Judges 11
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 11
Jephthah. 1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. Gilead was the father of Jephthah. 2 Gilead’s wife bore him sons, but 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 Jephthah fled from his brothers and dwelt in the land of Tob. Jephthah gathered some worthless fellows around himself, and they went out with him.
4 After some time, the Ammonites made war against Israel. 5 When the Ammonites fought against Israel, the elders of Israel went to bring back Jephthah from the land of Tob. 6 They said to Jephthah, “Come and be our leader so that we can fight against the Ammonites.” 7 Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “Did you not hate me and drive me out of my father’s house? Why have you come to me now that you are in trouble?” 8 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “This is why we have returned to you, so that you can go with us and fight against the Ammonites and be the leader of all of those who live in Gilead.” 9 Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you take me back to fight against the Ammonites, and the Lord delivers them up to me, will I then be your leader?” 10 The elders of Gilead answered, “The Lord will be a witness between us if we do not do what you have said.” 11 Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their leader and commander. Jephthah spoke all of his words before the Lord at Mizpah.
12 Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites asking, “What do you have against us? Why have you come here to fight in our land?” 13 The king of the Ammonites said to the messengers of Jephthah, “It is because Israel took away my land when they came up out of Egypt. It is the land that lies between the Arnon and the Jabbok, all along the Jordan. Now, give it back to me peacefully.” 14 Jephthah sent the messengers back to the king of the Ammonites 15 saying, “This is what Jephthah says, ‘Israel did not take away the land of the Moabites nor the land of the Ammonites. 16 When they came up out of Egypt, the people of Israel passed through the desert up to the Red Sea and then on to Kadesh. 17 Israel then sent messengers to the king of Edom saying, “Please let me pass through your land,” but the king of Edom would not listen. The same thing happened when they sent to the king of Moab; he would not agree, so Israel remained in Kadesh.
18 “ ‘They then went through the desert, skirting the land of Edom and the land of Moab. Passing along on the eastern side of Moab, they camped on the far side of the Arnon. They did not cross over the border with Moab, for the Arnon was the border with Moab.
19 “ ‘Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon. Israel said to him, “Please let us pass through your land into our territory.” 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel enough to let them pass through his land. Sihon and all of his forces camped at Jahaz and fought against Israel. 21 The Lord, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all of his men into Israel’s hands. They defeated them, and so Israel took possession of all of the land of the Amorites who lived in that territory. 22 They captured the entire land of the Amorites from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness to the Jordan.
23 “ ‘Now since it was the Lord, the God of Israel, who has driven the Amorites out from before the people of Israel, who are you that you should take it over? 24 Should you not possess what Chemosh,[a] your god, has given you to possess? Whatever the Lord, our God, has given us to possess, we will possess it.
25 “ ‘Are you any better than Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel or fight against it? 26 Israel lived in Heshbon and the towns dependent upon it, in Aroer and the towns dependent upon it, and in all of the cities that lie along the Arnon for three hundred years. Why did you not take it back then? 27 I have not wronged you, but you have done this evil to me by attacking me. Let the Lord, the judge, decide between the Israelites and the Ammonites today.’ ”
28 The king of the Ammonites did not heed the message that Jephthah had sent him. 29 The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah. He crossed over into Gilead and Manasseh, passing through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he advanced against the Ammonites.
30 Jephthah’s Vow.[b] Jephthah made a vow to the Lord saying, “If you deliver the Ammonites into my hands, 31 then whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I come back in peace from the Ammonites, I will surely offer it up to the Lord as a burnt offering.”
32 Jephthah went to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord delivered them into his hands. 33 He devastated some twenty cities between Aroer and up to near Minnith, as far away as Abel-keramim. It was a total massacre, and the Ammonites were subjected to the Israelites.
34 When Jephthah came back to Mizpah, to his home, it was his daughter who came out to meet him dancing and playing the tambourines. (She was his only child, for beside her there were no other sons or daughters.) 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Woe is me, for my daughter has made me miserable and wretched. I made a vow to the Lord; I cannot break it.” 36 “My father,” she said, “you have made a vow to the Lord. Do to me what you have vowed to do, for the Lord has taken vengeance for you upon your enemies, the Ammonites. 37 Only let me do this one thing, my father,” she continued, “may I roam around the hill country to mourn my virginity, for I will never marry.” 38 He answered, “Go!” She and her friends went into the hill country for two months, mourning her virginity. 39 When the two months were over, she returned to her father. He did what he had promised in his vow to do to her. She never knew any man. This is why there is a custom in Israel 40 for young women in Israel to mourn the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite for four days every year.
Footnotes
- Judges 11:24 Chemosh: the principal god of the Moabites (Num 21:29).
- Judges 11:30 The daughter of Jephthah was a victim of the practice of human sacrifice, which had been taken over from the Canaanite religions. The practice elicited indignant protests from the prophets (Jer 7:31; Ezek 16:21). The sacred writer lets it be seen that he disapproves of it (Jdg 11:40).
