Judges Chapter 11 Part Four (Verses 36-40)

5. (Judges 11:36-40) Jephthah fulfills his vow to God
So she said to him, "My father, you have given your word to the LORD; do to me as you have said, since the LORD has avenged you of your enemies, the sons of Ammon." She said to her father, "Let this thing be done for me; let me alone two months, that I may go to the mountains and weep because of my virginity, I and my companions." Then he said, "Go." So he sent her away for two months; and she left with her companions, and wept on the mountains because of her virginity. At the end of two months she returned to her father, who did to her according to the vow which he had made; and she had no relations with a man. Thus it became a custom in Israel, that the daughters of Israel went yearly to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in the year.

My father, you have given your word: Jephthah's daughter makes it clear she understood her father had no choice in the matter. She tells him to do what he has vowed he would do.

At the end of two months she returned to her father: In verse 39, we are told after a two month reprieve, her father followed through with his promise to God.   

Now, of all the issues these few passages bring up, the one which causes the most controversy is whether or not Jephthah actually made a human sacrifice of his daughter or whether he did something else with her which did not involve her death. We will explore this topic, but first, we must set the stage. If we are to do more than just use our own sensibilities, opinions and various denominational doctrines as the answer to this dilemma.

Jephthah's vow reviewed in more detail
Let us start at the very beginning. In verse 31, the usual English rendering of the original Hebrew is that Jephthah vows to God that "Whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me...will be offered to the LORD as a burnt offering."

The first keyword of this sentence is "whatever". "Whatever" is a very poor translation which reflects a predisposition of the translator to what he thinks was in Jephthah's mind when he made the vow. The Hebrew word is asher, and it does NOT mean "whatever" or "whatsoever". It means who. This is very important because by slightly altering the meaning of the word asher to mean "whatever", it means ANYTHING which comes out of the door first upon Jephthah's triumphal return home will be sacrificed. It could be an animal or a human. But if we correctly translate asher as whoever, then it points toward the sacrifice as being a human. The only question would be which human. The word "what" refers to an "it" and the word "who" refers to a person. We do not call people "it"; we do not call animals "who".

It has become a standard Christian apologetic to explain that when Jephthah made a vow to the LORD, what he innocently had in mind is some kind of animal would be the first out the door to greet him. Thus, he would use that animal as a sacrifice to God. But, in addition to the fact that using the term asher refers to a person and not an animal, there is another problem, animals are clean or unclean.

Clean and unclean animals mingled and lived together in and around Hebrew households. Dogs and chickens lived side by side with sheep, goats and cattle. What is more likely when a master returns home: a dog would run to greet him or a cow? (Remember when presenting a sacrifice to God, ONLY CLEAN animals could be sacrificed. (For more details about clean versus unclean animals, please read Numbers chapter 11.)

Some answer the problem of clean versus unclean animals by saying Jephthah was turning the matter over to God. It was God's will and prerogative to determine what it is which would come through the door first to greet Jephthah; thus it would become a divine sacrifice. Essentially, it would be God choosing the sacrificial animal.

However, since the word asher is used, almost certainly no animal (clean or unclean) was being contemplated by Jephthah. The ancient Rabbis say it was probably a household slave or servant who Jephthah was envisioning. Indeed, in ancient times, it was the standard protocol for the chief house servant to race to the master when he approached, to be the first to greet him, wash the dust off his feet and give him food and drink. This was the chief house servant's job. If he failed to do these tasks, it could mean severe punishment because it was considered a great insult to not offer the master such respect.

The burnt offering
Another keyword in in the translation concerning the words "burnt offering". Jephthah said whoever comes out of the door of his house he would offer to God as a burnt offering. The word used here translated as burnt offering is olah. There are several very specific categories of sacrifices to the LORD discussed in the book of Leviticus.


While it is generally correct to define olah as a burnt offering, in fact it does not necessarily mean the burning up of a sacrifice. It more correctly translated means "near offering". The olah is the offering of a gift to the LORD in order to make yourself acceptable to Him. It is a kind of sacrifice which allows you or another to be declared sufficiently holy to come near to God. In general, this kind of sacrifice is of ritually clean animals, and the olah is presented to God by means of it being burned up on the altar. The point being that the nature of Jephthah's offering to God was it was to be a kind of offering gift to God for the purpose of making a person (or nation) acceptable to God. Whether it was actually burned up on an altar after it was offered was not technically a requirement of an olah. 

Current teachings
Despite any teaching you may have heard from your pastor on this subject to the effect that it is simply not possible (given all the circumstances) that Jephthah made a human sacrifice of his own daughter, there is not a single commentary on this subject ever written prior to the Middle Ages which propounds any other outcome than indeed Jephthah made a human blood sacrifice of his child. The Middle Ages were an approximately 1000-year period which began around 500 A.D. and ended around 1500 A.D. It was not until AFTER 500 A.D. that any Bible commentator, Christian or Jew, theorized that Jephthah did NOT actually sacrifice his daughter.


A different framework
Imagine the history and the most significant events of World War II being recorded. I think we would all feel that what was recorded during the actual war, and than what was recorded within a very short time period after the events would represent the most accurate portrayal of what happened, why it happened, what people thought about it, what the consequences were and so on. Might within a decade or two some new pieces of information be added to our understanding? Perhaps. But only to a degree and only to the margins.


