SCRIPTURE: NUMBERS 27
BIBLE VERSES:
“Say to the Israelites, ‘If a man dies and leaves no son, give his inheritance to his daughter. If he has no daughter, give his inheritance to his brothers. If he has no brothers, give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. If his father had no brothers, give his inheritance to the nearest relative in his clan, that he may possess it. This is to have the force of law for the Israelites, as the Lord commanded Moses.’” (Numbers 27:8-11)
“So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit of leadership, and lay your hand on him. Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence. Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him. He is to stand before Eleazar the priest, who will obtain decisions for him by inquiring of the Urim before the Lord. At his command he and the entire community of the Israelites will go out, and at his command they will come in.” (Numbers 27:18-21)
ZELOPHEHAD’S DAUGHTERS (vs. 1-11)
The daughters of Zelophehad, descendants of Manasseh stood before Moses, Eleazar, the priest, the leaders and all the congregation at the coorway of the Tent of Meeting asking Moses to give them a possession among their father’s brethren because their father had no son. The Lord confirmed their request and asked Moses to transfer the inheritance of their father to them. Then He gave them this statutory ordinance to the Israelites
- If a man dies without a son, the inheritance shall belong to his daughters.
- If he has no daughter, the inheritance shall be given to his brother.
- If he has no brothers, the inheritance shall be given to his father’s brothers.
- If his father has no brothers, then it shall be given to his nearest relative in his own family.
JOSHUA TO SUCCEED MOSES (vs. 12-23)
The Lord told Moses to do this. Take Joshua, the son of Nun, a man with God’s spirit and lay his hand on him. Let him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation and commission him in their sight. Put some of your authority on him so that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey him. The whole community shall go out and come in at his command.
THOUGHTS:
The 5 daughters of Zelophehad had the courage and faith to ask for their inheritance and they got it. Do not be afraid to speak out your rights.
The Promised Land gave us a picture of 3 groups of people: To which group do you belong?
- The 10 spies saw the lands for 40 days and then died of unbelief.
- Moses saw the land but could not enter.
- Caleb and Joshua entered the land and claimed the promise of inheritance.
God told Moses to appoint Joshua, who was capable of leading the Israelites in battle and caring for their needs. In any leadership, there must be a successor. The best leaders are both goal oriented and people oriented.
When Joshua was selected, Moses gave him a variety of tasks to ease the transition in his new position. Moses gave him the authority and display his confidence in him. To minimize leadership gap, anyone in the leadership position should train others to carry on the duties when he or she will be leaving his position. Follow Moses pattern: pray, select, develop and commission.