That the inheritances may not be alienated from one tribe to another, all are to marry within their own tribes.
That the inheritances may not be alienated from one tribe to an other, al must marrie within their owne tribes.
1And the princes of the families of Galaad, the son of Machir, the son of Manasses, of the stock of the children of Joseph, came and spoke to Moses before the princes of Israel, and said:Ma i principi delle famiglie di Galaad figliuolo di Machir figliuolo di Manasse, della stirpe de' figliuoli di Giuseppe, andarono a parlare a Mosè dinanzi ai principi d'Israele, e dissero:AND the princes also of the families of Galaad, the sonne of Machir, the sonne of Manasses of the stocke of the children of Ioseph came: and spake to Moyses before the princes of Israel, and said:Accesserunt autem et principes familiarum Galaad filii Machir filii Manasse, de stirpe filiorum Joseph: locutique sunt Moysi coram principibus Israël, atque dixerunt: 2The Lord hath commanded thee, my lord, that thou shouldst divide the land by lot to the children of Israel, and that thou shouldst give to the daughters of Salphaad our brother the possession due to their father:Il Signore ha dato ordine a te, signor nostro, che tu divida a sorte la terra tra i figliuoli d'Israele, e che tu dia alle figliuole di Salphaad nostro fratello la porzione dovuta al padre:Our Lord hath commanded thee our lord that thou shouldest by lotte diuide the Land to the children of Israel, and that to the daughters of Salphaad our brother thou shouldest geue the possession dew to their father:Tibi domino nostro præcepit Dominus ut terram sorte divideres filiis Israël, et ut filiabus Salphaad fratris nostri dares possessionem debitam patri: 3Now if men of another tribe take them to wives, their possession will follow them, and being transferred to another tribe, will be a diminishing of our inheritance.Or se elle si mariteranno a persone di altra tribù, riterranno seco i loro beni, i quali trasportati in altra tribù, diminuiranno la nostra eredità.Whom if men of an other tribe take to wiues, their possession shal folow, and being translated to an other tribe, it shal be a diminishing of our inheritance.quas si alterius tribus homines uxores acceperint, sequetur possessio sua, et translata ad aliam tribum, de nostra hæreditate minuetur. 4And so it shall come to pass, that when the jubilee, that is, the fiftieth year of remission, is come, the distribution made by the lots shall be confounded, and the possession of the one shall pass to the others.E così egli avverrà che venuto l'anno del giubbileo, cioè il cinquantesimo anno di remissione, la distribuzione fatta a sorte resterà confusa: e i beni degli uni passeranno agli altri.And so it shal come to passe, that when the Iubilee, that is the fiftith yeare of remission is come, the distribution of the lottes shal be confounded, and the possession of one shal passe to others.Atque ita fiet, ut cum jubilæus, id est, quinquagesimus annus remissionis advenerit, confundatur sortium distributio, et aliorum possessio ad alios transeat.
5Moses answered the children of Israel, and said by the command of the Lord: The tribe of the children of Joseph hath spoken rightly.Rispose Mosè a' figliuoli d'Israele disse per ordine del Signore: Bene ha parlato la tribù de' figliuoli di Giuseppe.Moyses answered the children of Israel, and as our Lord commanded, said: The tribe of the children of Ioseph hath spoken rightly.Respondit Moyses filiis Israël et, Domino præcipiente, ait: Recte tribus filiorum Joseph locuta est. 6And this is the law promulgated by the Lord touching the daughters of Salphaad: Let them marry to whom they will, only so that it be to men of their own tribe.Ed ecco la legge stabilita dal Signore per le figliuole di Salphaad: Sposino chi vorranno, purché prendano uomini della loro tribù:And this law is promulgated of our Lord touching the daughters of Salphaad: Let them marrie to whom they wil, onlie that it be to the men of their owne tribe:Et hæc lex super filiabus Salphaad a Domino promulgata est: nubant quibus volunt, tantum ut suæ tribus hominibus: 7Lest the possession of the children of Israel be mingled from tribe to tribe. For all men shall marry wives of their own tribe and kindred:Affinché non vadano a confondersi i beni de' figliuoli d'Israele col passare d'una in altra tribù. Imperocché tutti gli uomini prenderanno moglie della loro tribù, e famiglia:lest the possession of the children of Israel be mingled from tribe