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Texts -- Judges 11:1-40 (NET)

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11:1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a brave warrior . His mother was a prostitute , but Gilead was his father . 11:2 Gilead’s wife also gave him sons . When his wife’s sons grew up , they made Jephthah leave and said to him, “You are not going to inherit any of our father’s wealth , because you are another woman’s son .” 11:3 So Jephthah left his half-brothers and lived in the land of Tob . Lawless men joined Jephthah’s gang and traveled with him. 11:4 It was some time after this when the Ammonites fought with Israel . 11:5 When the Ammonites attacked , the leaders of Gilead asked Jephthah to come back from the land of Tob . 11:6 They said , “Come , be our commander , so we can fight with the Ammonites .” 11:7 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead , “But you hated me and made me leave my father’s house . Why do you come to me now , when you are in trouble ?” 11:8 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah , “That may be true , but now we pledge to you our loyalty. Come with us and fight with the Ammonites . Then you will become the leader of all who live in Gilead .” 11:9 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead , “All right! If you take me back to fight with the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me, I will be your leader .” 11:10 The leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah , “The Lord will judge any grievance you have against us, if we do not do as you say .” 11:11 So Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead . The people made him their leader and commander . Jephthah repeated the terms of the agreement before the Lord in Mizpah .
Jephthah Gives a History Lesson
11:12 Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king , saying , “Why have you come against me to attack my land ?” 11:13 The Ammonite king said to Jephthah’s messengers , “Because Israel stole my land when they came up from Egypt – from the Arnon River in the south to the Jabbok River in the north, and as far west as the Jordan . Now return it peaceably !” 11:14 Jephthah sent messengers back to the Ammonite king 11:15 and said to him, “This is what Jephthah says , ‘Israel did not steal the land of Moab and the land of the Ammonites . 11:16 When they left Egypt , Israel traveled through the desert as far as the Red Sea and then came to Kadesh . 11:17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom , saying , “Please allow us to pass through your land .” But the king of Edom rejected the request . Israel sent the same request to the king of Moab , but he was unwilling to cooperate. So Israel stayed at Kadesh . 11:18 Then Israel went through the desert and bypassed the land of Edom and the land of Moab . They traveled east of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon River; they did not go through Moabite territory (the Arnon was Moab’s border ). 11:19 Israel sent messengers to King Sihon , the Amorite king who ruled in Heshbon , and said to him, “Please allow us to pass through your land to our land .” 11:20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory . He assembled his whole army , camped in Jahaz , and fought with Israel . 11:21 The Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and his whole army over to Israel and they defeated them. Israel took all the land of the Amorites who lived in that land . 11:22 They took all the Amorite territory from the Arnon River on the south to the Jabbok River on the north, from the desert in the east to the Jordan in the west. 11:23 Since the Lord God of Israel has driven out the Amorites before his people Israel , do you think you can just take it from them? 11:24 You have the right to take what Chemosh your god gives you, but we will take the land of all whom the Lord our God has driven out before us. 11:25 Are you really better than Balak son of Zippor , king of Moab ? Did he dare to quarrel with Israel ? Did he dare to fight with them? 11:26 Israel has been living in Heshbon and its nearby towns , in Aroer and its nearby towns , and in all the cities along the Arnon for three hundred years ! Why did you not reclaim them during that time ? 11:27 I have not done you wrong , but you are doing wrong by attacking me. May the Lord , the Judge , judge this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites !’” 11:28 But the Ammonite king disregarded the message sent by Jephthah .
A Foolish Vow Spells Death for a Daughter
11:29 The Lord’s spirit empowered Jephthah . He passed through Gilead and Manasseh and went to Mizpah in Gilead . From there he approached the Ammonites . 11:30 Jephthah made a vow to the Lord , saying , “If you really do hand the Ammonites over to me, 11:31 then whoever is the first to come through the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from fighting the Ammonites – he will belong to the Lord and I will offer him up as a burnt sacrifice .” 11:32 Jephthah approached the Ammonites to fight with them, and the Lord handed them over to him. 11:33 He defeated them from Aroer all the way to Minnith – twenty cities in all , even as far as Abel Keramim ! He wiped them out ! The Israelites humiliated the Ammonites . 11:34 When Jephthah came home to Mizpah , there was his daughter hurrying out to meet him, dancing to the rhythm of tambourines . She was his only child ; except for her he had no son or daughter . 11:35 When he saw her, he ripped his clothes and said , “Oh no! My daughter ! You have completely ruined me! You have brought me disaster ! I made an oath to the Lord , and I cannot break it.” 11:36 She said to him, “My father , since you made an oath to the Lord , do to me as you promised . After all, the Lord vindicated you before your enemies , the Ammonites .” 11:37 She then said to her father , “Please grant me this one wish . For two months allow me to walk through the hills with my friends and mourn my virginity .” 11:38 He said , “You may go .” He permitted her to leave for two months . She went with her friends and mourned her virginity as she walked through the hills . 11:39 After two months she returned to her father , and he did to her as he had vowed . She died a virgin . Her tragic death gave rise to a custom in Israel . 11:40 Every year Israelite women commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days .

