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Judges 11
New American Standard Bible

Jephthah, the Ninth Judge

11 Now (A)Jephthah the Gileadite was a [a]valiant warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. And Gilead had fathered Jephthah. 2 Gilead’s wife bore him sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out and said to him, “You shall not have an inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.” 3 So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of (B)Tob; and worthless men gathered [b]around Jephthah, and they went [c]wherever he did.

4 Now it came about, after a while, that (C)the sons of Ammon fought against Israel. 5 When the sons of Ammon fought against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob; 6 and they said to Jephthah, “Come and be our leader, that we may fight against the sons of Ammon.” 7 But Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “(D)Did you not hate me and drive me from my father’s house? So why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?” 8 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “For this reason we have now returned to you, that you may go with us and fight the sons of Ammon, and (E)become our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.” 9 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me back to fight against the sons of Ammon and the Lord gives them up [d]to me, will I become your head?” 10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “(F)The Lord is [e]witness between us; be assured we will do [f]as you have said.” 11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and leader over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord at (G)Mizpah.

12 So Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, “What conflict do you and I have, that you have come to me to fight against my land?” 13 And the king of the sons of Ammon said to the messengers of Jephthah, “It is because Israel (H)took my land when they came up from Egypt, from the Arnon as far as the (I)Jabbok and the Jordan; so return them peaceably now.” 14 But Jephthah sent messengers once again to the king of the sons of Ammon, 15 and they said to him, “This is what Jephthah says: ‘Israel did not take the land of Moab nor the land of the sons of Ammon. 16 For when they came up from Egypt, and Israel (J)went through the wilderness to the [g]Red Sea, and (K)came to Kadesh, 17 then Israel (L)sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please let us pass through your land”; but the king of Edom would not listen. (M)And they also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel remained at Kadesh. 18 Then they went through the wilderness and (N)around the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and came to the east side of the land of Moab, and they camped beyond the Arnon; but they (O)did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 And Israel sent (P)messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, “Please let us pass through your land to our place.” 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory; so Sihon gathered all his people and camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. 21 And the Lord, the God of Israel, handed Sihon and all his people over to Israel, and they [h](Q)defeated them; so Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22 (R)So they possessed all the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness as far as the Jordan. 23 And now the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from His people Israel; so should you possess it? 24 Do you not possess what (S)Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whatever the Lord our God has dispossessed before us, we will possess it. 25 Now then, are you any better than (T)Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel, or did he ever fight against them? 26 (U)While Israel was living in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? 27 So I have not sinned against you, but you are doing me wrong by making war against me. (V)May the Lord, the Judge, judge today between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon.’” 28 But the king of the sons of Ammon [i]disregarded the message which Jephthah sent him.

Jephthah’s Tragic Vow

29 Now (W)the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh; then he passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he went on to the sons of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed hand over to me the sons of Ammon, 31 then whatever comes out the doors of my house to meet me when I return [j]safely from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.” 32 So Jephthah crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord handed them over to him. 33 He [k]inflicted a very great defeat on them from Aroer [l]to the entrance of (X)Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel-keramim. So the sons of Ammon were subdued before the sons of Israel.

34 But Jephthah came to his house at (Y)Mizpah, and behold, his daughter was coming out to meet him (Z)with tambourines and with dancing. And she was his one and only child; besides her he had no son or daughter. 35 So when he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Oh, my daughter! You have brought me disaster, and you are among those who trouble me; for I have [m]given my word to the Lord, and (AA)I cannot take it back.” 36 So she said to him, “My father, you have [n]given your word to the Lord; (AB)do to me just as [o]you have said, since the Lord has brought you vengeance on your enemies, the sons of Ammon.” 37 And she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me; allow me two months, so that I may [p]go to the mountains and weep because of (AC)my virginity, I and my friends.” 38 Then he said, “Go.” So he let her go for two months; and she left with her friends, and wept on the mountains because of her virginity. 39 And at the end of two months she returned to her father, who did to her [q]what he had vowed; and she [r]had no relations with a man. And it became a custom in Israel, 40 that the [s]daughters of Israel went annually to [t]commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days in the year.

