So Moses gave the Israelites this command from the Lord: “The claim of the men of the tribe of Joseph is legitimate.
Parallel translations
- WEB Moses commanded the children of Israel according to Yahweh’s word, saying, “The tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks right.
- KJV And Moses commanded the children of Israel according to the word of the LORD, saying, The tribe of the sons of Joseph hath said well.
- BSB So at the word of the LORD, Moses commanded the Israelites: “The tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks correctly.
- NKJV Then Moses commanded the children of Israel according to the word of the Lord, saying: “What the tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks is right.
- NASB Then Moses commanded the sons of Israel in accordance with the word of the Lord, saying, “The tribe of the sons of Joseph is right in its statements.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Moses, speaking by God's word, declares that the tribe of Joseph has spoken correctly. Their concern is affirmed as just and valid.
Overview
Moses responds not on his own authority but according to Yahweh's word, confirming the rightness of the leaders' concern. This shows the proper pattern of leadership: seeking and declaring God's mind rather than personal opinion. God graciously provides clear direction, demonstrating His care for both justice and the orderly preservation of His people's inheritance.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Num 27:7“The daughters of Zelophehad speak right. You shall surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father’s brothers. You shall cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them.
- Deut 5:28Yahweh heard the voice of your words, when you spoke to me; and Yahweh said to me, “I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken to you. They have well said all that they have spoken.
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 36:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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