Biblical names have interesting meanings. Very often the name of a hero ties in with the content or intention of the story. But the name Pinchas is an exception. His name does not seem to have any meaning in any known Semitic languages, nor does there seem to be any connection between the name Pinchas and the story in which he plays a leading role. Egyptologists believe that Pinchas means “the Negro,” or the “Nubian.” In this case, it might indicate that Pinchas had a dark complexion. This confirms our rabbis’ tradition that he stemmed from a foreign origin.
Our rabbis also had a tradition that many Israelites protested against Pinchas’ action. They suspected his motives. They taunted him by saying: “Did you see that son of the daughter of Putti whose grandfather prepared calves for idol worship?”
The question is: Who was this grandfather who was an idol worshipper? We know from the Levitical genealogical list, in chapter 6 in the Book of Exodus, that Pinchas’ father, Elazar, who was the third of Aaron’s four sons, married Putiel’s daughter. She was Pinchas’ mother. The late Israeli Bible scholar, Pinchas Peli, is of the opinion that the fact that Elazar’s wife is singled out to be mentioned in that list, with her father’s name, may suggest that she was indeed of foreign origin. However, we do not know who Putiel was. We know that the opponents of Pinchas nick-named him “Son of Putti”.
The name Pinchas has two distinct spellings. The usual spelling is with a Yod after the Pei. However, in one instance, at the beginning of the Book of Samuel the name is spelt without a Yod. In the Book of Samuel it refers to one of the sons of Eli, the high priest. He was a wicked man. For this reason, we find the view in Jewish tradition that we have to be careful to spell Pinchas with a Yod, and never omit it. Since Pinchas became known for his great zealousness for God, the Yod in his name has a special symbolism. It symbolises God’s presence in everything he does.
It is striking that according to the Masoretic tradition, the Yod in the first reference to Pinchas in our Sidra is especially small. It belongs to a group of letters in the text of the Torah that are called OTIOT ZE’IROT, small letters. Some commentators have suggested that it may have been put there to warn that Pinchas’ extreme action, in taking the law into his own hands, was exceptional and that we should not emulate him under any circumstances.
In chapter 27 verse 1 a new episode is described. We are told that the five daughters of Zlofchad came before Moses, with a particular demand. Their names were: Machla, No’ah, Chogla, Milkah and Tirzah. They belonged to the tribe of Menashe. The meanings of their names are not known except for Milkah, whose name means a Queen. Three of those names are in use today: No’ah, Malka and Tirzah.
They had a complaint that their father was being discriminated against, with regards to the inheritance. They said that their father had died in the desert as a result of the decree issued at the time of the sin of the 10 spies. They stressed that their father had not taken part in Korach’s rebellion and did not perish as a result of that tragedy. The reason that they stressed the manner of his dying was because they would not have dared to complain had he been involved in the rebellion.
These five women have a very good reputation in Jewish tradition. Our rabbis praised them for their love of the land of Israel. Our rabbis explain that this is the reason that their genealogy is traced right back to Joseph. They were like Joseph in their eagerness to enter the land. Joseph’s last request before he died was that his bones should be brought back to the land and buried there. Moses himself carried his bones and when the Israelites took over the land of Canaan, he was given this final burial near the city of Shechem. The daughters of Zlofchad are also praised for their courage in raising this problem. Their main desire was to protect their father’s interests. I don’t think that they were feminists in the modern sense of the word, as some scholars have tried to suggest. They were not motivated by a desire to improve their own status or to possess land themselves. But what they said to Moses was that they wanted their father’s name to be perpetuated on his land. They did not want to see his inheritance being passed on to their uncles. Moses listened to their demand respectfully.
The laws of inheritance up to that time determined that only males could inherit land. Therefore, the women’s complaint was that since their father did not have sons, there was no one in the immediate family to inherit his land. As a result, the law, as it stood, discriminated against him. His name would not be perpetuated within their grandfather’s family, whose name was Chefer. Therefore, they wanted the law to be changed so that they could be the heirs to their father’s land. In this way, their father’s name would remain attached to the land, that he had inherited from his father.
The Torah tells us that Moses was not able to resolve the problem. He said to the daughters that he would consult the Almighty himself. The outcome of this complaint was that God commended them for their request. He ordered that the land should be passed on to them.
It is well-documented that a number of incidents which are described in the last three Sidrot of this book, are not recorded in the order in which they happened. We learn, from the last chapter of the book of Numbers, that the tribe of Menashe was angry with Moses ruling. Some commentators say that the ruling caused a very bitter argument within the tribe. The other members of the tribe were concerned that the daughters of Zlofchad would eventually get married to members of other tribes and, as a result, they would lose control over the land permanently. As a result of their complaint, Moses issued a further ruling that the daughters of Zlofchad could only marry men from their own tribe.
It is to their credit, that they obeyed this ruling. I believe that the reason this ruling is recorded at the end of the book, is in order to conclude the book of Numbers on a high note, describing God’s praise for these five very impressive, determined and loyal biblical women.