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Bible Dictionary

  • Jephthah

    [ebd] whom God sets free, or the breaker through, a "mighty man of valour" who delivered Israel from the oppression of the Ammonites (Judg. 11:1-33), and judged Israel six years (12:7). He has been described as "a wild, daring, Gi...
    [isbe] JEPHTHAH - jef'-tha (yiphtach, "opened," or "opener," probably signifying "Yahweh will open"; Iephthae; used as the name of a place, as in Josh 15:43; 19:14; of a man, Jdg 10:6 through 12:7): Ninth judge of the Israelites. H...
    [smith] (whom God sets free), A judge about B.C. 1143-1137. His history is contained in (Judges 11:1; Judges 12:8) He was a Gileadite, the son of Gilead and a concubine. Driven by the legitimate sons from his father?s inheritance, he...
    [nave] JEPHTHAH A judge of Israel. Illegitimate, and therefore not entitled to inherit his father's property, Judg. 11:1, 2. Escapes the violence of his half-brothers, dwells in the land of Tob, Judg. 11:3. Recalled from the land...

  • Gilead

    [smith] (rocky region). A mountainous region bounded on the west by the Jordan, on the north by Bashan, on the east by the Arabian plateau, and on the south by Moab and Ammon. (Genesis 31:21; 3:12-17) It is sometimes called "Mount G...
    [nave] GILEAD 1. A region E. of the Jordan allotted to the tribes of Reuben and Gad and half tribe of Manasseh, Num. 32:1-30; Deut. 3:13; 34:1; 2 Kin. 10:33. Reubenites expel the Hagarites from, 1 Chr. 5:9, 10, 18-22. Ammonites m...

  • ISRAEL, RELIGION OF, 2

    [isbe] ISRAEL, RELIGION OF, 2 - 3. The Religion of Israel before the 8th Century BC: (1) Decay of Religion in Canaan. Upon the intense religious feeling produced by the exodus from Egypt and the events at Mt. Sinai, there followed ...

  • Israel

    [nave] ISRAEL 1. A name given to Jacob, Gen. 32:24-32; 2 Kin. 17:34; Hos. 12:3, 4. 2. A name of the Christ in prophecy, Isa. 49:3. 3. A name given to the descendants of Jacob, a nation. Called also Israelites, and Hebrews, Gen. 4...

  • Judge

    [nave] JUDGE Appointed by Persians, Ezra 7:25. Kings and other rulers as, 2 Sam. 8:15; 15:2; 1 Kin. 3:16-28; 10:9; 2 Kin. 8:1-6; Psa. 72:1-4; Matt. 27:11-26; Acts 23:34, 35; 24; 25:11, 12. Priests and Levites as, Deut. 17:9; 2 Ch...

  • ISRAEL, HISTORY OF, 2

    [isbe] ISRAEL, HISTORY OF, 2 - III. Period of the Judges. 1. General Character of Period: In such a period of weakened national and religious life, it could easily happen that Israel would again lose the supremacy that it had won b...

  • Prayer

    [nave] PRAYER. Index of Sub-topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-Topics; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Answer to, Promised; Answered, Instances of Answered; Confession in; Importunity in, Instances of Importunity in; Intercessor...