Judges 11
New King James Version
Jephthah
11 Now (A)Jephthah the Gileadite was (B)a mighty man of valor, but he was the son of a harlot; and Gilead begot Jephthah. 2 Gilead’s wife bore sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out, and said to him, “You shall have (C)no inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.” 3 Then Jephthah fled from his brothers and dwelt in the land of (D)Tob; and (E)worthless men banded together with Jephthah and went out raiding with him.
4 It came to pass after a time that the (F)people of Ammon made war against Israel. 5 And so it was, when the people of Ammon made war against Israel, that the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. 6 Then they said to Jephthah, “Come and be our commander, that we may fight against the people of Ammon.”
7 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, (G)“Did you not hate me, and expel me from my father’s house? Why have you come to me now when you are in [a]distress?”
8 (H)And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That is why we have (I)turned[b] again to you now, that you may go with us and fight against the people of Ammon, and be (J)our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
9 So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you take me back home to fight against the people of Ammon, and the Lord delivers them to me, shall I be your head?”
10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, (K)“The Lord will be a witness between us, if we do not do according to your words.” 11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him (L)head and commander over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words (M)before the Lord in Mizpah.
12 Now Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the people of Ammon, saying, (N)“What do you have against me, that you have come to fight against me in my land?”
13 And the king of the people of Ammon answered the messengers of Jephthah, (O)“Because Israel took away my land when they came up out of Egypt, from (P)the Arnon as far as (Q)the Jabbok, and to the Jordan. Now therefore, restore those lands peaceably.”
14 So Jephthah again sent messengers to the king of the people of Ammon, 15 and said to him, “Thus says Jephthah: (R)‘Israel did not take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the people of Ammon; 16 for when Israel came up from Egypt, they walked through the wilderness as far as the Red Sea and (S)came to Kadesh. 17 Then (T)Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please let me pass through your land.” (U)But the king of Edom would not heed. And in like manner they sent to the (V)king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel (W)remained in Kadesh. 18 And they (X)went along through the wilderness and (Y)bypassed the land of Edom and the land of Moab, came to the east side of the land of Moab, and encamped on the other side of the Arnon. But they did not enter the border of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 Then (Z)Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, “Please (AA)let us pass through your land into our place.” 20 (AB)But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So Sihon gathered all his people together, encamped in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. 21 And the Lord God of Israel (AC)delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they (AD)defeated[c] them. Thus Israel gained possession of all the land of the Amorites, who inhabited that country. 22 They took possession of (AE)all the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the wilderness to the Jordan.
23 ‘And now the Lord God of Israel has [d]dispossessed the Amorites from before His people Israel; should you then possess it? 24 Will you not possess whatever (AF)Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whatever (AG)the Lord our God takes possession of before us, we will possess. 25 And now, are you any better than (AH)Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever strive against Israel? Did he ever fight against them? 26 While Israel dwelt in (AI)Heshbon and its villages, in (AJ)Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities along the banks of the Arnon, for three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? 27 Therefore I have not sinned against you, but you wronged me by fighting against me. May the Lord, (AK)the Judge, (AL)render judgment this day between the children of Israel and the people of Ammon.’ ” 28 However, the king of the people of Ammon did not heed the words which Jephthah sent him.
Jephthah’s Vow and Victory
29 Then (AM)the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and passed through Mizpah of Gilead; and from Mizpah of Gilead he advanced toward the people of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah (AN)made a vow to the Lord, and said, “If You will indeed deliver the people of Ammon into my hands, 31 then it will be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the people of Ammon, (AO)shall surely be the Lord’s, (AP)and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”
32 So Jephthah advanced toward the people of Ammon to fight against them, and the Lord delivered them into his hands. 33 And he [e]defeated them from Aroer as far as (AQ)Minnith—twenty cities—and to [f]Abel Keramim, with a very great slaughter. Thus the people of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.
Jephthah’s Daughter
34 When Jephthah came to his house at (AR)Mizpah, there was (AS)his daughter, coming out to meet him with timbrels and dancing; and she was his only child. Besides her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he (AT)tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low! You are among those who trouble me! For I (AU)have [g]given my word to the Lord, and (AV)I cannot [h]go back on it.”
36 So she said to him, “My father, if you have given your word to the Lord, (AW)do to me according to what has gone out of your mouth, because (AX)the Lord has avenged you of your enemies, the people of Ammon.” 37 Then she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me: let me alone for two months, that I may go and wander on the mountains and [i]bewail my virginity, my [j]friends and I.”
38 So he said, “Go.” And he sent her away for two months; and she went with her friends, and bewailed her virginity on the mountains. 39 And it was so at the end of two months that she returned to her father, and he (AY)carried out his vow with her which he had vowed. She [k]knew no man.
