Jephthah the Gileadite

2022-04-10

Jephthah the Gileadite, “a mighty man of valour,” was the black sheep of his family. He was rejected by his family and was driven away. However, when Ammon declared war on Israel, that man of valor seemed a lot more attractive. The rejected one became their chief, which is a familiar motif in the Scriptures: “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” (Judges 11:8).

The Ammonites’ demands were unrealistic; they made claim to land on the eastern shore of the Jordan that was once Amorite territory. Jephthah knew that Sihon’s country became a part of Israel because of conquest, and it was never any territory of Ammon. Jephthah, a man of faith in the Lord, took a swipe at their false gods in his response to the children of Ammon:

So now the LORD God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it? Wilt 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. (Judges 11:23-24)

Of course, their gods did not give them anything to possess, because they are not gods and not real. What the children of Ammon had already was given them by the Lord: “And when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon any possession; because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a possession” (Deuteronomy 2:19)

Nonetheless, war ensued, but our judge made a tragic vow to sacrifice whatever came forth to him when he arrived home. He and his men defeated Ammon with a great victory. He arrived home, with his daughter first to greet him. His story demonstrates the reason of Jesus’ command, “Swear not at all” (Matthew 5:34).

Also, because Ephraim did not share in the glory of victory, a civil war broke out after the war with Ammon.

Jephthah’s life was one of tragedy, but one of faith. He had a bad family life, and (most likely) lost his only child. However, “Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah” (Judges 11:29). The LORD used this man, even though he had his own tragedy and his own flaws, to deliver His people. Like Gideon, Jephthah was listed in the “faith chapter” as an example of faith (Hebrews 11:32).

This is a part of the Judges of Israel series. To go back to the table of contents, proceed here.