Zelophehad
Exodus & Wilderness
Tribe of Manasseh
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H6765
Zelophehad, a descendant of Manasseh, had no sons, so his daughters appealed for and received his inheritance.
Zelophehad was a descendant of Manasseh through Machir, Gilead, and Hepher, who died in the wilderness leaving five daughters and no sons (Numbers 26:33; 27:1–11). His daughters — Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah — successfully appealed to Moses for the right to inherit their father's land, resulting in a legal precedent granting daughters inheritance rights when no male heirs existed (Numbers 27:7–11; 36:1–12). The case of Zelophehad's daughters is one of the few judicial decisions in the Torah explicitly tied to a request made by women.