The Daughters of Zelophehad: A Just Inheritance

In the long years after the exodus from Egypt, Israel learned to live as a people under God’s care. They camped, moved, and camped again, always under the pillar of cloud and fire, always with the tabernacle in their midst. Laws were taught, lessons were learned, and an entire generation passed away in the wilderness while God shaped a nation to enter the land he had promised to their fathers. By the time we arrive near the end of the book of Numbers, the people are gathered on the plains of Moab, east of the Jordan River, almost within sight of Canaan’s hills. A new census has just been taken, counting families and clans. The reason is practical and holy at once: the land of promise will be apportioned among the tribes, and the number of names helps determine each share. It is a moment heavy with anticipation, because the place of each family in the land will carry forward their story and their name.

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