into tribe. For al men shal marrie wiues of their owne tribe and kinred:ne commisceatur possessio filiorum Israël de tribu in tribum. Omnes enim viri ducent uxores de tribu et cognatione sua: 8And all women shall take husbands of the same tribe: that the inheritance may remain in the families.E tutte le donne prenderanno marito della stessa tribù, affinché l'eredità resti nella famiglia,and al wemen shal take husbandes of the same tribe: that the inheritance may remaine in the families,et cunctæ feminæ de eadem tribu maritos accipient: ut hæreditas permaneat in familiis, 9And that the tribes be not mingled one with another, but remain soE le tribù non si mescolino insieme, ma si rimangano,and that the tribes be not mingled among themselues, but remaine sonec sibi misceantur tribus, sed ita maneant 10As they were separated by the Lord. And the daughters of Salphaad did as was commanded:Come dal Signore furon distinte. E le figliuole di Salphaad fecero, come era stato loro comandato.as they were separated by our Lord. And the daughters of Salphaad did as it had beene commanded:ut a Domino separatæ sunt. Feceruntque filiæ Salphaad ut fuerat imperatum:
11And Maala, and Thersa, and Hegla, and Melcha, and Noa were married to the sons of their uncle by their fatherE Maala, e Thersa, ed Hegla, e Melcha, e Noa sposarono i figliuoli dello zio loro paternoand Maala, and Thersa, and Hegla, and Melcha, and Noa were married to the sonnes of their vncle by their fatheret nupserunt Maala, et Thersa, et Hegla, et Melcha, et Noa, filiis patrui sui 12Of the family of Manasses, who was the son of Joseph: and the possession that had been allotted to them, remained in the tribe and family of their father.Della famiglia di Manasse, il quale fu figliuolo di Giuseppe: e i beni che furono ad esse assegnati restarono nella tribù, e nella famiglia del padre loro.of the familie of Manasses, who was the sonne of Ioseph: and the possession, that had beene allotted to them, remained in the tribe and familie of their father.de familia Manasse, qui fuit filius Joseph: et possessio, quæ illis fuerat attributa, mansit in tribu et familia patris earum. 13These are the commandments and judgment, which the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses to the children of Israel, in the plains of Moab upon the Jordan over against Jericho.Queste sono le leggi e gli ordini dati dal Signore per mezzo di Mosè a' figliuoli d'Israele nelle pianure di Moab lungo il Giordano dirimpetto a Gerico.These are the commandementes and iudgementes, which our Lord commanded by the hand of Moyses to the children of Israel, in the champion countries of Moab vpon Iordan against Iericho.Hæc sunt mandata atque judicia, quæ mandavit Dominus per manum Moysi ad filios Israël, in campestribus Moab supra Jordanem contra Jericho.
36:1
Galaad. The descendants of Machir, who were settled in Galaad, were particularly interested, in knowing how their female relations of the house of Salphaad, were to dispose of their fortunes, which God had allowed them. They knew that, by the law, their husbands would obtain possession; and if those husbands should be of another tribe, part of the land allotted to Manasses might be lost. See (Numbers 27.; Josue 17:1-3.)
36:4
That is, an explanation of the jubilee, added by St. Jerome, who gives the sense of the Hebrew, though not the very words.
Haydock
Lots. Hebrew, "when the jubilee of the children of Israel is come, then shall their inheritance be added to that of the tribe in which they are received; so shall their inheritance be taken away from the inheritance of the tribe of our fathers." (Haydock)
36:6
Calmet
Tribe. Hebrew adds family also: for heiresses were obliged to marry in their own family, to prevent the confusion of the inheritances. If they had a mind to renounce their right, they were at liberty to marry where they pleased. (Calmet)
Haydock
The nearest relations, who chose to receive their land, were under an obligation of marrying them, (Ruth 4:6.) (Haydock)
A similar law prevailed at Athens.
36:7
Estius
Wives. Hebrew, "shall keep to the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers." Those who marry heiresses must be of the same family: but others may take wives from any of the tribes of Israel, as the most holy did without scruple. St. Jerome in (Jeremias 32.) (Tirinus) (Estius)
Selden
The Rabbins extend this law to all, with the Vulgate: but only during the time that the land of Chanaan remained undivided. (Selden, Succ. chp. XVIII.)