Now imagine this year, the year 2020, over 70 years after World War II, someone wrote a book and completely redefined the cause of the war, challenged the first hand accounts of certain significant details, replaced the thoughts of the participants with his own and modified the chain of events. We call this person "re-writing history". Most people with good common sense would have a healthy skepticism that a person who was not even alive at the time of World War II would be able to refute the accounts of thousands of individuals from all walks of life who LIVED the World War II nightmare and wrote it down as it happened.

Now further imagine if 300 years passed, and another person wrote a book which said that some of the original World War II accounts were bogus, and his new understanding of what actually happened is the correct one. How would you approach such a book? If you are like me, I am not sure I would even read it; it challenges the credulity that a person who lived three centuries after World War II who is completely disconnected by time and culture would somehow have a better idea of what happened and why it happened than those who lived during it.

But now what would you do if almost 2000 years after World War II someone came along and said they now have the real truth, and it is entirely different than what everyone ever before has stated about the war and all that happened? Well, that is the case here with the matter of Jephthah and his daughter. From the time of the actual event, and for the next 2000 years, everyone from the author of the book of Judges to the eyewitnesses to those who handed down the story from generation to generation to the commentators who wrote about it from ancient time (Jewish and gentile), all agree that the account was literal and indeed Jephthah killed his daughter. It was only after two millennia passed that some Rabbis and some Christians decided something different happened than what is plainly stated in the text, what had been universally recognized as the truth. For me, it is difficult to take such new theories very seriously.

However, I think it is only appropriate to carry this study a little bit farther and show you what it is about the biblical passages which cause some commentators to believe Jephthah did NOT sacrifice his daughter.


The two main arguments against Jephthah sacrificing his child
The two main argument against Jephthah actually sacrificing his daughter are these: first, it is implicated in the wording of the scriptural passage, and second is is the doctrinal view that God would not allow such a thing to happen and then permit Jephthah to be considered a hero in later books of the Bible. 

Depending on your specific English translation, Judges 11:37-40 says when Jephthah's unnamed daughter understood she was the subject of the sacrificial offering in her father's vow, Her piousness was so great that she voluntarily agreed to accept the consequence. But first, she asked if she could have two months to go away and mourn because she would die without getting married. Jephthah agreed. Then we are told after two months, she returned and her father did to her what he had vowed, and thus she remained a virgin. Further, it says that Israel established a yearly remembrance of this poor girl during which time the women fo Israel would "lament" the daughter of Jephthah.

The keyword for this issue is virginity. Beginning sometime after 500 A.D., some commentators decided this was code for meaning her sacrifice was not being killed. Rather, it was agreeing to remain unmarried and thus a virgin for her entire life as a fulfillment to her father's vow to God. Later yet, it was added she became a worker at the Tabernacle, and that any female Tabernacle worker had to be a virgin. The logic was that this was a great sacrifice because it was considered a terrible thing for a woman in that culture and era to not produce children, as this was her main duty in life.

The text clearly states this girl was Jephthah's ONLY child (he had no sons). Henceforth, it did not matter if she was killed or remained alive as a virgin, Jephthah effectively had no heirs. Thus, his family line would end upon his death. Many claim this was the cause of Jephthah's great distress as expressed in verse 35 when he cried out, "Alas my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are among those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the LORD and I cannot take it back."

The main reasons used by those who defend Jephthah's daughter was NOT killed to fulfill her father's vow:
1. Jephthah knew the Law of Moses and knew it prohibited human sacrifice. So he would not have done it or contemplated it.


2. Jephthah's name appears in Hebrews 11:32 as one of a short list of great people of faith. How could someone who committed a human sacrifice be included in such a list?

3. Jephthah had been anointed with the Holy Spirit of God. No one under the Holy Spirit's guidance could commit such a terrible offense such as a human sacrifice. 

4. There is evidence that there was an order of full-time women workers in the Tabernacle, and they were virgins.

5. We should read into Jephthah's vow that if what came through Jephthah's door was an animal, it would become a burnt offering. But, if it was a human, that person would be some kind of vow offering to God by means of their permanent service to God.

6. When verse 40 says that every year the women of Israel would go to "lament" Jephthah's daughter for four days, in fact the word lament is a bad translation. It should be changed to "praise" here.

I cannot deny some or all the above arguments are possible. Except for the last point, every other argument is completely subjective. They are people's assumptions. They are their own postulations based on their own morality. The only subjective valid point is the sixth one, where people claim the word "lament" is an erroneous translation. They are correct.

The Hebrew word translated "lament" is the word tannah. Tannah in no way means to lament. Rather, it means to recount or to tell the story again. In later eras, before the Bible was written down, there were a group of people called tannas whose job it was to memorize the traditions in addition to what had been written down so that they could retell it accurately to others. They were to be a human library.

By translators incorrectly using the word "lament" here, the obvious intent was to make the story of Jephthah's daughter a very sad tale of a girl's death. Instead, say those who believe it was merely the girl's perpetual virginity which was at issue, the word should be "praise" (praising her for her faith to the LORD such that she gave up the right of motherhood). But this too is erroneous. Again, it tried to characterize the nature of the story to one of admiration instead of grief (lament). But the word tannah is quite neutral. It does not characterize the nature of the story; it only means to retell the story. Strictly from the Hebrew word tannah, it by no means gives evidence that they girl was killed or left alive.