  • AMMON; AMMONITES

    [isbe] AMMON; AMMONITES - am'-on, am'-on-its (`ammon; `ammonim): The Hebrew tradition makes this tribe descendants of Lot and hence related to the Israelites (Gen 19:38). This is reflected in the name usually employed in Old Testam...

  • Chemosh

    [isbe] CHEMOSH - ke'-mosh (kemosh; Chamos): 1. Moabites, the People of Chemosh 2. Solomon and Chemosh Worship 3. Josiah Putting Down Chemosh Worship 4. Chemosh and Ammonites 5. Moabite Stone 6. Mesha's Inscription and the Old Testa...
    [smith] (subduer), the national deity of the Moabites. (Numbers 21:29; Jeremiah 48:7,13,46) In (Judges 11:24) he also appears as the god of the Ammonites. Solomon introduced, and Josiah abolished, the worship of Chemosh at Jerusalem....
    [nave] CHEMOSH, an idol of the Moabites and Ammonites, 1 Kin. 11:7, 33; 2 Kin. 23:13; Jer. 48:7, 13, 46; and Amorites, Judg. 11:24.

  • Diplomacy

    [nave] DIPLOMACY. 1 Cor. 9:20-23 See: Tact. Instances of Of Abimelech, Gen. 21:22, 23; 26:26-31. The Gibeonites, in securing a league with the Israelites through deception, Josh. 9:3-16. Of Jephthah, with the king of Moab, uns...

  • Ambassadors

    [nave] AMBASSADORS Sent by Moses to Edom, Num. 20:14; to the Amorites, Num. 21:21; by Gibeonites to the Israelites, Josh. 9:4; Israelites to various nations, Judg. 11:12-28; Hiram to David, 2 Sam. 5:11; and Solomon, 1 Kin. 5:1; Ben...

  • Vows

    [ebd] voluntary promises which, when once made, were to be kept if the thing vowed was right. They were made under a great variety of circumstances (Gen. 28: 18-22; Lev. 7:16; Num. 30:2-13; Deut. 23:18; Judg. 11:30, 39; 1 Sam. 1:1...
    [nave] VOWS Mosaic laws concerning, Lev. 23:37, 38; Num. 29:39. Must be voluntary, see below. Must be performed, see below. Estimation of the redemption price of things offered in vows, to be made by the priest, according to age a...

  • AMBASSADOR

    [ebd] In the Old Testament the Hebrew word tsir, meaning "one who goes on an errand," is rendered thus (Josh. 9:4; Prov. 13:17; Isa. 18:2; Jer. 49:14; Obad. 1:1). This is also the rendering of melits, meaning "an interpreter," in ...
    [smith] a person of high rank employed by a government to represent it and transact its business at the seat of government of some other power. The earliest examples of ambassadors employed occur in (Numbers 20:14; 21:21; Judges 11:7...

  • God

    [nave] GOD. List of Sub-Topics Miscellany; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Access to; Compassion of; Creator; Creator of Mankind; Eternity of; Faithfulness of; Fatherhood of; Favor of; Foreknowledge of; Glory of; Goodness of...

  • GOD, 2

    [isbe] GOD, 2 - II. The Idea of God in the Old Testament. 1. Course of Its Development: Any attempt to write the whole history of the idea of God in the Old Testament would require a preliminary study of the literary and historical...

  • Consecration

    [nave] CONSECRATION Of Aaron, See: Aaron. Of priests, See: Priests. Of the altar, See: Altar. Of the temple, See: Temple, Dedication of. See also Offerings. Personal Psa. 51:17; Matt. 13:44, 45; Rom. 6:13, 16, 19; Rom. 12:1; 2...

  • Rashness

    [nave] RASHNESS. Psa. 116:11; Prov. 14:29; Prov. 19:2; Prov. 21:5; Prov. 25:8; Prov. 29:20; Eccl. 5:2; Eccl. 7:9 Instances of Moses, in slaying the Egyptian, Ex. 2:11, 12; Acts 7:24, 25. When he struck the rock, Num. 20:10-12. ...

