Bible Strands
Numbers 36:3
But if they marry any of the men from the other tribes of Israel, their inheritance will be withdrawn from the portion of our fathers and added to the tribe into which they marry. So our allotted inheritance would be taken away.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The heads of the clan of Machir, son of Manasseh, address Moses and the tribal leaders. They voice a procedural objection regarding the inheritance of Zelophehad’s daughters during the land distribution by lot.
The words — וְ/נִגְרְעָ֤ה (ve./nig.re.'Ah) signifies a forced subtraction or withdrawal, while לְ/נָשִׁים֒ (le./na.Shim) marks the women as wives entering new households. The text states the inheritance will be physically moved from the ancestral allotment to the husband’s tribal territory.
The thread — The principle of unbreakable tribal land boundaries appears in Joshua 17:3-4 and 1 Chronicles 23:33-34, where ancestral allotments remain fixed. The Jubilee cycle in Leviticus 25:10-28 later introduces a temporary restoration that pauses these permanent transfers.
Why it lands — It requires readers to recognize that legal provisions must address systemic consequences, not just individual cases. The text demands a structural solution that preserves tribal boundaries while honoring familial rights.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And if they be married to any of the sons of the other tribes of the children of Israel, then shall their inheritance be taken from the inheritance of our fathers, and shall be put to the inheritance of the tribe whereunto they are received: so shall it be taken from the lot of our inheritance.