Today’s reading: Joshua 17:1-6

After allotting land to the people of Ephraim (Joshua 16), Joshua turns to the people of Manasseh. As he is assigning and distributing portions, the daughters of Zelophehad come forward to assert a claim for their deceased father’s portion of the land (inheritance) which Moses had promised to them years earlier. Joshua acknowledges and accepts the petition, and gives a portion of land to Zelophehad’s daughters.

One of the things I like about this passage is how it reveals and demonstrates God’s love, concern, care and provision for women. In this time and culture, women didn’t have many rights, yet God took note of their situation and gave Moses special instructions to ensure the care of this group of daughters. I also like the example of how these women approached and managed an awkward and difficult situation. For whatever reason, they hadn’t received the allotment God had promised them through Moses. So they come forward, united as a group, to respectfully remind Joshua of what had been promised to them, and in so doing, assert their claim for land.

How have you experienced God’s love, concern, care and provision (as a man or a woman)? When you don’t receive something you’ve been promised, how do you tend to respond? Why is keeping calm and being respectful so important when we find ourselves in a situation of conflict? Tami

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Source: Tami’s Blog