Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. And Gilead had fathered Jephthah. Gilead’s wife bore him sons; and 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.” So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob; and worthless men gathered around Jephthah, and they went wherever he did. (vv. 1-3)
Jephthah, like Abimelech, was born to a woman of low social standing, yet he was chosen by God. He was despised by his own people, but he eventually became their leader.
Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and leader over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord at Mizpah. (v. 11)
In this chapter, Jephthah argues with the king of the Ammonites. His argument makes it clear that God had ordained the Israelites to possess the land.
But Sihon king of Heshbon was not willing for us to pass through his land; for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, in order to hand him over to you, as he is today. (Deuteronomy 2:30)
But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory; so Sihon gathered all his people and camped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. And the Lord, the God of Israel, handed Sihon and all his people over to Israel, and they defeated them; so Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. So they possessed all the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness as far as the Jordan. And now the Lord, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from His people Israel; so should you possess it? Do you not possess what Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whatever the Lord our God has dispossessed before us, we will possess it. Now then, are you any better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel, or did he ever fight against them? (v. 20-24)
This shows that the war between the Israelites and the Amorites is ultimately a conflict between God and the idols, and between God’s chosen people and the idolaters.
Jephthah, however, makes an error by trying to negotiate with God.
And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If You will indeed hand over to me the sons of Ammon, then whatever comes out the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.” (vv. 30-31)
In our lives, nothing is truly our own. Everything belongs to God. We do not own anything, not even our own bodies. Yet this is a common error that many Christians make. Rather than receiving what God gives us with thanksgiving, we try to negotiate with Him. That is not the relationship a Christian should have with God.
God, therefore, teaches Jephthah a lesson. Jephthah’s daughter came out of the doors of his house to meet him. There is nothing on earth that we can claim as our own, not even our own children.
Although this lesson may seem cruel, we must remember that God sacrificed His only Son to save us. God Himself shared in the pain that Jephthah experienced. Pain becomes glory, and God allows us to share in His glory by welcoming us into His household as His children.
Success in our lives means little in the end. As flowers blossom and wither, our lives on earth eventually come to an end. The most important thing in our lives is to understand God.
Many Christians ignore God’s promise of the Kingdom. The message of the Kingdom should be proclaimed from the pulpit every Sunday, yet ministers rarely speak about it. The Reformation of the sixteenth century was beautiful. However, it eventually turned to the law as a means of controlling the general public. That is why another reformation is needed.
“The time is fulfilled,” He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!” (Mark 1:15)
