Yesterday, we began a new chapter in Bava Batra that explores the laws of inheritance. Today’s daf is primarily devoted to questions of priority. It is relatively well-established that sons are first in line to inherit, but it becomes more complicated to determine the lineup thereafter.
The Hebrew Bible itself struggles with the problem of determining priority in inheritance. There is a famous episode in the Book of Numbers in which a man named Zelophehad dies, leaving behind five daughters and no sons. According to the original biblical laws of inheritance, daughters were ineligible to inherit their father’s property, even in the absence of brothers. But these spunky daughters petition Moses, who in turn petitions God, to be allowed to inherit their father’s property. Not only does God grant their request, remarkably, God is moved to permanently amend divine law:
“The plea of Zelophehad’s daughters is just: You should give them a hereditary holding among their father’s kinsmen; transfer their father’s share to them. Further, speak to the Israelite people as follows: ‘If a householder dies without leaving a son, you shall transfer his property to his daughter. If he has no daughter, you shall assign his property to his brothers. If he has no brothers, you shall assign his property to his father’s brothers. If his father had no brothers, you shall assign his property to his nearest relative in his own clan, who shall inherit it.’ This shall be the law of procedure for the Israelites, in accordance with the Lord’s command to Moses.” (Numbers 27:7–11)
This text is a touchstone for questions of inheritance in the Gemara. The animating (and fairly intuitive) principle seems to be that the nearest of kin inherit before those less closely related. And yet, an important relationship appears to have been passed over: Sons are followed by daughters, then brothers, then paternal uncles. After that, the text instructs that the inheritance goes to the nearest relative. But what about the father of the deceased? Surely he doesn’t come after the uncles! That would violate the principle of nearer relatives taking priority. Yet, a literal reading of the passage suggests just that.
The Gemara tackles this problem as follows:
A verse is not necessary to teach that the father of the deceased inherits before the father’s brothers, for the following reason: By whose virtue do the father’s brothers come to inherit from the deceased? By virtue of the father, as their right to inherit is a result of their being brothers of the father of the deceased. Could it be that while the father is still alive, his brothers should inherit?
True, says the Gemara, the list in Numbers omits the father of the deceased. This might give the impression that he comes behind his own brothers in inheriting his son’s property. But this is not the case, because the uncles are only uncles by virtue of the father’s existence. Therefore, he obviously takes precedence.
Even if the father should precede the paternal uncles in inheritance, that still doesn’t tell us where he lands in the lineup. Does he precede a son? No, but how about a daughter? And what about brothers?
Not all of these questions are answered, but the Gemara is unequivocal about one thing: Fathers come before brothers. Much of today’s daf is devoted to numerous arguments proving this point. In this way, just as God amended divine law to prioritize daughters, the rabbis respectfully but surely amend God’s law to prioritize fathers.
Read all of Bava Batra 109 on Sefaria.
This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on October 12, 2024. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.
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