In the end, it is up to you. I will tell you while I fall on the side of the girl being a human sacrifice, I am not completely closed to the very remote possibility that she simply lived out her life as a virgin.

I have no doubt Jephthah never imagined his own daughter would in any way be involved. He may have been a leader of a gang, but he conducted himself in a reasonable way with the elders of Gilead who wanted his help, he sought no revenge on his family, he approached the enemy king of Ammon in a thoughtful way without rushing into battle and he showed himself to be very concerned that God was with him. This all indicated that although he may have been rough, he was not an ignorant thug.

Yes, Jephthah made a rash vow. But have not we all at one time or another when we were deeply concerned over something, made a promise to God that we either had no real intention to keep or one which we thought better of later on? So, we cannot use this as means to caste Jephthah as a rash person.

Those who argue the book Hebrews would not make Jephthah out as a hero if he did such a dastardly and ungodly thing as murdering his own daughter need to consider the great place King David holds in the Bible. This is a man said to be "after God's own hear". Thus is a man who was promised the throne of the Kingdom of God forever, and it would be accomplished through Messiah. Yet, he committed adultery, murder, fornication, had multiple wives, put the Ark of the Covenant in his personal tent in hopes of gaining personal benefit and more.

The LORD will show mercy to whom He will show mercy. The LORD will chose to use whom He chooses to use. How we feel about it, or how we judge the criteria of His choice is irrelevant to the Father. We need to exercise great care in using our own personal doctrines based on our modern cultural morays when trying to determine when or if a Biblical character merits either the scorn or admiration assigned to him by Scripture.

Jephthah was a very flawed man. He operated like all the other Hebrews in that time who were compromised by evil. He had mixed pagan practices with the Torah, came to all sorts of conclusions about what was proper worship and proper sacrifice which were completely off the mark, and yet God uses him as he is for Kingdom purposes. Everything Jephthah did was not good. Everything Jephthah did was not in obedience to the Holy Spirit. But, some things were. Such is the life of a Believer. We will fail far more than we will follow God's will. Yet, that does not mean God does not love us or that He will abandon us. The test is not our perfection. The test is our abiding trust in Jesus our Savior.

It is God's will that we are obedient to Him. It is God's will we follow the pure ways and not do as Jephthah and so many others did to pervert God's Word with man's word. We have a guide and helper to accomplish God's will. The guide is the Holy Scripture and the helper is the Holy Spirit.

Let us pray the LORD will give us the strength and desire to rid ourselves of man-made doctrines which have no basis in truth and ought to have no place in our lives as followers of the God of Israel. Let us pray the wonderful things the LORD has planned for our lives are carried out as Jesus would carry them out and not as Jephthah did them.

Judges Chapter 11 Part Three (Verses 29-35)

A Brief Review
Jephthah lived in a place called Gilead. (Gilead is on the east side of the Jordan River.) He had been driven out from his family home because he was an illegitimate son of his father Gilead. Gilead's legitimate sons did not want their inheritance jeopardized by having to give an equal portion of it to Jephthah. Moreover, Jephthah's mother was a prostitute. This made Jephthah a social outcast. Gilead's sons did not want such a degrading association within their immediate family. 

Jephthah had gone off and created a gang of desert pirates who raided caravans and villages. Also, they hired themselves out as mercenaries to rich men in order to make a living. As unsavory as this might be, such a profession was not entirely looked down upon in those days. Jephthah would have been viewed as a misbehaving brother more than a despicable and immoral thug. As we have seen with the earlier story in the book of Judges of the self-appointed king, Abimelech and the man who would dispose him (Gaal), the creation of these gangs of bandits was usual. They were not at all universally rejected. In fact, there was a certain kind of admiration, akin to that given to Robin Hood, was the attitude within the Middle Eastern culture.

The leading men of Gilead regarded Jephthah as a brave and cunning military leader. Thus, when the king of Ammon declared war on the territory of Gilead, these leading men realized they had no qualified field general to lead their militia. So, they sought out Jephthah. A contingent of elders from Gilead (some from Jephthah's own family) came to Jephthah and offered him the job. Obviously, there would have to be something substantial in it for Jephthah if he was going to risk his life to fight for the very people who had despised him and chased him off. The offer was the guarantee that he would become the leader over all Gilead.

The agreement was sealed with a covenant and an oath spoken at the Israeli army headquarters in Mizpah.

The king of Ammon said that he wanted the land which belonged to Ammonites returned to him. If Israel would do it peacefully, there would be no conflict. The problem is that Ammon never in history held the land they wanted Israel to give them--Gilead. When we look at a map, we see that Ammon lays to the east of the territory that Israel now held on the Jordan River's east bank. When Israel was on the Exodus journey from Egypt to Canaan, it was a powerful tribal nation called the Amorites who ruled over the land which would eventually be called Gilead. It was the Amorites who attacked Israel and were defeated. Israel recognized Ammon's territorial rights and left it alone. Ammon was located farther to the east and was not involved in the conflict between the Amorites and Israel. Apparently there were some Ammonites living in the area which is now called Gilead. The king of Ammon was now using that as an excuse to declare Israel had no right to the land they held since their Exodus from Egypt three hundred years earlier.

