36:1 Then the heads of the family groups 1 of the Gileadites, the descendant of Machir, the descendant of Manasseh, who were from the Josephite families, approached and spoke before Moses 2 and the leaders who were the heads of the Israelite families. 3 36:2 They said, “The Lord commanded my lord to give 4 the land as an inheritance by lot to the Israelites; and my lord was commanded by the Lord to give the inheritance of our brother Zelophehad to his daughters. 36:3 Now if they should be married to one of the men 5 from another Israelite tribe, their inheritance would be taken from the inheritance of our fathers and added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry. 6 As a result, it will be taken from the lot of our inheritance. 36:4 And when the Jubilee of the Israelites is to take place, 7 their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry. So their inheritance will be taken away from the inheritance of our ancestral tribe.” 8
36:5 Then Moses gave a ruling 9 to the Israelites by the word 10 of the Lord: “What the tribe of the Josephites is saying is right. 36:6 This is what 11 the Lord has commanded for Zelophehad’s daughters: ‘Let them marry 12 whomever they think best, 13 only they must marry within the family of their father’s tribe. 36:7 In this way the inheritance of the Israelites will not be transferred 14 from tribe to tribe. But every one of the Israelites must retain the ancestral heritage.