And it became a custom in Israel 40 that the daughters of Israel went four days each year to [l]lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
Footnotes
- Judges 11:7 trouble
- Judges 11:8 returned
- Judges 11:21 Lit. struck
- Judges 11:23 driven out
- Judges 11:33 Lit. struck
- Judges 11:33 Lit. Plain of Vineyards
- Judges 11:35 Lit. opened my mouth
- Judges 11:35 Lit. take it back
- Judges 11:37 lament
- Judges 11:37 companions
- Judges 11:39 Remained a virgin
- Judges 11:40 commemorate
士師記 11
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
士師耶弗他
11 基列人耶弗他是個英勇的戰士，他父親名叫基列，母親是個妓女。 2 基列的妻子還生了幾個兒子，他們長大後，便把耶弗他趕出家門，說：「你是別的女人生的，你休想繼承我們父親的任何產業。」 3 耶弗他只好逃走，住在陀伯地區。有一群匪徒跟隨了他。
4 後來，亞捫人攻打以色列， 5 基列的眾長老就去陀伯請耶弗他， 6 對他說：「請你回來做統帥帶領我們對抗亞捫人。」 7 耶弗他說：「從前你們不是厭惡我，把我從父親家趕走的嗎？現在你們遭難，為什麼來找我？」 8 基列的眾長老說：「現在我們是來請你跟我們一起回去抵抗亞捫人，你可以做所有基列人的首領。」 9 耶弗他說：「如果我跟你們回去與亞捫人作戰，耶和華讓我打敗他們，我就真的可以做你們的首領嗎？」 10 基列的首領們說：「我們必聽從你的吩咐，有耶和華為我們作證。」 11 於是，耶弗他便跟他們一起回去。民眾擁立他做他們的首領和元帥。耶弗他在米斯巴將之前所說的話在耶和華面前重申一遍。
12 然後，他派遣使者去問亞捫王：「你與我有什麼相干？為什麼要攻打我的領土？」 13 亞捫王對他的使者說：「因為以色列人從埃及出來的時候佔據了我們的土地——從亞嫩河到雅博河，一直到約旦河。現在你們要乖乖地把這些土地還給我們。」 14 耶弗他再差遣使者去見亞捫王， 15 對他說：「以色列人並沒有佔據摩押和亞捫的土地。 16 當年以色列人離開埃及，經曠野渡過紅海來到加低斯， 17 然後派遣使者去見以東王，說，『求你讓我們經過你的領土。』以東王卻不答應。他們又派遣使者去見摩押王，摩押王也不答應。於是，以色列人就住在加低斯。 18 後來，他們走過曠野，繞過以東和摩押，到了摩押的東邊，在摩押的邊界亞嫩河東岸紮營，並沒有進入摩押境內。 19 以色列人派遣使者去見希實本的亞摩利王西宏，對他說，『求讓我們經過你的領土前往我們自己的土地。』 20 但西宏不信任以色列人，拒絕了他們的請求，並招聚全軍駐紮在雅雜，攻打他們。 21 但以色列的上帝耶和華幫助以色列人戰勝西宏和他的軍隊，佔領了他們所有的土地， 22 從亞嫩河直到雅博河，從曠野直到約旦河。 23 既然是以色列的上帝耶和華為祂的以色列子民趕走了亞摩利人，你憑什麼要奪取這塊土地？ 24 你擁有你們的神明基抹給你們的土地，我們也要擁有我們的上帝耶和華賜給我們的土地。 25 難道你比摩押王西撥的兒子巴勒更強嗎？他從未挑戰過以色列人，也未和以色列人交過戰。 26 三百年來，以色列人一直住在希實本及其周圍的鄉村、亞羅珥及其周圍的鄉村和亞嫩河沿岸一帶的城邑。在這期間，你們為什麼不收回這些土地呢？ 27 我們沒有得罪你們，你們卻攻打我們。願審判者耶和華今天在以色列人和亞捫人之間主持公道。」 28 可是，亞捫王不理會耶弗他派使者所傳的話。
29 那時，耶和華的靈降在耶弗他身上，他便經過基列和瑪拿西，來到基列的米斯巴，然後從那裡去迎戰亞捫人。 30 他向耶和華許願說：「如果你把亞捫人交在我手中， 31 讓我凱旋而歸，第一個從我家門出來迎接我的人必歸給你，我必把他獻給你作燔祭。」 32 於是，耶弗他率軍與亞捫人作戰，耶和華把敵人交在他手中， 33 他大敗敵軍，摧毀了從亞羅珥到米匿、遠至亞備勒·基拉明的二十座城。這樣，以色列人征服了亞捫人。
34 耶弗他返回自己在米斯巴的家，他的獨生女兒敲著鼓、跳著舞出來迎接他。 35 他一見自己的女兒，便撕裂衣服，說：「唉，我的女兒啊，你真讓我傷心欲絕！我向耶和華許了願，不能收回了！」 36 他女兒說：「父親啊，你既然向耶和華許了願，就照你許的願對待我吧！因為耶和華幫你打敗了敵軍亞捫人，為你報了仇。 37 但求你先給我兩個月的時間，讓我和同伴到山上去為我終身未嫁哀哭。」 38 耶弗他答應了，給了她兩個月的時間。於是，她便和同伴到山上為自己終身未嫁哀哭。 39 兩個月後，她回到父親那裡。她父親履行了自己所許的願。她終身未嫁。自此以後，在以色列有個習俗： 40 每年以色列的女子都去為基列人耶弗他的女兒哀哭四天。
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