Bottom line: Ammon was making a bogus claim for the land of Gilead. Ammon had never in history occupied or ruled over the area of Gilead.

When Jephthah heard that this was their demand, he firmly rebuffed the king of Ammon, told him that his historical facts were in error and that he had no intention of giving his land to Ammon.

B. Victory and a vow

1. (Judges 11:29) Jephthah gathers troops and advances courageously on Ammon
Now the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, so that he passed through Gilead and Manasseh; then he passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he went on to the sons of Ammon.


Now the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah: The first words of verse 29 informs us that Jephthah had been chosen to lead Israel's militia. After his diplomatic confrontation with the king of Ammon, the LORD moved and anointed Jephthah as a Judge. Thus, we see the phrase, "The Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah."

In Hebrew, it says, "The Ruach of YHWH hayyah Jephthah." Back in our study of Judges chapter three, we discussed this concept of the Spirit of God covering, anointing or coming upon a man. It was generally expressed using one of two Hebrew words: labesh or hayyah. These two words represent two substantially different ways in which the Spirit of the LORD acted upon a human. 

Labesh means to cloth a person in the Holy Spirit (like putting on a garment). The person took on a certain amount of divine power that enabled him to do miraculous deeds or to gain superhuman strengths or insight. 

Here in Judges chapter 11, we have the word hayyah. When used, it means that the LORD'S Spirit overcomes a man in such a way that the man becomes especially obedient to the LORD, or that the LORD'S will operate in the man in such a way which almost replaces the man's own will. So, Jephthah was operating very much in the LORD'S will; yet, as we will see, he will not being doing it entirely.

Here this move of the Holy Spirit upon Jephthah represents the moment in which Jephthah's status changes. He went from being a normal human leader to a divinely appointed Judge for God. 

He passed through Gilead and Manasseh: The first thing Jephthah did was to travel through the land of Gilead and the territory of Manasseh (the half of Manasseh which was on the east side of the Jordan River). He added to the size of the Israelite militia to prepare for the coming battle with the forces of Ammon. Once he did that, he acted in a way which has perplexed and bothered Jews and Christians for many centuries. In anticipation of going to war, Jephthah made a vow to the God of Israel; it was a very rash vow which would cause him great pain.


2. (Judges 11:30-31) Jephthah makes a rash vow
Jephthah made a vow to the LORD and said, "If you will indeed give the sons of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.  

Jephthah made a vow to the LORD: This is the vow which forms one of the more infamous stories in the entire Bible. Therefore, it is usually the focus of the study of Judges chapter 11.

Jephthah believes he can seek God's favor if he vowed to the LORD a sacrifice from the first thing which walks through the doors of his house to greet him when he returns home from battle after defeating the Ammonites. One can assume Jephthah believed he needed divine intervention because this was going to be a Holy War.


3. (Judges 11:32-33) God grants Israel victory over the Ammonites
So Jephthah crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD gave them into his. He struck them with a very great slaughter from Aroer to the entrance of Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel-keramim. So the sons of Ammon were subdued before the sons of Israel.

The LORD gave them into his hand: God won a great and important victory for Israel through Jephthah. He overcame bitterness and family rejection to meet a great need. Despite his difficult past, God still wonderfully used him. 

So the sons of Ammon were subdued before the sons of Israel: This was another victory for Israel won under the leadership of a Spirit-filled Judge.


4. (Judges 11:34-35) A difficult vow to fulfill
When Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah, behold, his daughter was coming out to meet him with tambourines and with dancing. Now she was his one and only child; besides her he had no son or daughter. When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, "Alas, may daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are among those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the LORD, and I cannot take it back."

Behold, his daughter was coming out to meet him: When Jephthah arrives home, his daughter comes out the door to greet him. Jephthah is devastated because he feels he can not go back on his vow to God since God had indeed given Israel victory. He feels as though he was stuck carrying out his promise to the LORD. Jephthah saw a direct connection between his vow and the complete victory of Israel over Ammon. (Whether this was a real connection or not, in his ancient oriental mind he assumed the connection was real.)

Judges Chapter 11 Part Two (Verses 14-28)

5. (Judges 11:14-28) Jephthah's response to the King of the Ammonites
But Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the sons of Ammon, and they said to him, "Thus says Jephthah, 'Israel did not take away the land of Moab nor the land of the sons of Ammon. For when they came up from Egypt, and Israel went through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh, then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, "Please let us pass through your land," but the king of Edom would not listen. And they sent also to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel remained at Kadesh. Then they went through the wilderness, and around the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and came to the east side of the land of Moab, and they camped beyond the Arnon; but they did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. And 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 our place." 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. The LORD, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they defeated them; so Israel possessed 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 Jabok, and from the wilderness as far as the Jordan. Since now the LORD, the God of Israel, drove out the Amorites from before His people Israel, are you then to possess it? Do you not possess what Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whatever the LORD our God has driven out before us, we will possess it. Now are you any better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever strive with Israel, or did he ever fight against them? While Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Arnon and its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time? I therefore have not sinned against you, but you are doing me wrong by making war against me; may the LORD, the Judge, judge today between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon.'" But the king of the sons of Ammon disregarded the message which Jephthah sent him.

