Jephthah’s Rash Promise

 The Ammonite king had invaded The Israelite territory east of Jordan, claiming it rightly belonged to Ammon.  Jephthah had shown that the claims were invalid, but the king refused to even consider the facts.  At this point, The Holy Spirrit came upon Jephthah, directing him to face the Ammonites, as Judges 11:29 describes.  “Then 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.”  Though Jephthah had not been called in the same way as Gideon and others, it is clear God had chosen him to lead Israel.  This is far more important than that he had a specific style of call.  Unfortunately, because a person didn’t have a particular type of calling or receive a certain gifts, many have been discouraged from doing the Job God called them to do. 

 

After years of being rejected, Jephthah lacked confidence that God would use him to give the victory, so he tried to bribe the Lord, as Judges 11:30-31 describes.  “And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands, Then 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.” 

 

Knowing God was leading, Jephthah led the fight with Ammon, winning decisively, in Judges 11:32-33.  “So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hands.  And 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.”  The Ammonites would not seriously threaten Israel again until Saul became king almost two hundred years later.

 

With the war over, Jephthah returned home to be greeted by his daughter, reminding him of what he had promised in his attempt to bribe God, as Judges 11:34-35 tells us.  “And 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.  And 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.”

 

Jephthah had made the commitment because he did not fully trust God to give the victory, never thinking about what his promise meant.  As Romans 14:23 tells us, “…for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”  Romans 6:23 tells us, “For the wages of sin is death,” and sometimes that doesn’t just mean of the one who committed the sin.  More dedicated to god tham most, Jephthah never considered breaking his vow, saying, ”…I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.”

 

His daughter encouraged him to keep his promise, just asking that she be allowed to spend two months with her friends, grieving that she would never get to experience all the things she had expected, much like a young person with some terminal disease might do, in Judges 11:36-38.  “And 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.  And 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.  And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.”

 

At the end of her two months, the girl returned and Jephthah sacrificed her to god as he had promised.  She became a legendary figure as a result of her obedience, according to Judges 11:39-40.  “And 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, that the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.”

 

We need to understand, that if, like Jephthah, we have promised something in an effort to get God to do something, we have a responsibility to keep it even if it causes us serious emotional or financial loss.  Ecclesiastes 5:4-6 advises, “When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.  Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.  Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?”  You may have sinned in trying to manipulate or bribe God, but don’t compound the sin by refusing to keep your promise.