The Compassion of God is Not Like Human Compassion

The daughters of Zelophechad — Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah from the tribe of Menasseh — are worried about their father’s legacy. After he dies they approach Moses and ask that they inherit their father’s land holding in Israel. They plead: “Let not our father’s name be lost to his clan just because he had no son! Give us a holding among our father’s kinsmen!” (Numbers 27:4). The daughters strategically make their claim about their father, not themselves, and assure Moses their father was not among Korah’s band. Still, in the absence of sons who would ordinarily inherit, Moses does not know how to answer them. Moses takes their case seriously, and shows himself to be a thoughtful and humble leader who does not rush to decisions. However, he is also limited in his sense of justice and equality. He sees women with little power and influence standing before him. Why should they inherit their father’s land? Moses brings the case to God who sides with the daughters, and establishes a law that if a man dies without leaving a son, his daughter will inherit his property (27:8). The Midrash explains that the wise and righteous daughters of Zelophechad always intended for their claim to reach God, not only Moses. They said: “The compassion of God is not like human compassion. Human rulers are more concerned with males than with females – but the One who spoke and brought the world into being is not like that. Rather, God shows mercy to every living thing (Sifrei Numbers 133). The women had to go through Moses as the judge and intermediary. Later when Moses through God rules that the daughters of Zelophechad must marry men in their tribe so that “no inheritance of the Israelites may pass over from one tribe to another” (36:7), I hear the voice of human leaders concerned with preserving tribal land holdings. We, too, live in a society limited by human rulers who do not treat all people equally. We, too, are subject to their narrow rulings. While God does not intervene in the same way, we must channel God’s compassion when faced with difficult decisions. May we remember that though we are limited and fallible, we must always strive to show mercy to every living being.