Jephthah sent messengers again: Jephthah sent his messengers back to the king of the Ammonites with what we find written in verses 15-27. Here is the gist of it: Ammonites, you have no standing for your claim, and I am going to remind you of how everything occurred in Israel's journey from Egypt to Canaan. Historically, this is what happened: Israel did not capture the territory of Moab or Ammon. What happened, says Jephthah, is that during the Exodus, Israel had arrived at Kadesh and camped there. In order to go any farther, Moses followed standard protocol of that era and sent messengers ahead of him to the king of Edom asking if they might be able to travel through his territory so that they could get to their destination, Canaan. But the king of Edom refused. After marching around Edom, Moses sent a similar message to the king of Moab, but he also refused a right of way to pass through. So in addition to marching around Edom, Israel journeyed far to the east and north in order to march about Moab to avoid any trouble with them. The Arnon River was Moab's recognized northern border, and Israel stayed north of that border to respect the king of Moab's wishes.

And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites: Israel sends messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, whose royal city was Heshbon. Sihon becomes very hostile and goes to war against Israel. Israel does nothing against Sihon. They had already proved that they would honor the territorial integrity of nations and territories which lay in the path on their journey to Canaan. The result of the attack from the Amorites was that God favored Israel. Sihon was defeated. Israel took the territory which belonged to the Amorites. The territory is now called Gilead. (Please note, Israel won against the Amorites, not the Ammonites.)

A brief history review
Israel did not take the Moabite's land from them. This is important because Moab had a much stronger claim to their land than the Ammonites. The Amorites, a very aggressive and warlike people from Mesopotamia, had come down and conquered Moab and took their land. When Israel fought the Amorites led by Sihon, they then won whatever the Amorites owned. The former territory of Moab was among those possessions. Furthermore, in keeping with Numbers 21:24, Israel made NO claim on any of Ammon's territory. Moses had been instructed by God to respect the territorial boundaries of Edom, Moab and Ammon. Why? Because Edom was the descendants of Jacob's brother Esau; Moab and Ammon were the descendants of Lot, Abraham's nephew.


To summarize, Jephthah's argument against the king of the Ammonite's claim to the land of Gilead, he says this: first, due to God's instructions, Israel had no interest in conquering or even bothering the people of Ammon. They only respectfully asked to pass through that area in order to get to Canaan. The king of the Amorites, Sihon, who ruled over the people of Ammon and Moab went to war with Israel (out of mistrust and paranoia), and because Israel won that war, whatever land the Amorites owned now by rights of conquest belonged to Israel. In fact, the land that Ammon claimed for itself had NEVER belonged to the Ammonites to begin with; it belonged to the Amorites. The Ammonites just lived there. Now it belongs to Israel since they took it from the Amorites.

Since now the LORD, the God of Israel, drove out the Amorites from before His people Israel, are you then to possess it: The second argument Jephthah makes is a theological one which begins in verse 23. Jephthah says that since the God of Israel enabled Israel to have victory over the Amorites, should Israel hand over the land to the king of Ammon? Obviously, if God gave the land to Israel, Ammon is certainly not going to be able to expel Israel now, and Israel is not going to give it up.

Do you not possess what Chemosh your god gives you to possess: In verse 24, we get a good example of the ancient oriental mind at work. We see how the people of that era viewed the role of the gods. The logic is this: God is the God of Israel. God enabled his people to win the land of the Amorites. Therefore, the land belonging to Israel's God belongs to Israel. Whatever land Chemosh has enabled his people (the Ammonites) to win is all they should have. Why would the God of Israel want to voluntarily give up land under His control to another god?

While Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time: Jephthah presents a third argument in verse 26. He says Israel has dwelt in Heshbon and all its surrounding towns and villages near the Arnon River for three centuries. Why, after 300 years, do you suddenly decide the land ought to be yours? Where have you been for the last three centuries?

It is obvious the king of Ammon had no legitimate claim over the land he wanted to fight Israel for. He simply wanted it and came up with some convoluted reasoning as to why Israel ought to give it up, move out and turn it over to the Ammonites. Historically, Ammon had no legal claim to it. Theologically, Ammon had no religious claim to it. Even from a conquest standpoint, Ammon had no claim to the land because they never had conquered it, ruled it or possessed it.

We can see a replay of this scenario concerning Israel and foreign claims to their land today. History is circular, and we are reliving the time of the Judges right now. Jephthah does not make the point that no one should be upset over the land of Gilead now controlled by Israel. He does not say that no one ought to challenge Israel's right to Gilead. He says that of all people, Ammon does not have right to the land because they never owned it at any time in history. On the other hand, if the Amorites who defeated Joshua have a reason to want to reopen the subject and fight Israel to regain the land they once held, they may do so. After all, it was the Amorites who lost the land to Israel. But Ammon, they never held claim to that land at any time.

Now if Ammon was honest and said, "We are conquerors. We think we are more powerful than you. We intend to take this land from you," that is another matter. In time honored tradition, that is how boundaries of all the nations on this earth have been formed and changed and will continue to shift. It is through wars and peace treaties in which nations come and go. But instead, the king of Ammon said they had a legitimate claim to Gilead, it was their land at one time and Israel has no right to it. That is simply a false statement.