36:8
Calmet
Women. Hebrew, "every daughter that possesseth an inheritance....shall be wife to one of the family of the tribe of her father." Commonly the females were debarred from inheriting land, when they had any brothers. The Levites were not concerned in these regulations, as they had no inheritance; and hence, we need not be surprised to find that St. Elizabeth, of the daughters of Aaron, (Luke 1:36,) was related to the blessed Virgin, who was of the family of David. The mother of St. Elizabeth might be of the tribe of Juda; or a maternal ancestor of the blessed Virgin might spring from the tribe of Levi. (Calmet)
Worthington
Tradition determined the lawfulness of such marriages, and in this case, St. Augustine (Consens. Ev. 2:2,) admires the providence of God, in causing his beloved Son, the great anointed, to be born both of the regal and priestly tribes, in which an unction was required, before the priests and kings were put in possession of their respective offices. Thus Christ was both priest and king, and such were anointed in the law of Moses. (Worthington)
36:11
Calmet
Father. They married their cousin-germans. The original is rather undecisive, as Dod may signify, "an uncle, great uncle, or cousin;" and a son, in Scripture, is often put for any descendant. The marriages of cousins were not expressly forbidden by the law, and if they had, they might have been dispensed with on this occasion, as well as when a brother died without issue. (Calmet)
36:13
THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY
36:4
4. Distribution of lottes] By reason of two former lawes, the one (Leuit. 25.) prouiding that inheritance of landes should not be sold, nor otherwise alienated, but vntil the Iubilee yeare, and then returne to him, or his heyres, to Restrant in Mariages also for a temporal. cause. whom it pertained before; the other (Num. 27.) ordaining that for lack of a sonne, daughters should enherite; this difficultie did rise; in case an enheretrixe did marrie a man of an other tribe, her landes by that meanes should passe from tribe to tribe, and not be restored in the Iubilee yeare. For auoiding of which inconuenience a further law is made, that none shal marrie out of their owne tribe.
Neuerthelesse the tribe of Leui made mariages with the tribe of Iuda: as •••. •. •. 〈◊〉. appeareth by that Zacharie the priest married Elizabeth cosin to our B. Ladie of the tribe of Iuda; though in the old Testament there is no such expresse dispensation, Tradition nor explication of the law, but by tradition was holden for lawful and practised by so holie a man as Zacharie. And not without mysterie (as S. Augustin noteth li. 2. c. 2. d• consen. Euang.) for that Christ the Annointed of God, Christ a King and a Priest. was prefigured by the annointing of Kings, and Priests, and borne of the royal and priestlie tribes, being both a King and a Priest.
36:7
Al were not bound by this law to marie; but al that would marrie must contract within their owne tribe.
36:5
St Basil the Great † AD 379 De Spiritu Sancto 5
… As, for instance, Adam says, “I have gotten a man through God,” meaning to say the same as from God; and in another passage “Moses commanded…Israel through the word of the Lord,”
36:6
Eusebius of Caesarea † AD 339 The Church History of Eusebius 1.7.15
17. Thus far Africanus. And the lineage of Joseph being thus traced, Mary also is virtually shown to be of the same tribe with him, since, according to the law of Moses, intermarriages between different tribes were not permitted.
St John of Damascus † AD 749 An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith 4.14
One ought to remember that it was not the custom of the Hebrews nor of the divine Scripture to give genealogies of women; and the law was to prevent one tribe seeking wives from another
36:2
2. The Lord commanded thee, our lord, that THOU SHOULDEST DIVIDE THE LAND BY LOT, — that is, that thou shouldest command it to be divided through thy successors: for Moses, dying, did not divide the land, but by his command Joshua, who succeeded him, did so. AND THAT THOU SHOULDEST GIVE TO THE DAUGHTERS OF SALPHAAD, OUR BROTHER, THE POSSESSION DUE TO THEIR FATHER. — The Lord commanded this in chapter twenty-seven, verse seven.
36:3
3. IF MEN OF ANOTHER TRIBE TAKE THEM TO WIFE, THEIR POSSESSION WILL FOLLOW THEM, AND BEING TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER TRIBE, IT WILL BE TAKEN AWAY FROM THE INHERITANCE OF OUR TRIBE, — namely, so that it would not be said to be the inheritance of the tribe of Joseph, but of another tribe, whose the husbands of these daughters of Salphaad will be. For although some son might be appointed as a substitute for the maternal grandfather who had died, who would succeed in his name and inheritance, and would be called, for example, son of Salphaad, nevertheless because this son had a father and brothers from another tribe, hence confusion and mixing of names would easily have arisen, so that the son or grandson would not be called of Salphaad, but of his father: whence over the length of time in the jubilee, when the matter of recalling the inheritance, if it had been alienated, was to be dealt with, confusion and error would easily have arisen, namely so that the inheritance of Salphaad would pass to sons-in-law, and their kinsmen and tribe. Again, it could easily have happened that the memory of maternal succession being obliterated, the inheritance would be reckoned absolutely to the father's tribe and name. For this reason, lest this happen, God ordained that these daughters should not marry outside their own tribe, but should take husbands from their own tribe.
