DO THE NEW

• DAY 277
• FAITH FILE: THE DAUGHTERS OF ZELOPHEHAD
• SCRIPTURES: NUMBERS 27:1-11

Then came the daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, … 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: “Our father died in the wilderness; but he was not in the company of those who gathered together against the LORD, in company with Korah, but he died in his own sin; and he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be removed from among his family because he had no son? Give us a possession among our father’s brothers.” So Moses brought their case before the LORD. And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: “The daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; 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… And it shall be to the children of Israel a statute of judgment, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

Numbers 27:1-11

If you ever see anybody who changed the course of history, that was the first person to do anything no matter how little, mark that person as a person of courage. Because being the first requires courage. Being the one that goes against the tide requires courage. And these five daughters Zelophehad are women of courage.

In their day, no woman had the privilege of having an inheritance. This might seem mean now but in their day it was wise not to give women lands. Because when she marries, all she owns will automatically belong to her husband, including her inheritance. What that means is another tribe will legally own land in her father’s house and that can shift the balance of power in their favour.

For example, I am Igbo and married Yoruba, if that law applied, the land my father gave me would belong to my husband. It will operate by the culture of the Yoruba people. Like a little embassy in my father’s house. And since all my sisters also married Yoruba, we have indirectly infiltrated the culture of my father’s people and created a colony there. Imagine someone else from my family married Hausa or someone from Arizona, the confusion it will cause. That’s probably how Lagos and Abuja became no man’s land. So to prevent that kind of confusion between territories and clans and avoid war, the women were not given properties.

Time For A Change

But this man was blessed to have only 5 daughters. He probably tried to have sons but that didn’t happen. Now their father is dead, they are the next generation. And in the absence of an heir, their father’s name will be forgotten and wiped out of the record like he never existed. These girls decided to change that narrative and preserve their father’s legacy. They courageously demanded for what was theirs even though nobody had done it before. Their action not only got them their father’s inheritance but also changed the existing law. The only condition was they could not marry outside their clan so the land remained within that territory.

You see, sometimes we are too afraid to step out and do something new because nobody has done it before. We are afraid that we will be rejected or we will fail because there is no precedent. Beloved, you don’t need precedent to do what God has called you to do. God says go do something, do it, whether somebody has done it before you or not. And please have the audacity to demand for what is yours, respectfully. Do not allow prevalent law, culture, or principles to hinder you. As long as what you are doing is not in disobedience and rebellion to God.

Shalom.