Bava Batra 117
גְּמָ׳ תְּנַן כְּמַאן דְּאָמַר לְיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם נִתְחַלְּקָה הָאָרֶץ –
GEMARA: The Gemara comments: In the mishna that teaches that Zelophehad and Hepher were entitled to portions in Eretz Yisrael, we learned in accordance with the opinion of the one who says: Eretz Yisrael was divided among those who left Egypt.
דְּתַנְיָא, רַבִּי יֹאשִׁיָּה אוֹמֵר: לְיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם נִתְחַלְּקָה הָאָרֶץ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״לִשְׁמוֹת מַטּוֹת אֲבֹתָם יִנְחָלוּ״. אֶלָּא מָה אֲנִי מְקַיֵּים ״לָאֵלֶּה תֵּחָלֵק הָאָרֶץ בְּנַחֲלָה״? ״לָאֵלֶּה״ – כָּאֵלֶּה, לְהוֹצִיא אֶת הַטְּפָלִים.
The Gemara cites a baraita that presents three opinions as to how Eretz Yisrael was divided. As it is taught in a baraita that Rabbi Yoshiya says: Eretz Yisrael was divided among those who left Egypt, as it is stated: “According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit” (Numbers 26:55), which teaches that the Jewish people would inherit Eretz Yisrael according to the names of their fathers, i.e., those who left Egypt. Rabbi Yoshiya continues: But how do I realize the meaning of the verse: “Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance” (Numbers 26:53), which indicates that the land was to be divided among those recently counted in the wilderness, i.e., those who would enter Eretz Yisrael? He answers: “Unto these” teaches that the land will be divided among those who are like these people who were counted, in that they were adults above the age of twenty, to exclude the children, who were not entitled to a portion in Eretz Yisrael, as they were not of age at the time of the Exodus.
רַבִּי יוֹנָתָן אוֹמֵר: לְבָאֵי הָאָרֶץ נִתְחַלְּקָה הָאָרֶץ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״לָאֵלֶּה תֵּחָלֵק הָאָרֶץ בְּנַחֲלָה״. אֶלָּא מָה אֲנִי מְקַיֵּים ״לִשְׁמוֹת מַטּוֹת אֲבֹתָם יִנְחָלוּ״? מְשׁוּנָּה נַחֲלָה זוֹ מִכׇּל נְחָלוֹת שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם; שֶׁכׇּל נְחָלוֹת שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם – חַיִּין יוֹרְשִׁין מֵתִים, וְכָאן – מֵתִים יוֹרְשִׁין חַיִּין.
The baraita presents a second opinion. Rabbi Yonatan says: Eretz Yisrael was divided among those who entered Eretz Yisrael, as it is stated: “Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance” (Numbers 26:53). But how do I realize the meaning of the verse: “According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit” (Numbers 26:55)? This teaches that this inheritance is different from all other inheritances in the world, for in all other inheritances in the world, the living inherit from the dead, but here, the dead inherit from the living. In other words, the portions of land received by those who entered Eretz Yisrael were transferred to their fathers who left Egypt, and then inherited by the current generation, as the Gemara will now explain.
אָמַר רַבִּי: אֶמְשׁוֹל לְךָ מָשָׁל, לְמָה הַדָּבָר דּוֹמֶה? לִשְׁנֵי אַחִין כֹּהֲנִים שֶׁהָיוּ בְּעִיר אַחַת, לְאֶחָד יֵשׁ לוֹ בֵּן אֶחָד, וְאֶחָד יֵשׁ לוֹ שְׁנֵי בָנִים, וְהָלְכוּ לַגּוֹרֶן. זֶה שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ בֵּן אֶחָד – נוֹטֵל חֵלֶק אֶחָד, וְזֶה שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ שְׁנֵי בָנִים – נוֹטֵל שְׁנֵי חֲלָקִים. וּמַחְזִירִין אֵצֶל אֲבִיהֶן, וְחוֹזְרִין וְחוֹלְקִין בְּשָׁוֶה.
Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi said: I will tell you a parable. To what is this matter comparable? To two brothers who were priests and who were in one town. One brother has one son, and one brother has two sons, and the sons all went to the threshing floor to collect teruma. This brother, who has one son, takes one portion of the teruma from his child, and that brother, who has two sons, takes two portions from his sons. And the brothers then return with the three portions to their father, and then redivide the portions among themselves equally, so that each brother receives one and one-half portions. When the brothers give their shares to their children, the son of the first brother will receive all that his father had received, while the sons of the other brother will divide what their father had received.
רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן אֶלְעָזָר אוֹמֵר:
The baraita presents a third opinion. Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar says:
לְאֵלּוּ וּלְאֵלּוּ נִתְחַלְּקָה הָאָרֶץ, כְּדֵי לְקַיֵּים שְׁנֵי מִקְרָאוֹת הַלָּלוּ – הָא כֵּיצַד? הָיָה מִיּוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם – נוֹטֵל חֶלְקוֹ עִם יוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם, הָיָה מִבָּאֵי הָאָרֶץ – נוֹטֵל חֶלְקוֹ עִם בָּאֵי הָאָרֶץ, מִכָּאן וּמִכָּאן – נוֹטֵל חֶלְקוֹ מִכָּאן וּמִכָּאן.
Eretz Yisrael was divided to these and to those, so as to uphold these two verses. How so? If one was from among those who left Egypt, he takes his portion along with those who left Egypt. If one was from among those who entered Eretz Yisrael, he takes his portion along with those who entered Eretz Yisrael. If one was from both here and there, i.e., he was among those who left Egypt and also entered Eretz Yisrael himself, he takes his portion from here and there, as he is entitled to two portions.
מְרַגְּלִים – יְהוֹשֻׁעַ וְכָלֵב נָטְלוּ חֶלְקָם. מִתְלוֹנְנִים וַעֲדַת קֹרַח – לֹא הָיָה לָהֶם חֵלֶק בָּאָרֶץ; הַבָּנִים נָטְלוּ בִּזְכוּת אֲבִי אֲבִיהֶן, וּבִזְכוּת אֲבִי אִמּוֹתֵיהֶן.
The baraita continues: With regard to the twelve spies sent to survey Eretz Yisrael prior to the Jewish people’s entry into the land, Joshua and Caleb took all of the spies’ portions of the land. Additionally, the protesters and the assembly of Korah did not have a portion of Eretz Yisrael. Nevertheless, their sons took portions of the land in the merit of their paternal grandfathers and in the merit of their maternal grandfathers if they were among those who left Egypt. This concludes the Gemara’s citation of the baraita.
מַאי מַשְׁמַע דְּהַאי: ״לִשְׁמוֹת מַטּוֹת אֲבֹתָם״ – בְּיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם כְּתִיב? דִּלְמָא לִשְׁבָטִים קָאָמַר לַהּ! דִּכְתִיב: ״וְנָתַתִּי אֹתָהּ לָכֶם מוֹרָשָׁה אֲנִי ה׳״ – יְרוּשָּׁה הִיא לָכֶם מֵאֲבוֹתֵיכֶם; וּלְיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם קָאָמַר לְהוּ.
The Gemara asks: From where may it be inferred that this verse, which states: “According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit” (Numbers 26:55), is written with regard to those who left Egypt; perhaps the verse was stated in reference to the progenitors of the tribes, and teaches that the land should be divided among the twelve tribes? The Gemara answers: The inference is from a verse, as it is written: “And I will bring you in to the land, concerning which I lifted up My hand to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it to you for a heritage: I am the Lord” (Exodus 6:8). This verse states that Eretz Yisrael is an inheritance for you from your forefathers, and this verse was told to those who left Egypt, indicating that those who left Egypt inherit the land.
(סִימָן: לָרַב, צְלָפְחָד, וְיוֹסֵף, אִיכְּפַל, מְנַשֶּׁה, יְחַשֵּׁב.)
The Gemara presents a mnemonic device for the following series of questions posed by Rav Pappa to Abaye relating to the division of Eretz Yisrael: To the more; Zelophehad; and Joseph; contested; Manasseh; will count.
אֲמַר לֵיהּ רַב פָּפָּא לְאַבָּיֵי: בִּשְׁלָמָא לְמַאן דְּאָמַר לְיוֹצְאֵי מִצְרַיִם נִתְחַלְּקָה הָאָרֶץ, הַיְינוּ דִּכְתִיב: ״לָרַב תַּרְבֶּה נַחֲלָתוֹ וְלַמְעַט תַּמְעִיט נַחֲלָתוֹ״.
The Gemara presents the first question. Rav Pappa said to Abaye: Granted, according to the one who says that Eretz Yisrael was divided among those who left Egypt, this is the meaning of that which is written: “To the more you shall give the more inheritance, and to the fewer you shall give the less inheritance” (Numbers 26:54). The verse may be understood as teaching the novelty that even though the number of Jewish people entering Eretz Yisrael differed from the number who left Egypt, the land is nevertheless divided according to the numbers at the time of the Exodus, not according to the count at the time they received the land.