  • Zeal

    [nave] ZEAL, Religious Josh. 24:15, 16; 2 Sam. 24:24, 25; 1 Kin. 9:4; 1 Kin. 15:14; 1 Chr. 29:17; 2 Chr. 15:15; 2 Chr. 19:3; Ezra 7:23; Job 16:19; Psa. 42:1, 2; Psa. 60:4; Psa. 96:2, 3, 10; Psa. 119:139; Prov. 11:30; Eccl. 9:10; ...

  • Government

    [isbe] GOVERNMENT - guv'-ern-ment: The government of the Hebrews varied at different periods, of which we may distinguish seven: (1) the nomadic period, from the Exodus to the entrance into Palestine; (2) the period of transition f...
    [nave] GOVERNMENT Paternal functions of, Gen. 41:25-57. Civil service school provided by, Dan. 1:3-20. Maintains a system of public instruction, 2 Chr. 17:7-9. Executive departments in. See: Cabinet; King; Ruler; Statecraft. Ju...

  • COURTS, JUDICIAL

    [isbe] COURTS, JUDICIAL - joo-dish'-al, ju-dish'-al. 1. Their Organization: At the advice of Jethro, Moses appointed judges (shopheTim, Ex 18). In Egypt it appears that the Hebrews did not have their own judges, which, of course, w...
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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • 12:37-39 The record of Israel's sojourn in the wilderness really begins here.Rameses is probably the same city as Raamses, also called Avaris (v. 37; cf. 1:11). It was the city from which the Israelites left Egypt, and it lay...
  • The blessings and curses (ch. 26) were in a sense God's vows to His people. This chapter deals with His people's vows to Him. Another connection between these chapters is that in times of divine discipline (26:14-33) people t...
  • 22:1-20 Moab had not attacked Israel as the people of God had moved north along Moab's eastern border. In fact the Moabites sold the Israelites bread and water (Deut. 2:29). The Moabites probably counted on Sihon, who had for...
  • When the people had dealt with the sin of Achan as God had commanded, Israel was ready to engage the enemy again.8:1-2 In view of Israel's defeat God's encouraging words were necessary to strengthen Joshua's resolve (cf. 1:9)...
  • The English title, Judges, comes to us from the Latin translation (Vulgate) that the Greek translation (Septuagint) influenced. In all three languages the title means "judges."This title is somewhat misleading, however, becau...
  • In contrast to Joshua, which spans only about 35 years, Judges covers a much longer period of Israel's history.The book opens shortly after the death of Joshua (1:1). God did not give us sufficient information to enable us to...
  • I. The reason for Israel's apostasy 1:1-3:6A. Hostilities between the Israelites and the Canaanites after Joshua's death 1:1-2:51. Initial successes and failures ch. 12. The announcement of God's discipline 2:1-5B. Israel's c...
  • The first major section in the book (1:1-3:6) explains very clearly why the period of the judges was a dark chapter in Israel's history. God revealed the reasons for Israel's apostasy and consequent national problems in terms...
  • Israel's JudgesJudgeScriptureIsrael's OppressorsLength in YearsNation(s)King(s)OppressionJudgeshipPeaceOthniel3:7-11MesopotamiaCushan-rishathaim8(ca. 1358-1350 B.C.)40(ca. 1350-1310 B.C.)Ehud3:12-30Moab (with Ammon & Amal...
  • The first of six periods of oppression by Israel's enemies began while Othniel, Caleb's younger brother, was still alive and strong (cf. Josh. 15:17; Judg. 1:13). The writer identified each of these periods with the phrase "t...
  • The writer of Judges structured this book so the story of Gideon would be its focal center."Within the main body of the book, seven major narrative blocks can be noted. Moreover, there are certain parallel features between th...
  • The Israelites' return to apostasy brought discipline from two different directions at the same time. In the east the Ammonites oppressed Israel while in the west God raised up the Philistines."The acuter pressure at this sta...
  • The Israelites felt the main influence of the Ammonites on the east side of the Jordan River that bordered Ammon (v. 8). However the Ammonites also attacked the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim west of the Jordan (v. 9)...
  • Verses 1-3 provide information about Jephthah's personal background. His name means "He [an unspecified deity] has opened [the womb]."Jephthah lived on the east side of the Jordan River. Unlike Gideon he was a courageous and ...
  • Jephthah did not rush into battle but wisely tried to settle the Ammonites' grievance with Israel peacefully. His approach reveals his humility as well as his wisdom. Most men would have wanted to demonstrate their prowess in...
