The first feminist precedent in the Bible Daughters of Zelophehad-part 1,2

In the Book Of Numbers we can find a very unique story in the ancient time: the story of Zelophehad 's daughters. Zelophehad was a man of the tribe of Manasseh. He had five daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah, but no sons.

Zelophehad followed Moses out of Egypt and died in the wilderness before reaching the promised land. The daughters of Zelophehad lived before there was a law that determines woman's right and obligation to inherit property in the absence of a male heir in the family.In order to perpetuate their father's name, the daughters asked that the land be given to them instead.
What will Moses say to them in a patriarchal world?
Should he give them the opportunity to inherit their father property?
We know that in the old ages the men gave the property, but in some cases if there wasn't a man - the woman got the property...

To be continued....

Main phrases of the post + transcription + translation
Hebrew Transcription Translation
יְרֻשָּׁה        yerušāh    Inheritance
בַּת           bat           Daughter
פַּחַד         pahad       Fear
רְכוּשׁ         rekûš      Property
תִּרְצָה         tirtsāh     Tirzah
מַלְכָּה         malkāh      Queen

Eli@eteachergroup.com

The first feminist precedent in the Bible Daughters of Zelophehad-part 2
Moses did not know what to tell them, because that was the first time that a request like this brought to his attention. He brought their request before God. God agreed and asked Moses to tell it to the daughters. Because of the daughter's initiative, God establish a new inheritance law in Israel for men who died without sons, as mentioned in Numbers 27:1-7
" וַתִּקְרַבְנָה בְּנוֹת צְלָפְחָד, בֶּן-חֵפֶר בֶּן-גִּלְעָד בֶּן-מָכִיר בֶּן-מְנַשֶּׁה, לְמִשְׁפְּחֹת, מְנַשֶּׁה בֶן-יוֹסֵף; וְאֵלֶּה, שְׁמוֹת בְּנֹתָיו--מַחְלָה נֹעָה, וְחָגְלָה וּמִלְכָּה וְתִרְצָה. וַתַּעֲמֹדְנָה לִפְנֵי מֹשֶׁה, וְלִפְנֵי אֶלְעָזָר הַכֹּהֵן, וְלִפְנֵי הַנְּשִׂיאִם, וְכָל-הָעֵדָה--פֶּתַח אֹהֶל-מוֹעֵד, לֵאמֹר. אָבִינוּ, מֵת בַּמִּדְבָּר, וְהוּא לֹא-הָיָה בְּתוֹךְ הָעֵדָה הַנּוֹעָדִים עַל-יְהוָה, בַּעֲדַת-קֹרַח: כִּי-בְחֶטְאוֹ מֵת, וּבָנִים לֹא-הָיוּ לוֹ. לָמָּה יִגָּרַע שֵׁם-אָבִינוּ מִתּוֹךְ מִשְׁפַּחְתּוֹ, כִּי אֵין לוֹ בֵּן; תְּנָה-לָּנוּ אֲחֻזָּה, בְּתוֹךְ אֲחֵי אָבִינוּ. וַיַּקְרֵב מֹשֶׁה אֶת-מִשְׁפָּטָן, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה. וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה, אֶל-מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר. כֵּן, בְּנוֹת צְלָפְחָד דֹּבְרֹת--נָתֹן תִּתֵּן לָהֶם אֲחֻזַּת נַחֲלָה, בְּתוֹךְ אֲחֵי אֲבִיהֶם; וְהַעֲבַרְתָּ אֶת-נַחֲלַת אֲבִיהֶן, לָהֶן"
" Then drew near the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph; and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before Moses, and before Eleazar the priest, and before the princes and all the congregation, at the door of the tent of meeting, saying: 'Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not among the company of them that gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah, but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he had no son? Give unto us a possession among the brethren of our father.' And Moses brought their cause before the LORD. And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 'The daughters of Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father's brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them."

The daughters of Zelophehad were not the first women in the Bible that straggle to improve their personal status. However, they didn't just improve their personal status, they also improve the status of other women that were in the same position. That was a precedent that changed the Jewish law .
The Sages states that :"The daughters of Zelophehad were clever, knew how to interpret, and were righteous. Clever, in that they spoke out at the proper time."
Also according to the Sages, Zelophehad 's daughters were five of the twenty three beloved women in the Bible.

Main phrases of the post + transcription + translation
Hebrew Transcription Translation
עֶשְׂרִים     'eśrîm         Twenty
אָהוּב        'āhûb         Beloved
מַאֲבָק        Ma'ăbāq   Struggle
שִׁפּוּר        šippûr        Improvement
תַּקְדִּים       taqdîm       Precedent
יְהוּדִי          yehûdî      Jewish

Eli@eteachergroup.com