Israel still under attack today by false pretenses
Today we have a people called the Palestinians who make this same kind of false claim on Israel's land. There has never in all history been an Arab nation or a people group called the Palestinians. It is a media and Arab League invention. To say that Israel is occupying their land is the same king of bogus claim the king of Ammon is making to Jephthah. The so-called Palestinians whose faces we see on our television screens never existed prior to 1967. They are just a mixed group of refugees from several Arab nations who came to Israel to find work after Israel became a state in 1948 and stayed.

Then, when the Arab League attacked Israel with their mighty combined armies, these Arab workers fled to Jordan in masses, and they expected to return home to their choice of any former Jewish house they wanted. Israel beat back their attackers and was not about to allow these Arab workers who were loyal to the Arab League back into Israel. The Arab nations from which these workers came refused to allow these Arab peasants to return to their home nations. So now they were refugees. The strategy was to use these displaced Arabs as pawns to achieve the Arab League's political demands that Israel be turned over to the Arabs and eradicate the Jews.

Suddenly, these so-called Palestinians are an ancient people group who have been expelled from their land which is now occupied by the Jews, and the Jews are the bad guys. The media is complicit in this great lie. Most western nations of the world are so interested in maintaining a good relationship with the Arabs so that the Middle Eastern oil continues to flow, they are willing to sacrifice Israel to the Palestinians as a peace offering.


Unfortunately, there does not seem to be a Jephthah for Israel to turn to today. Israel does not seem to have a leader who will tell the Palestinians to go to the land where their god, Allah, holds sway. Israel is the land of God, the God of Israel. The Palestinians have no legitimate claim over Israel's land, they never were a nation, they never were a distinct or identifiable people group, they never possessed the land of Israel, the never conquered the land of Israel and thus they need to take their claims and problems elsewhere.

The Palestinians are taking precisely the same tact as the king of Ammon. Israel has tried over and over again to find a peaceful solution, but the only solution as far as the Palestinian leadership is concerned is complete capitulation (the same demand the king of Ammon made to Jephthah).

Jephthah realizes there is no hope to continue the negotiations. If Ammon wants Gilead, they will have to take it by force.

Judges Chapter 11 Part One (Verses 1-13)

JEPHTHAH AND THE AMMONITES

Introduction
This chapter of Judges contains an enormous amount of information that might seem superfluous and tedious to all but historians. But, it helps us immensely to understand why certain decisions were made if we will take the time to digest all which is recorded.

Also, it is here in which we find the very controversial matter of Jephthah making a vow to God which ended up with a horrible unintended consequence: the sacrifice of his daughter. I say this is controversial because what actually happened has been hotly debated within Christian (and Jewish circles to a lesser degree) for a long time, with strong sentiment on both sides of the argument. We will join that fracas in due time.

While the aforementioned incident is usually the focal point of Bible study and discussion for this chapter, if we look closer, we will see there is actually another (and perhaps more important) issue to deal with. It is an issue which has profound implications in our current era. These concern the claims of Israel's neighbors on the land God gave to Israel through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But first, this chapter introduces us to Jephthah.

A. Jephthah negotiates with the Ammonites

1. (Judges 11:1-3) Jephthah's background before his rise to leadership
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior, but he was the son of a harlot. And Gilead was the father of 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 fellows gathered themselves about Jephthah, and they went out with him.

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior, but he was the son of a harlot: Verse one says Jephthah (his name means "he opens") was a brave soldier, but he was also the son of a prostitute. His father was a Hebrew man, Gilead, who sired other sons as well by means of his legal wife (presumably she was a Hebrew). But when Gilead's other sons grew up, they drove Jephthah away because they did not want to share their family inheritance with him.

Let us immediately clear up some erroneous doctrine about Jephthah. First, he was an illegitimate child of Gilead. He was a son born to a prostitute. The Hebrew words say he was born to an ishshah zonah. Ishshah means female (or woman) and zonah means one who commits fornication, a harlot or a prostitute. Some Rabbis have made it a tradition that Jephthah's mother was actually Gilead's concubine. That is absolutely false. There is no hint of such a thing. This doctrine was only arrived at to try to find merit for Jephthah because later passages accord him much honor. Zonah is the common Hebrew word for prostitute, and it is used in no other way. Jephthah's mother was a prostitute, not a concubine.

Sadly, it was not all the uncommon for a man in that era to produce illegitimate children with a prostitute. Usually, the father had little to nothing to do with the illegitimate child. If the child could be proved to be the man's offspring, he typically had no interest in legitimizing the child. What is also demonstrated here is a prostitute was common and leading men of Israel partook of these women rather routinely. There was no social stigma for having sex with a harlot while being married, even among the Hebrews. This should give us some insight as to how low Israel had sunk by this time. But it was also not something which was openly discussed nor admitted. So the odds of any child of a harlot being claimed by his or her father was near zero.

Illegitimate children of harlots were the lowest of the low in Israelite society (and most other societies as well). They were ignored and scorned, had no rights, received no schooling and were social outcasts. They lived miserable poverty stricken lives.

