Numbers 27

Five sisters ask for their late father’s share in the Promised Land, and the LORD declares their request right and makes it a standing law. Then God tells Moses he will die without entering the land. Moses asks for a shepherd for the people, and God appoints Joshua.

Numbers 27:1-2

Zelophehad’s five daughters come forward with a public request. The text names them and traces their line back to Joseph through Manasseh. They stand at the Tent of Meeting before Moses, the priest, the leaders and all the people. It is a bold, orderly appeal.

BSA: approached (“drew near, came forward”): They step forward openly, trusting the proper leaders and the LORD’s tent to hear them.

See also: Joshua 17:3-4.

Numbers 27:3

The sisters make their case carefully. Their father was not one of Korah’s rebels. He died in the wilderness for his own sin, as that generation did, and left no sons. They ask for no special favor, only fairness.

BSA: sin (“transgression, rebellion”): They admit he was guilty like others of his generation, without hiding it or blaming anyone else.

See also: Numbers 16:1-3.

Numbers 27:4

Their concern is the family name and the family’s place in the land. Without a son, the father’s line would vanish from his clan. So they ask for property among their father’s brothers, to keep him remembered in Israel.

BSA: property (“a possession, inheritance”): The land was a gift from God to each family, so losing a share meant losing a place among God’s people.

Numbers 27:5-7

Moses does not decide alone. He brings the case to the LORD, who says the daughters speak correctly. Their request is granted in full. God is shown as just and attentive to people who might easily be overlooked.

BSA: transfer (“cause to pass over, to cross over”): The father’s inheritance is made to pass over to his daughters, so the family line is not cut off.

Hebrew: הֶעֱבַרְתָּ (he’evarta, H5674) — “you shall cause to pass over.” The Hebrew uses the picture of crossing over. The inheritance is carried across from the father to his daughters.

See also: Job 42:15.

Numbers 27:8-11

God turns the case into a lasting law. The inheritance goes first to a son, then a daughter, then brothers, then the father’s brothers, then the nearest relative. The land stays within the family and tribe. What began as one family’s petition now guides all Israel.

BSA: statutory ordinance (“law, decree, or commandment”): This is a fixed rule for all Israel’s generations, not a one-time exception.

See also: Numbers 36:1-9.

Numbers 27:12-14

God now tells Moses to climb the Abarim mountains and look at the land he will not enter. Like Aaron, he will die and be gathered to his people. The reason is the quarrel at Meribah, when Moses and Aaron did not honor God’s holiness before the people.

BSA: holiness (“set-apartness, sacredness”): God expected His holiness to be displayed as set apart. Moses’ angry act at the rock failed to show that. gathered (“collected, brought together”): Death is pictured as rejoining one’s people, not as a bare ending.

See also: Numbers 20:7-12; Deuteronomy 34:1-4.

Numbers 27:15-17

Moses’ first thought is for the people, not himself. He asks God to appoint a leader who will guide them in all their going out and coming in. Without one they would be like sheep without a shepherd.

BSA: shepherd (“one who cares for, tends, and protects”): Leadership is pictured as caring for and guarding the flock, not only giving orders. spirits (“breath of life, the wind, or a person’s mind and emotions”): God is the source of every living person’s breath and inner life, so He knows who is fit to lead.

Hebrew: רוּחֹת (ruchot, H7307) — “spirits, breaths.” The same word can mean breath, wind or spirit. Moses calls on the One who gives life to every person and so knows each heart.

See also: Matthew 9:36; Ezekiel 34:23.

Numbers 27:18-21

God names Joshua, a man with the Spirit in him. Moses is to lay hands on him and present him publicly. He receives some of Moses’ authority so that the people will obey. He will depend on the priest, who seeks God’s answer by the Urim.

BSA: authority (“splendor, glory”): The word means honor or majesty. Joshua is given a share of the dignity that made Moses recognized as God’s leader. commission (“give a charge, appoint, or ordain”): It is a formal charge given before everyone, so no one doubts his calling.

Hebrew: הוֹד (hod, H1935) — “splendor, majesty.” The word usually describes glory or royal dignity. Moses shares a measure of that honor, not just a job title.

See also: Deuteronomy 34:9; Joshua 1:1-2.

Numbers 27:22-23

Moses does exactly as the LORD commanded. He sets Joshua before the priest and the whole people, lays his hands on him, and commissions him. Even with his own exclusion in view, Moses hands over leadership faithfully.

BSA: hands (“upon him”): Laying on hands was a visible sign of passing on a task and authority before the people.

See also: Deuteronomy 31:7-8.