Footnotes

  1. Judges 11:1 Or mighty man of valor
  2. Judges 11:3 Lit to
  3. Judges 11:3 Lit out with him
  4. Judges 11:9 Lit before
  5. Judges 11:10 Lit listener
  6. Judges 11:10 Lit according to your word
  7. Judges 11:16 Lit Sea of Reeds
  8. Judges 11:21 Lit struck
  9. Judges 11:28 Lit did not listen to the words
  10. Judges 11:31 Or with success; lit in well-being
  11. Judges 11:33 Lit struck a...blow
  12. Judges 11:33 Lit even until you are coming to
  13. Judges 11:35 Lit opened my mouth wide
  14. Judges 11:36 Lit opened your mouth wide
  15. Judges 11:36 Lit has gone out of your mouth
  16. Judges 11:37 Lit go and go down on
  17. Judges 11:39 Lit his vow which he had vowed
  18. Judges 11:39 Lit knew no man
  19. Judges 11:40 I.e., women
  20. Judges 11:40 Lit recount; some ancient versions, lament
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Judges 11
New International Version

11 Jephthah(A) the Gileadite was a mighty warrior.(B) His father was Gilead;(C) his mother was a prostitute.(D) 2 Gilead’s wife also bore him sons, and when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. “You are not going to get any inheritance in our family,” they said, “because you are the son of another woman.” 3 So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob,(E) where a gang of scoundrels(F) gathered around him and followed him.

4 Some time later, when the Ammonites(G) were fighting against Israel, 5 the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. 6 “Come,” they said, “be our commander, so we can fight the Ammonites.”

7 Jephthah said to them, “Didn’t you hate me and drive me from my father’s house?(H) Why do you come to me now, when you’re in trouble?”

8 The elders of Gilead said to him, “Nevertheless, we are turning to you now; come with us to fight the Ammonites, and you will be head(I) over all of us who live in Gilead.”

9 Jephthah answered, “Suppose you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me—will I really be your head?”

10 The elders of Gilead replied, “The Lord is our witness;(J) we will certainly do as you say.” 11 So Jephthah went with the elders(K) of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them. And he repeated(L) all his words before the Lord in Mizpah.(M)

12 Then Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king with the question: “What do you have against me that you have attacked my country?”

13 The king of the Ammonites answered Jephthah’s messengers, “When Israel came up out of Egypt, they took away my land from the Arnon(N) to the Jabbok,(O) all the way to the Jordan. Now give it back peaceably.”

14 Jephthah sent back messengers to the Ammonite king, 15 saying:

“This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take the land of Moab(P) or the land of the Ammonites.(Q) 16 But when they came up out of Egypt, Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea[a](R) and on to Kadesh.(S) 17 Then Israel sent messengers(T) to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Give us permission to go through your country,’(U) but the king of Edom would not listen. They sent also to the king of Moab,(V) and he refused.(W) So Israel stayed at Kadesh.

18 “Next they traveled through the wilderness, skirted the lands of Edom(X) and Moab, passed along the eastern side(Y) of the country of Moab, and camped on the other side of the Arnon.(Z) They did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was its border.

19 “Then Israel sent messengers(AA) to Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon,(AB) and said to him, ‘Let us pass through your country to our own place.’(AC) 20 Sihon, however, did not trust Israel[b] to pass through his territory. He mustered all his troops and encamped at Jahaz and fought with Israel.(AD)

21 “Then the Lord, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and his whole army into Israel’s hands, and they defeated them. Israel took over all the land of the Amorites who lived in that country, 22 capturing all of it from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the desert to the Jordan.(AE)

23 “Now since the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven the Amorites out before his people Israel, what right have you to take it over? 24 Will you not take what your god Chemosh(AF) gives you? Likewise, whatever the Lord our God has given us,(AG) we will possess. 25 Are you any better than Balak son of Zippor,(AH) king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel or fight with them?(AI) 26 For three hundred years Israel occupied(AJ) Heshbon, Aroer,(AK) the surrounding settlements and all the towns along the Arnon. Why didn’t you retake them during that time? 27 I have not wronged you, but you are doing me wrong by waging war against me. Let the Lord, the Judge,(AL) decide(AM) the dispute this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites.(AN)”

28 The king of Ammon, however, paid no attention to the message Jephthah sent him.

29 Then the Spirit(AO) of the Lord came on Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah(AP) of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites.(AQ) 30 And Jephthah made a vow(AR) to the Lord: “If you give the Ammonites into my hands, 31 whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph(AS) from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.(AT)”

32 Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into his hands. 33 He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith,(AU) as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon.

34 When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing(AV) to the sound of timbrels!(AW) She was an only child.(AX) Except for her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes(AY) and cried, “Oh no, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.(AZ)”

36 “My father,” she replied, “you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me just as you promised,(BA) now that the Lord has avenged you(BB) of your enemies,(BC) the Ammonites. 37 But grant me this one request,” she said. “Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry.”

38 “You may go,” he said. And he let her go for two months. She and her friends went into the hills and wept because she would never marry. 39 After the two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin.

From this comes the Israelite tradition 40 that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.

Footnotes

  1. Judges 11:16 Or the Sea of Reeds
  2. Judges 11:20 Or however, would not make an agreement for Israel
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Judges 10
Judges 12
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