Read Numbers 27
Zelophehad’s Daughters
27 The daughters of Zelophehad son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Makir, the son of Manasseh, belonged to the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. The names of the daughters were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milkah and Tirzah. They came forward 2 and stood before Moses, Eleazar the priest, the leaders and the whole assembly at the entrance to the tent of meetingand said, 3 “Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among Korah’s followers, who banded together against the Lord, but he died for his own sin and left no sons. 4 Why should our father’s name disappear from his clan because he had no son? Give us property among our father’s relatives.”
5 So Moses brought their case before the Lord, 6 and the Lord said to him,7 “What Zelophehad’s daughters are saying is right. You must certainly give them property as an inheritance among their father’s relatives and give their father’s inheritance to them.
8 “Say to the Israelites, ‘If a man dies and leaves no son, give his inheritance to his daughter. 9 If he has no daughter, give his inheritance to his brothers.10 If he has no brothers, give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. 11 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.’”
Joshua to Succeed Moses
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go up this mountain in the Abarim Rangeand see the land I have given the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people, as your brother Aaron was, 14 for when the community rebelled at the waters in the Desert of Zin, both of you disobeyed my command to honor me as holy before their eyes.” (These were the waters of Meribah Kadesh, in the Desert of Zin.)
15 Moses said to the Lord, 16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community 17 to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
18 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. 19 Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire assembly and commission him in their presence. 20 Give him some of your authority so the whole Israelite community will obey him. 21 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.”
22 Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole assembly. 23 Then he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, as the Lord instructed through Moses.
Go Deeper
In this chapter, we see two different narratives: one involving Zelophehad’s daughters and another involving Moses and Joshua. While both stories deal with the graciousness of the Lord (in Zelophehad’s daughters’ case, His sovereignty in providing them an inheritance), today we’re going to zoom in on the story of Moses’ leadership being passed to the next generation through Joshua.
Remember back in Numbers 20 when Moses disobeyed the Lord by hitting the rock for water, rather than speaking to it like the Lord instructed? Beginning in verse 12 we see the consequence of Moses’ disobedience begin to unfold and God’s graciousness highlighted. Verses 12-14 explain that Moses will not be able to enter into Canaan and how he will die after seeing the Promised Land from Mount Nebo (Deuteronomy 32:48-52). Moses’ reaction to God’s announcement of his death was quite admirable.
Wouldn’t you think Moses would be upset that he wouldn’t be able to lead his people into the land the Lord has promised? Instead, Moses prayed to the Lord. “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community… so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd” (v. 16-17). We begin to understand that Moses truly sees Yahweh as sovereign by surrendering full control to Him when deciding who is to be appointed next to lead the Israelites.
The Lord’s response back to Moses is where we can deeply see the Lord’s graciousness. In verse 18, the Lord appoints Joshua. One of the most important qualifications of Joshua’s leadership is mentioned in this same verse, “a man who has the Spirit in him” (v. 18, CSB). The Lord then asks his servant Moses to appoint Joshua by laying his hands on him in front of the whole Israelite community. This is significant because the Lord desired for his people to see and follow the man whom he appointed to lead the next generation into the Promised Land.
When reading today we can be reminded that the Lord is the true Good Shepherd. The Lord is the one who fulfills everything Moses was pleading for in verse 16 to lead the Israelites. Deuteronomy 31:8 reiterates this to us: “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” The Lord was sovereign in preparing a way for the Israelites to enter into Canaan with a leader whom the Spirit of the Lord was in.
Questions
- What do both of these narratives teach you about God? What do they teach you about humanity?
- Where do you need to surrender control to fully allow the Lord to be the Good Shepherd of your life?
- In what ways do you feel the Lord is preparing you to enter into a new season?
Pray This
Lord, I thank you that you are the Good Shepherd in my life. Thank you for all the ways you have gone before me and prepared a way to care for me, even if it is different than what I expected. Please reveal to me where I need to surrender control to see the plan you have been writing for me. In Jesus name, Amen.
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8 thoughts on “Numbers 27”
18 “a man in whom is the Spirit”
What a great description of Joshua! God doesn’t focus on his bravery, his intelligence, or his military skills, but rather that the Spirit is in him. Wow!
Amen! That is beautifully said.
❤️
What both narratives teach us about God is that he is holy, just, and compassionate. He does not let sin slide or go unpunished (Moses), neither does he ignore our honest questions (Zelophehad’s daughters). Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need”.
Love God with all your heart soul, mind and strength and your neighbor as yourself
Pray
Moses did this well. God said to Moses, you can look at the land but not go. Moses’ response is humble and honoring to God.
The LORD said to Moses, “Go up the Abarim Mountains and look out over the land that I am giving to the Israelites. 13 After you have seen it, you will die, as your brother Aaron did, 14 because both of you rebelled against my command in the wilderness of Zin. When the whole community complained against me at Meribah, you refused to acknowledge my holy power before them.” (Meribah is the spring at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.). Moses prayed, 16 ” LORD God, source of all life, appoint, I pray, a man who can lead the people 17 and can command them in battle, so that your community will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
Numbers 27:12-17 GNB
So, how many of us are doing this now so that we can honor God and others to the discipline of God?
This is some interesting information: “that the Lord has in all of history supplied but TWO Mediators, and 2 only. And that is all there ever will be. Moses was the first, Jesus Christ the 2nd. Neither had a successor. Joshua was to rule over, care for and lead Israel; and we Believers are to spread the Good News and demonstrate Christ’s sacrificial love. But we are not the replacement Mediators for Jesus, we are but His disciples. So with the coming death of Moses it would be around 12 centuries before the Father would provide a new and better Mediator than Moses. And now that Jesus Chrsit is dead and risen, there will not ever be another. When He comes again, it will not be as Mediator, but as the Kinsman Redeemer.” (Torah Class Numbers 27)
God thank You for being able to come to You, through Your Holy Spirt that is within me, to pray. God I am thankful for the direct line. God help me to share the gospel more, pray for others more, and to see all through Your love goggles. God I am thankful for how You are opening the eyes of my understanding to see what, who, and how You are about in these minutes of this day. God thank You for today Your peace, joy, effervesing HESED love flowing out of my heart to Your people. God help me with boldness for Your glory and honor in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sin has consequences, even though Moses bounced back and was very mature with his future responses regarding God… I want to be like Moses! He is mature.
This was also cool because it explains why we lay hands on people when we pray or commission people.
I feel like God is preparing my family & I to go do missions work eventually in so preparing my parents hearts for that is important. May we be ready to go share the gospel.
❤
16 “May the Lord, the God who gives breath to all living things, appoint someone over this community 17 to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the Lord’s people will not be like sheep without a shepherd.”
We are all under the authority of God.