  • God's Spirit then clothed Jephthah guaranteeing divine enablement and victory in the approaching encounter with the Ammonite army (v. 29; cf. 3:10; 6:34; 14:6, 19; 1 Sam. 10:10). He travelled through Gilead in the tribal terr...
  • Verses 1-33 record Jephthah's success. The rest of his story (11:34-12:7) relates his failure. The writer likewise recorded Gideon's success first (6:1-8:23) and then his failure (8:24-9:57). We shall find a similar pattern w...
  • The writer's emphasis now shifts from Jephthah's foolishness to Ephraim's arrogance.The Ephraimites were the Gileadites' neighbors to the west. They resented the fact that Jephthah had not requested their assistance in the wa...
  • The first three verses present Samson sowing "wild oats."Verses 4-21 picture him reaping a bitter harvest (cf. Gal. 6:7).Samson allowed a woman to seduce him again. She lived in the Sorek Valley between Samson's home area of ...
  • The following two extended incidents (ch. 17-21) differ from the records of the judges just completed (chs. 3-16). They are not accounts of the activities of any of Israel's judges. They are the record of events that took pla...
  • The Danites' defeat of the inhabitants of Laish appears cruel and unjustified (cf. 9:45-49). The town that seemed so desirable to the spies was really vulnerable and isolated. Its advantages proved to be weaknesses. Since God...
  • The Book of Joshua recorded Israel's victory over her enemies through trust in and obedience to God. The Book of Judges shows the defeat of the nation by its enemies from without and within due to refusal to trust and obey Go...
  • Aharoni, Yohanan. Land of the Bible. Phildelphia: Westminster Press, 1962.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1977.Albright, William Foxwell. The...
  • The Ammonites were Israel's enemies to the east. They were descendants of Lot whom Jephthah had defeated earlier (Judg. 11:12-33). Nahash evidently sought revenge for Jephthah's victory over his nation. Jabesh-gilead lay a fe...
  • God blessed David and his kingdom because David had honored God by seeking to bring the ark into Jerusalem. The Chronicler recorded three instances of divine blessing in this chapter.First, God gave David favor in the eyes of...
  • This oracle is similar to the one in Isaiah 15 and 16.555Other oracles against Moab appear in Ezekiel 25:8-11, Amos 2:1-3, and Zephaniah 2:9, but this is the longest one. It is very difficult to say when Jeremiah gave this or...
  • The Edomites lived to the southeast of Judah, south of Moab. The Zered River was their northern border, the Gulf of Aqabah (about 100 miles to the south) the southern, the Arabah the western, and the desert the eastern border...
  • The target audience of this warning passage was originally the leaders as well as the ordinary citizens of Israel.5:1 Hosea called on the Israelite priests, the whole population of Israel, and the royal household to hear this...
  • Pride was not the only reason God would humble Edom. The Edomites had also cursed the people whom God had purposed to bless, the Israelites (cf. Gen. 27:40-41; Exod. 15:15; Num. 20:14-21; Deut. 2:4; Judg. 11:17-18; 1 Sam. 14:...
  • 2:8 Probably Zephaniah linked Moab and Ammon because both nations descended from Lot (Gen. 19:30-38) as well as because both lay to Judah's east. Both nations had taunted and reviled the Israelites from their earliest history...
  • 4:6 The angel announced a word of explanation from Yahweh that Zechariah was to pass on to Zerubbabel, the descendant of David who was the leader of the first group of returnees from exile.88He was to tell him, "not by might ...
  • 1:21 Capernaum became Jesus' base of ministry in Galilee (cf. Luke 4:16-31). It stood on the Sea of Galilee's northwest shore and was the hub of the most populous district in Galilee. Archaeologists have done extensive restor...
  • Even though Jesus gave ample evidence that He was more than a mere man (4:35-5:43) those who knew Him best on the physical plane still refused to believe in Him (6:1-6a). This refusal led Jesus to turn increasingly from the m...
  • The first miracle that Jesus performed, in His public ministry and in John's Gospel, was semi-public. Apparently only Jesus' disciples, the servants present, and Jesus' mother understood what had happened.2:1 The third day ev...
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