Numbers 36:5

5 Moses answered to the sons of Israel, and said, for the Lord commanded (it), The lineage of the sons of Joseph hath spoken rightfully, (And Moses answered to the Israelites, by the Lord's command, and said, The tribe of the sons of Joseph hath spoken rightly, or correctly,)

Numbers 36:5 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 36:5

And Moses commanded the children of Israel
Even all the tribes of Israel, whom the following law concerned, as well as the tribe of Manasseh:

according to the word of the Lord;
whom no doubt he consulted on this occasion, as he did when the daughters of Zelophehad applied unto him about the inheritance of their father:

saying, the tribe of the sons of Joseph hath said well;
in showing such a concern for the welfare of their tribe; the consideration of which would be of service to them all, and therefore was worthy of notice. Aben Ezra observes, that the heads of the fathers spoke for the sake of every tribe, what was for the good of them all, and therefore was well spoken.

Numbers 36:5 In-Context

3 And if men of another lineage shall take to wives these daughters, their possession shall follow them, and it shall be translated to another lineage, and so it shall be decreased from our heritage; (But if men from another tribe shall take these daughters as wives, their possession shall follow them, and it shall be transferred to another tribe, and so it shall be taken away from our inheritance;)
4 and so it shall be done, that when the jubilee, that is, the fiftieth year of remission, cometh, the parting of lots be confounded, or fail, and that the possession of other men pass to other men (and that the possession of some men shall pass to other men). (and then it shall be done, that when the Jubilee cometh, that is, the fiftieth Year of Remission, or the Year of Restoration or Forgiveness, their possession shall be transferred to the possession of the tribe to whom they go, and so it shall be taken away from our inheritance forevermore.)
5 Moses answered to the sons of Israel, and said, for the Lord commanded (it), The lineage of the sons of Joseph hath spoken rightfully, (And Moses answered to the Israelites, by the Lord's command, and said, The tribe of the sons of Joseph hath spoken rightly, or correctly,)
6 and this law is announced of the Lord on the daughters of Zelophehad; be they wedded to which men they will, (but) only to the men of their lineage; (and so this is the Lord's command for Zelophehad's daughters; let them be wedded to whichever men they want, as long as they be men of their own tribe;)
7 lest the possession of the sons of Joseph be meddled from lineage into lineage. For all men shall wed wives of their lineage and kindred; (lest the possession of the Israelites be mixed, or mingled, from tribe to tribe. For all men shall only wed wives of their own tribe and kindred;)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.