36:7
7 and 8. ALL MEN SHALL TAKE WIVES OF THEIR OWN TRIBE AND KINDRED: AND ALL WOMEN SHALL MARRY MEN OF THE SAME TRIBE, THAT THE INHERITANCE MAY REMAIN IN THE FAMILIES. — The question here is whether this statement is to be understood of all men and women absolutely, so that all Hebrew men ought to have taken wives of their own tribe, and conversely all Hebrew women ought to have married husbands of their own tribe, not of another. Lyranus and Abulensis affirm this, who except from this general statement only the Levites, and this either on account of the dignity of the tribe of Levi, as Lyranus wishes; or because the tribe of Levi had no possession in Chanaan, which could be divided among other tribes through marriages, as Abulensis wishes. The words of the text, which are plainly universal, favor this opinion. But I say that this statement is not to be understood of all absolutely, but only of women who succeeded to the inheritance of their father, on account of the lack of male offspring, and conversely of men who took such women to wife. For such women and men ought to be of the same tribe; and this alone is commanded here. That this is so is proved, first, from the question proposed in verses 2 and 3. For there the question was only how it should be provided that the inheritance of the daughters of Salphaad should not devolve to an alien tribe: to which question Moses responds, and suggests a suitable way by which this might be done, saying: "Let them marry husbands of their own tribe;" and then by a general enactment he commands this of all such women and men. Second, the same is evident from the end of the law, which Moses adds here, saying: "That the inheritance may remain in the families;" but for this it suffices that those women, who are heiresses, do not marry into another tribe: but it is impertinent to extend the same to all others; for others, since they do not have an inheritance, would by no means transfer it to another tribe; but men cannot transfer their own inheritance to women of another tribe, and consequently to another tribe: for offspring follow the name of the father, not the mother.
Hebrew Testimony for the Heirs Alone Thirdly, this is most clearly evident in the Hebrew, for it reads thus: and every woman inheriting an inheritance shall marry one of the tribe of her father. So also the Chaldean, the Septuagint and all the Hebrews. Therefore this law is to be understood of the woman alone who takes up an inheritance. Note: From the Hebrew it is gathered that daughters, in the absence of male offspring, being heirs, ought to marry not only in the same tribe, but also in the same near family, lest their inheritance pass to foreign families, but remain in the family of the father with his kinsmen, who had a right to it. For thus the Hebrew has in verse 6: "The families of the tribe of the father of her father shall be wives to them." And in verse 8: "Every daughter inheriting an inheritance shall be wife to one of the family of the tribe of her father, that the sons of Israel may possess each the inheritance of their fathers."
Examples of Marriages between Tribes in Scripture Fourthly, this is evident from examples: for David, who was of the tribe of Judah, took Michol the daughter of Saul, who was of the tribe of Benjamin; indeed he took a Gentile outside his tribe, namely the daughter of the king of Gessur, II Kings III, 3. So Mahlon and Chilion, the sons of Elimelech, took wives of the Moabites, as appears in Ruth 1, 4. So Boaz took Ruth the Moabite, Ruth cap. IV, verse 10. Hence also in Deut. cap. xxi, verse 11, it is permitted to the Jews to take foreign virgins captive in war, except Canaanites. So in Judges cap. last, 1, the other tribes swear that they will not give their daughters in marriage to the Benjaminites; therefore before this it was lawful and customary to do so. You will say: Why then did our Interpreter not express this, but translated generally: "All the men shall take wives of the tribe of their father;" and conversely: "All the women shall take husbands of the same tribe?" I answer: Because he presupposed from the question proposed, and from the response in verse 6, that here only the matter concerns women who take up an inheritance, and men who take such women as wives. Hence what our Interpreter translated: "All the men shall take wives of the tribe of their father," thus from the Hebrew with the Chaldean and Septuagint you should translate, each one shall cleave to the possession of the tribe of his fathers, namely male sons shall succeed their fathers; but females, if they are heirs, shall marry someone of their tribe, so that namely there be no occasion for any inheritance to be transferred from one tribe to another. Thus Burgensis, Cajetan, Oleaster, Vatable here, and Andrew Masius in Joshua cap. xvii, verse 4.
