Pinhas 

פינחס

When the daughters of Tzelofhad presented their request before Moses, he did not respond immediately, but rather he turned to God. The Sages take two approaches to this matter. One is that Moses did not know how to respond to their request. The other is that he did know how to respond, but asked out of humility.  

There are righteous people who were haughty with regard to a commandment and the Holy One, Blessed be He, enfeebled their minds…He did so with Moses, because Moses said: “And the matter that is too difficult for you, you shall bring near to me, and I will hear it” (Deuteronomy 1:17). Therefore, God enfeebled his mind. This can be explained by means of a parable of a money changer who told his apprentice: If customers bring you sela coins, change them; if they bring you gems, bring them to me. A glass necklace was brought to the apprentice. He took it to his master, and his master [did not know its value and] went to show it to another, more expert money changer. So too, Moses told the judges: “The matter that is too difficult for you, you shall bring near to me.” Tzelofhad’s daughters came, and the resolution of their question was beyond him: “Moses brought their case before the Lord” (Numbers 27:5). God told him: “The daughters of Tzelofhad speak justly” (27:7), the law is that they shall receive a portion of the land. The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses: Didn’t you say: “The matter that is too difficult for you, you shall bring near to me”? The law that you do not know, the women know. Alternatively: “Moses brought their case before the Lord.” Reish Lakish said: Moses our teacher knew this law. The daughters of Tzelofhad first approached the leaders of tens [i.e., those appointed to serve as judges over ten families each]. Those leaders said: This is a law of inheritance, and this is not for us to adjudicate, but for those greater than we. The daughters of Tzelofhad came to the leaders of fifties. Those leaders saw that the leaders of tens treated the women with respect, and the leaders of fifties said: We too will not answer this question; there are others greater than we. It was likewise with the leaders of hundreds, and likewise with the leaders of thousands, and likewise with the princes. All of them responded in a similar manner that they did not want to begin adjudicating [the case] before one who was greater than they. The daughters of Tzelofhad went before Elazar, who said to them: Here is Moses our teacher. All of these: leaders, princes, and Tzelofhad’s daughters, came before Moses. Moses saw that each and every one of them deferred to one greater than they. He said: If I tell them the ruling, I will be taking the prominence for myself. He said to them: I, too, have One who is greater than I. Therefore, “Moses brought their case before the Lord.” <source>(Bemidbar Rabba 21) </source>

When the daughters of Tzelofhad presented their request before Moses, he did not respond immediately, but rather he turned to God. The Sages take two approaches to this matter. One is that Moses did not know how to respond to their request. The other is that he did know how to respond, but asked out