You shall not have an inheritance in our father's house: Gilead must have had an attack of conscience and must have made it clear to his legitimate sons that Jephthah was to be accorded family status such that he would inherit some of the family's wealth. Gilead's legitimate children were not happy about this. Not only would Jephthah take away from their portion but it also brought this social misfit too near to this family of aristocrats for comfort. I suspect we all know of family situations where a well-to-do person with children gets divorced or is widowed and then remarries to someone who has children from a previous marriage. This produces a blended family of biological and step children. Often the natural children of the affluent parent do not like the idea of sharing an inheritance with their stepbrothers and stepsisters. So this sort of thing is an age-old problem.

So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob: Jephthah left the area of Gilead and went to a place called Tob, which means "good". There he formed a gang. Jephthah must have gain quite a reputation as a fighter and leader of fighters because he would soon be in demand to rescue Israel from yet another oppression of foreigners.


2. (Judges 11:4-8) The elders of Gilead call upon the leadership of Jephthah
It came about after a while that the sons of Ammon fought against Israel. When the sons of Ammon fought against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob; and they said to Jephthah, "Come and be our chief that we may fight against the sons of Ammon." Then Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "Did you not hate me and drive me from my father's house? So why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?" The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "For this reason we have now returned to you, that you may go with us and fight with the sons of Ammon and become head over all the inhabitants of Gilead."

It came about after a while that the sons of Ammon fought against Israel: Verse four sets the story into motion. The oppressive Ammonites made war against Israel. The council of the leaders of Gilead went to Jephthah to ask him to come and lead Gilead against Ammon. Naturally, Jephthah is not immediately keen to come to the aid of the people who had banished him and treated him so badly. Without doubt, some of his estranged family members were part of the council and among those who approached him.

Equally, without doubt, Jephthah MUST have been their last resort. It took some swallowing of a lot of pride to approach Jephthah and seek his help. Not only that, but the price they would pay for this acceptance of the challenge was going to be huge--the sons of Gilead would have to bow down to the son of a common harlot.


3. (Judges 11:9-11) Jephthah's response to the leaders of Gilead
So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, "If you take me back to fight against the sons of Ammon and the LORD gives them up to me, will I become your head?" The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, "The LORD is witness between us; surely we will do as you have said." Then 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 at Mizpah  

So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead: Jephthah made them repeat their promise to him and then made a covenant with him by invoking God's name to seal the deal. Even that was not good enough. Jephthah accompanied the council of the elders back to their army headquarters at Mizpah. (Mizpah means watchtower and is where Laban and Jacob make a covenant in Genesis 31.) In a religious ceremony at Mizpah, the elders repeated Jephthah's demands, which they again accepted with a vow.


4. (Judges 11:12-13) Jephthah negotiates with the King of the Ammonites
Now Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, "What is between you and me, that you have come to me to fight aginst my land?" The king of the sons of Ammon said to the messengers of Jephthah, "Because Israel took away my land when they came up from Egypt, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok and the Jordan; therefore, return them peaceably now." 

Now Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon: With the agreement now publicly and spiritually acknowledged, Jephthah proceeded with the assigned mission. Surprisingly, we find Jephthah is a clever man and not some ignorant street thug. Jephthah's first step is to try and negotiate with the Ammonites. He tried to reason with the Ammonites in an effort to avoid war and loss of life, if it was possible. I suspect he knew this had little chance of success, but it was worth a try. He showed himself to be a skilled negotiator, quite intellectual and a clear thinker. But he was also a tough guy who does not back down.

Working through messengers, he communicated a simple question to the king of the Ammonites: "what do you want and why are you coming to my land to fight?" This message makes a couple of things clear. Jephthah did not represent himself as a hired man but as a patriot. Second, it made clear that as far as he was concerned, there was no reasonable dispute over the land; the land was Israel's.

Israel took away my land when they came up from Egypt: In verse 13, we get the Ammonite's response. Israel took this land from us and we lay claim to it and want it back. The king says the wrongful taking took place during the Exodus from Egypt and goes on to describe the area he contends to be his. The area includes from the south, from the Arnon, which was the border between Moab to the south and Ammon to the north. Then the northern border of the disputed territory was described as the Jabok, which was the ancient border between Ammon on its south side and Gilead to the north. The eastern boundary was the Jordan River.

The king of Ammon says to give them back the land, and then there will not be war. Now things are going to get a little complicated and very historical. Hang in there because it is going to be quite relevant.

The king of Ammon's claim is nonsense and has no basis in fact. The truth is that the Ammonites had NEVER held this particular territory because the Arnon River served as the border between Moab and the Amorites. (The Amorites and the Ammonites are not the same thing and are in no way related to each other.)

Judges Chapter 10 Part Two (Verses 7-18)

2. (Judges 10:7-9) Israel's servitude
The anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and into the hands of the sons of Ammon. They afflicted and crushed the sons of Israel that year; for eighteen years they afflicted all the sons of Israel who were beyond the Jordan in Gilead in the land of the Amorites. The sons of Ammon crossed the Jordan to fight also against Judah, Benjamin and the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was greatly distressed.

The anger of the LORD burned against Israel:  The consequence of Israel's mixed worship rituals was God's anger blazing up. He turned the Hebrews, who lived on the west side of the Jordan (in Canaan) over to the Philistines to be oppressed. The Hebrews on the east side of the river (in the Trans-Jordan) were put under the oppression of the Ammonites. Furthermore, the Ammonites crossed over the Jordan and fought against the southern Israelite tribes of Judah and Benjamin and the northern tribe of Ephraim. In other words, this cycle of sin and apostasy led to the most widespread simultaneous oppression at the hands of gentile nations thus far.