The Genealogy of Christ in Matthew and Luke Wherefore the daughters of Zelophehad married in the same family, namely to the sons of their father's brothers, that is to their cousins, as is said in verse 11. And thus we reconcile the genealogy of Christ in Matthew and Luke, saying that each truly describes the genealogy of Christ, because the Blessed Virgin, being an heiress, married her cousin, namely Joseph: for Joseph was the son of Jacob, the Blessed Virgin was the daughter of Eli or Joachim: but Jacob and Eli were full brothers, namely sons of Nathan. Therefore the genealogy of Christ in Matthew is true from Adam to Nathan through the paternal line, namely through the parents of Joachim, who was the grandfather of Christ: but Luke describes the same, but through the maternal line, namely through the parents of St. Anne the mother of the Blessed Virgin. For since the series of all generations through the paternal line had already been described by Matthew, Luke did not wish to repeat it, but further wished to show that Christ and the Blessed Virgin were also of the house and family of David through the maternal line. Whence when Luke says, "who was Eli," he names the grandfather of Christ, and the first male progenitor of Christ, omitting St. Anne and the Blessed Virgin, because women were not accustomed to enter into the series of genealogies. Again when Luke says of Eli, "who was Matthat," understand not son, but son-in-law: for Matthat was the father not of Eli or Joachim, but of St. Anne the wife of Joachim; when he further says of Matthat, "who was Levi, who was Melchi," etc., understand always the son. For these are the true progenitors of Matthat, whose daughter was St. Anne. Thus almost Francis Lucas there.
How the Blessed Virgin and Elizabeth Were Related From this passage thus explained, it becomes clear again how the Blessed Virgin, being of the tribe of Judah, could have had Elizabeth as a kinswoman, who was of the tribe of Aaron and Levi. For the cause and foundation of this was not, as many wish, that Levites alone could take a wife from another tribe; but that all women could marry husbands who were from another tribe, if they themselves had brothers, so that they themselves would not be heirs of their parents' property. For if they themselves were heirs, they could not marry into another tribe, much less could they marry Levites. For Levites were capable of no inheritance, because their inheritance was the Lord; and consequently the sons of Levites could inherit neither the father's nor the mother's property. Therefore, one of two things must be said here, namely, that the mother or grandmother of the Blessed Virgin was of the tribe of Levi (and was an aunt or cousin of Elizabeth), whom, because she was not an heir, the father or grandfather of the Blessed Virgin, who was of the tribe of Judah, took as a wife, so that the Blessed Virgin according to her paternal line was of Judah, according to her maternal line of Levi. Or rather, conversely, it must be said that the mother or grandmother of St. Elizabeth was of the tribe of Judah (and was an aunt or kinswoman of the Blessed Virgin), whom, because she was not an heir, the father or grandfather of St. Elizabeth, who was of the tribe of Levi, took as a wife, so that Elizabeth as to her father was of Levi, as to her mother of Judah: for thus it came about that the Blessed Virgin and Elizabeth were daughters of two sisters or cousins, and therefore were kinswomen, even though their fathers belonged to different tribes, and consequently they themselves also belonged to different tribes: for not from the mother, but from the father did each one obtain family, tribe and name. Hence, with the distinction of tribes preserved, kings took as wives the daughters of high priests, and high priests the daughters of kings, as Josephus testifies: and thus Christ, descending from the kings of Judah, through his grandmothers also descended from Levi.
7. And by kinship. — This kinship is general, namely that which exists among members of the same tribe. In this matter therefore kinship, tribe and family are the same here. For only this is commanded here, that they take wives or husbands of the same tribe; but not that of the same particular and near family.
36:12
12. WHICH HAD BEEN ASSIGNED TO THEM. — These words are not found in the Hebrew, but are understood: namely, the possession of the father of Zelophehad, which had been assigned to his daughters by Moses, for this reason, namely through marriage with members of their own tribe, remained in their tribe, namely in Manasseh, that is, it was to remain there, and could not be transferred to another tribe.
Mystical Meditation: Our Eternal Inheritance Mystically, our possession, constant and perpetual, and not to be alienated, is heaven and the eternal glory of God. While therefore you live, while you are strong, O man on pilgrimage, think that all things have their time, and all things pass away in their appointed spaces under heaven. Alas, alas, fleeting, Postumus, Postumus, the years slip away. Think that all things under the sun are vanity, vanity of vanities, and all is vanity. Think that for all your thoughts, words and deeds God will bring you into judgment. "Remember therefore thy Creator in the days of thy youth, before the dust return into the earth from whence it was, and the spirit return to God who gave it: for man shall go into the house of his ETERNITY." Think that this life is the training ground of ETERNITY. O sons of Adam, why do you seek perishable things? O souls bent toward the earth and empty of heavenly things, why do you pursue momentary things and things soon to perish? Would that men were wise, would that they understood, would that they provided for themselves a blessed ETERNITY!
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
36:6
… priest could marry only an Israelite virgin (ibid. 21:13 f.). A divorced woman who had subsequently remarried was forbidden a new marriage with her first husband (Deut. 24:4); a young heiress was permitted to unite only with one of the same tribe (Num. 36:6 ff.).
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.