progressive for women’s rights. This is a short one. Enjoy.

The daughters of Zelophehad belonged to the Manasseh tribe, whose names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, & Tirzah. They approached the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They stood before everyone in the Israelite community.

They proceeded to say, “Our father died in the desert. He wasn’t one of Korah’s followers. He died from his own sins. He left no sons. Why should our father’s name disappear from his tribe because he had no sons? Give us some property among our father’s relatives.”

So Moses was like, “Let me go talk to the big guy. Let me see what he has to say about this situation.” God tells Moses, “These girls are right. You’ve got to give them some property as an inheritance. Let them have their father’s inheritance. Tell the Israelites that if a man dies without sons, give his inheritance to his daughters. If he has no children, give the inheritance to the dead man’s brothers. If there are no brothers, then give the inheritance to the closest relative in his tribe.”

Then God tells Moses to go up a mountain in the Abarim range and see the land I’ve given the Israelites. After he’s seen it, he’s a goner. God outright tells him that after Moses sees the “Promised Land,” God is gonna unalive him. Moses isn’t actually going into the “Promised Land,” he just gets to see it. All because Moses didn’t do what God said when Moses hit the rock & the water came out of the rock. That is NOT what God told Moses to do. At all. (There are consequences for not following what God says, & this was Moses’ consequence.)

Moses says to God “Look, Big G. My guy. Let’s appoint someone to be over everyone. To keep an eye on everyone. The first one there, the last one to leave a kind of guy. So the Israelites won’t be like sheep without a shepherd.”

God tells Moses to take Joshua, “a man in whom is the Spirit,” (I’m assuming that Joshua was embracing the Holy Spirit.) lay your hands on him. (There is a long tradition in religion of laying on of hands. The laying on of hands can be used to give someone the power of the giver. In this particular case, it’s the transfer of secular power. Moses is the de facto leader of the Israelites. Moses laying his hands on Joshua would give Joshua Moses’ authority among the Israelites.)

Moses was to take Joshua in front of Eleazer, the high priest at this point, & the entire Israelite community. (God wanted EVERYONE to see & to make sure that everyone knew what was up.) Moses was to give Joshua SOME of his authority so that the Israelites would “obey” Joshua. Joshua is to stand before Eleazar to get decisions for Joshua, from God, by asking the Urim before God. (If you remember Urim is a part of the breastplate fitted with different kinds of gems/jewels that when asked a question or a situation & the gems/jewels would light up. The priest would then interpret the lit-up gems/jewels for the answer.) At Joshua’s command, all the Israelites would come & go.

Moses then went and did what God said.