Judges 11

¹Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a prostitute. And Gilead became the father of Jephthah.

²Gilead's wife bore him sons; and when his wife's sons grew up, they drove out Jephthah, and said to him, "You shall not inherit in our father's house; for you are the son of another woman."

³Then Jephthah fled from his brothers, and lived in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain fellows to Jephthah, and they went out with him.

⁴It happened after a while, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.

⁵It was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah out of the land of Tob;

⁶and they said to Jephthah, "Come and be our chief, that we may fight with the children of Ammon."

⁷Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "Did you not hate me, and drive me out of my father's house? And why have you come to me now when you are in distress?"

⁸The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "Therefore we have turned again to you now, that you may go with us, and fight with the children of Ammon; and you shall be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead."

⁹Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "If you bring me home again to fight with the children of Ammon, and the Lord delivers them before me, shall I be your head?"

¹⁰The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "The Lord shall be witness between us; surely according to your word so will we do."

¹¹Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and chief over them. And Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord in Mizpah.

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

¹³The king of the children of Ammon answered to 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 it peaceably."

¹⁴Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the children of Ammon;

¹⁵and he said to him, "Thus says Jephthah: 'Israel did not take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon,

¹⁶but when they came up from Egypt, and Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh;

¹⁷then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, 'Please let me pass through your land.' But the king of Edom did not listen. In the same way, he sent to the king of Moab; but he would not. So Israel stayed in Kadesh.

¹⁸Then 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 did not come within the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the boundary of Moab.

¹⁹Israel 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 our land.'

²⁰But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory; but Sihon gathered all his people together, and encamped in Jahaz, and fought against Israel.

²¹The Lord, 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.

²²They possessed all the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon even to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to the Jordan.

²³So now the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before his people Israel, and should you possess them?

²⁴Won't you possess that which Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whoever the Lord our God has driven out from before us, we will possess.

²⁵And now are you anything better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend against Israel, or did he ever fight against them?

²⁶While Israel lived in Heshbon and its towns, and in Aroer and its towns, and in all the cities that are along by the side of the Arnon, three hundred years; why did you not recover them within that time?

²⁷I therefore have not sinned against you, but you do me wrong by making war against me. The Lord, the Judge, be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon."

²⁸However the king of the children of Ammon did not listen to the words of Jephthah which he sent him.

²⁹Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over to the children of Ammon.

³⁰Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, and said, "If you will indeed deliver the children of Ammon into my hand,

³¹then it shall be that whatever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be the Lord's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering."

³²So Jephthah passed over to the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them into his hand.

³³He struck them from Aroer until you come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and to Abelcheramim, with a very great slaughter. So the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.

³⁴Jephthah came to Mizpah to his house; and behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances: and she was his only child; besides her he had neither son nor daughter.

³⁵It happened, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, "Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are one of those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the Lord, and I can't break it."

³⁶She said to him, "My father, since you have given your word to the Lord; do to me as you promised, because the Lord has taken vengeance for you on your enemies, even on the children of Ammon."

³⁷She said to her father, "Let this thing be done for me: leave me alone two months, that I may depart and go down on the mountains, and weep because of my virginity, I and my companions."

³⁸He said, "Go." He sent her away for two months: and she departed, she and her companions, and wept because of her virginity on the mountains.

³⁹It happened at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to what he had vowed. And she was a virgin. It became a custom in Israel,

⁴⁰that the daughters of Israel went yearly four days in a year to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.

Judges 11

¹Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.

²And Gilead’s wife bare him sons; and his wife’s sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father’s house; for thou art the son of a strange woman.

³Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him.

⁴And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.

⁵And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob:

⁶And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.

⁷And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father’s house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?

⁸And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.

⁹And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the Lord deliver them before me, shall I be your head?

¹⁰And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, The Lord be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words.

¹¹Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the Lord in Mizpeh.

¹²And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land?

¹³And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and unto Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably.

¹⁴And Jephthah sent messengers again unto the king of the children of Ammon:

¹⁵And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:

¹⁶But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness unto the Red sea, and came to Kadesh;

¹⁷Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land: but the king of Edom would not hearken thereto. And in like manner they sent unto the king of Moab: but he would not consent: and Israel abode in Kadesh.

¹⁸Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, but came not within the border of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab.

¹⁹And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my place.

²⁰But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Jahaz, and fought against Israel.

²¹And the Lord God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country.

²²And they possessed all the coasts of the Amorites, from Arnon even unto Jabbok, and from the wilderness even unto Jordan.

²³So now the Lord God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it?

²⁴Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the Lord our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.

²⁵And now art thou any thing better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them,

²⁶While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and her towns, and in Aroer and her towns, and in all the cities that be along by the coasts of Arnon, three hundred years? why therefore did ye not recover them within that time?

²⁷Wherefore I have not sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me: the Lord the Judge be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.

²⁸Howbeit the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jephthah which he sent him.

²⁹Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon.

³⁰And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands,

³¹Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.

³²So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them into his hands.

³³And he smote them from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.

³⁴And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.

³⁵And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.

³⁶And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the Lord hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.

³⁷And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows.

³⁸And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.

³⁹And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel,

⁴⁰That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.