Inheritance Laws

27 Then came the daughters of ^(A)Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these were the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. ² And they stood before Moses, before Eleazar the priest, and before the leaders and all the congregation, by the doorway of the tabernacle of meeting, saying: ³ “Our father ^(B)died in the wilderness; but he was not in the company of those who gathered together against the Lord, ^(C)in company with Korah, but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. ⁴ Why should the name of our father be ^(D)removed^[a] from among his family because he had no son? ^(E)Give us a ^[b]possession among our father’s brothers.”

⁵ So Moses ^(F)brought their case before the Lord.

⁶ And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ⁷ “The daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; ^(G)you shall surely give them a possession of inheritance among their father’s brothers, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them. ⁸ And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter. ⁹ If he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. ¹⁰ If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. ¹¹ And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the relative closest to him in his family, and he shall possess it.’ ” And it shall be to the children of Israel ^(H)a statute of judgment, just as the Lord commanded Moses.