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Judges 11:12-28
World English Bible

12 Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the children of Ammon, saying, “What do you have to do with me, that you have come to me to fight against my land?”

13 The king of the children of Ammon answered the messengers of Jephthah, “Because Israel took away my land when he came up out of Egypt, from the Arnon even to the Jabbok, and to the Jordan. Now therefore restore that territory again peaceably.”

14 Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the children of Ammon; 15 and he said to him, “Jephthah says: Israel didn’t take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon; 16 but when they came up from Egypt, and Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh, 17 then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Please let me pass through your land;’ but the king of Edom didn’t listen. In the same way, he sent to the king of Moab, but he refused; so Israel stayed in Kadesh. 18 Then they went through the wilderness, and went around the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and they encamped on the other side of the Arnon; but they didn’t come within the border of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, ‘Please let us pass through your land to my place.’ 20 But Sihon didn’t trust Israel to pass through his border; but Sihon gathered all his people together, and encamped in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. 21 Yahweh, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they struck them. So Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22 They possessed all the border of the Amorites, from the Arnon even to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to the Jordan. 23 So now Yahweh, the God of Israel, has dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and should you possess them? 24 Won’t you possess that which Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whoever Yahweh our God has dispossessed from before us, them will we possess. 25 Now are you anything better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them? 26 Israel lived in Heshbon and its towns, and in Aroer and its towns, and in all the cities that are along the side of the Arnon for three hundred years! Why didn’t you recover them within that time? 27 Therefore I have not sinned against you, but you do me wrong to war against me. May Yahweh the Judge be judge today between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.”

28 However, the king of the children of Ammon didn’t listen to the words of Jephthah which he sent him.

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Judges 11:12-28
New English Translation

Jephthah Gives a History Lesson

12 Jephthah sent messengers to the Ammonite king, saying, “Why have[a] you come against me to attack my land?” 13 The Ammonite king said to Jephthah’s messengers, “Because Israel stole[b] my land when they[c] 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.[d] Now return it[e] peaceably!”

14 Jephthah sent messengers back to the Ammonite king 15 and said to him, “This is what Jephthah says, ‘Israel did not steal[f] the land of Moab and the land of the Ammonites. 16 When they left[g] Egypt, Israel traveled[h] through the desert as far as the Red Sea and then came to Kadesh. 17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, “Please allow us[i] to pass through your land.” But the king of Edom rejected the request.[j] Israel sent the same request to the king of Moab, but he was unwilling to cooperate.[k] So Israel stayed at Kadesh. 18 Then Israel[l] went through the wilderness 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;[m] they did not go through Moabite territory (the Arnon was Moab’s border). 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.”[n] 20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. He[o] assembled his whole army,[p] camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. 21 The Lord God of Israel handed Sihon and his whole army over to Israel and they defeated them. Israel took[q] all the land of the Amorites who lived in that land. 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.[r] 23 Since[s] the Lord God of Israel has driven out[t] the Amorites before his people Israel, do you think you can just take it from them?[u] 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.[v] 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?[w] 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 300 years! Why did you not reclaim them during that time? 27 I have not done you wrong,[x] but you are doing wrong[y] by attacking me. May the Lord, the Judge, judge this day between the Israelites and the Ammonites!’” 28 But the Ammonite king disregarded[z] the message sent by Jephthah.[aa]

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Footnotes

  1. Judges 11:12 tn Heb “What to me and to you that…?”
  2. Judges 11:13 tn Or “took”; or “seized.”
  3. Judges 11:13 tn Heb “he” (a collective singular).
  4. Judges 11:13 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok and to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
  5. Judges 11:13 tc The translation assumes a singular suffix (“[return] it”); the Hebrew text has a plural suffix (“[return] them”), which, if retained, might refer to the cities of the land.
  6. Judges 11:15 tn Or “take”; or “seize.”
  7. Judges 11:16 tn Heb “For when they went up from.”
  8. Judges 11:16 tn Or “went.”
  9. Judges 11:17 tn Heb “me.” (Collective Israel is the speaker.)
  10. Judges 11:17 tn Heb “did not listen.”
  11. Judges 11:17 tn Heb “Also to the king of Moab he sent, but he was unwilling.”
  12. Judges 11:18 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Israel; the pronoun in the Hebrew text represents a collective singular) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  13. Judges 11:18 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
  14. Judges 11:19 tn Heb “to my place.”
  15. Judges 11:20 tn Heb “Sihon.” The proper name (“Sihon”) has been replaced in the translation by the pronoun (“he”) because of English style; a repetition of the proper name here would be redundant in English.
  16. Judges 11:20 tn Heb “all his people” (also in the following verse).
  17. Judges 11:21 tn That is, took as its own possession.
  18. Judges 11:22 tn Heb “from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and from the desert to the Jordan.” The word “River” has been supplied in the translation with “Arnon” and “Jabbok,” because these are less familiar to modern readers than the Jordan.
  19. Judges 11:23 tn Heb “Now.”
  20. Judges 11:23 tn Or “dispossessed.”
  21. Judges 11:23 tn Heb “will you dispossess him [i.e., Israel; or possibly “it,” i.e., the territory]?” There is no interrogative marker in the Hebrew text.
  22. Judges 11:24 tn Heb “Is it not so that what Chemosh your god causes you to possess, you possess, and all whom the Lord our God dispossesses before us we will possess?” Jephthah speaks of Chemosh as if he is on a par with the Lord God of Israel. This does not necessarily mean that Jephthah is polytheistic or that he recognizes the Lord as only a local deity. He may simply be assuming the Ammonite king’s perspective for the sake of argument. Other texts, as well as the extrabiblical Mesha inscription, associate Chemosh with Moab, while Milcom is identified as the god of the Ammonites. Why then does Jephthah refer to Chemosh as the Ammonite god? Ammon had likely conquered Moab and the Ammonite king probably regarded himself as heir of all territory formerly held by Moab. Originally Moab had owned the disputed territory (cf. Num 21:26-29), meaning that Chemosh was regarded as the god of the region (see R. G. Boling, Judges [AB], 203-4). Jephthah argues that Chemosh had long ago relinquished claim to the area (by allowing Sihon to conquer it), while the Lord had long ago established jurisdiction over it (by taking it from Sihon and giving it to Israel). Both sides should abide by the decisions of the gods which had stood firm for 300 years.
  23. Judges 11:25 tn The Hebrew grammatical constructions of all three rhetorical questions indicate emphasis, which “really” and “dare to” are intended to express in the translation. sn Jephthah argues that the Ammonite king should follow the example of Balak, who, once thwarted in his attempt to bring a curse on Israel, refused to attack Israel and returned home (Num 22-24).
  24. Judges 11:27 tn Or “sinned against you.”
  25. Judges 11:27 tn Or “evil.”
  26. Judges 11:28 tn Heb “did not listen to.”
  27. Judges 11:28 tn Heb “Jephthah’s words which he sent to him.”
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