3. (Judges 10:10-14) Israel calls to the LORD; God's response to Israel
Then the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD, saying, "We have sinned against You, for indeed, we have forsaken our God and served the Baals." The LORD said to the sons of Israel, "Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians, the Amorites, the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines? Also, when the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you, you cried to Me, and I delivered you from their hands. Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods; therefore I will no longer deliver you. Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in the time of your distress."

Then the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD: The people of Israel may have had short-term memory loss, but they were not dumb. In their misery, they decide as a last resort to cry out to God to save them from their misery. But, God knows the heart condition of every man. He tells the Israelites He is not going to save them.

This period of intense tribulation upon Israel had gone on for 18 years before Israel began to look to the God of Israel for help. Even when God's people finally looked to Him for help, He saw they were not sincere. It is common among humans that we do not really want change. We only want our circumstances to be different and more to our liking. God says since they enjoyed serving the gods of their neighbors, then they should go to them and ask to be rescued.

A lesson for us
We have an excellent teaching point here for every Believer, if we are willing to accept it. The lesson is on the nature of confession and repentance. Crying out to God for help and mercy, by itself, has utterly no merit. God will not pay attention. Our relationship with Him must be on firm footing, or He closes His ears to our pleadings. If our relationship with Him has been severely compromised, then action on our part (real change) is required. God will not yield to our prayers if we pray with pitiful emotions or pious words.


The first action is to be confession--sincere confession.
(Side note: the word sincere comes from the conjunction sin (meaning without) and cera (meaning wax). In ancient times, when folks went to a pottery shop to buy a piece of pottery, the shop would often hide blemishes to the piece by filling in the gaps with wax. When the buyer brought home the pottery and and heated it up, the wax would melt, and the pot would be useless. To test if a piece of pottery would have wax, the buyer would place the pottery in the hot sun. If the piece showed no signs of melting wax, they knew the pottery was not flawed.) This is how God wants us to be--to be without wax. We are to be truthful and genuine. There should be no wax to fill in the gaps to our repentance.

But what is confession?
Confession is agreeing with the LORD that you have broken His commandments; thus, you have sinned against Him. Confession is humbly admitting God is right and you are wrong. Confession is telling God what He already knows about you. But confession by itself is not sufficient. It must be followed by repentance. Repentance is not a promise or intent to do better. Repentance is active change, but the change must be in accordance with God's laws. It should not be in accordance with our sense of goodness or morality. Repentance is ceasing to do what is wrong in God's eyes. It is to do what is right in God's eyes. How do we know which is which? Read His instruction manual. Read the ENTIRE BIBLE!


4. (Judges 10:15-16) Repentance from Israel, mercy from God
The sons of Israel said to the LORD, "We have sinned, do to us whatever seems good to You; only please deliver us this day." So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the LORD; and He could bear the misery of Israel no longer.

The sons of Israel said to the LORD: Israel's response to God's refusal to help them is actually kind of funny, if it were not so sad. "Do whatever seems good to You; only please deliver us today." This statement is the biblical version of, "I will gladly pay you Thursday for a hamburger today." It is as though Israel is asking God for Him to save them today and accepting an "I owe you" in return. They will start doing right at a later and more convenient time.

But God is a God of tough love. He was not going to save them until they turned back from their wicked ways, discontinue their love affair with the Canaanite gods and turn back to Him in full devotion. The sad reality is when we abandon God, we live a life compromised by evil. They will come a day when we will need Him. The God-principle and pattern we see demonstrated here is that even after we confess our sin to Him, and even after we begin the painful process of letting of the evil in our lives, we will live with its earthly consequences for a long time.

So they put away their foreign gods from among them: Only AFTER Israel confessed, demonstrated true repentance by getting rid of their foreign gods AND returning to proper worship of God did the LORD now look down upon His people in pity and respond. We cannot continue to wallow in the same sin whose consequence we want to be rescued from and expect God to act.

Do you think it was a simple matter for Israel to divest iteself of those foreign gods?
It would have created all sorts of serious societal problems and family divisions. Not every Israelite would have agreed to this plan of action. Not everyone would have approached this new path to the same degree or with the same enthusiasm. Not every person in a family would have been willing to change their theology. How do you supposed it went when a Hebrew man told his Canaanite business partner that he would no longer acknowledge his gods? What do you think happened when the Israelites who lived in the mostly mixed ethnic villages that formed the land of Canaan announced they would no longer participate in the celebrations to the god which were so much a part of their Canaanite friends' lives? Once we have wandered down the path of tolerance to evil, it is difficult to turn around and climb back up to holy ground. We will be accused or hypocrisy, intolerance, unkindness, ignorance and even heresy.   


5. (Judges 10:17-18) Israel gathers, but without a leader
Then the sons of Ammon were summoned and they camped in Gilead. And the sons of Israel gathered together and camped in Mizpah. The people, the leaders of Gilead, said to one another, "Who is the man who will begin to fight against the sons of Ammon? He shall become head over all the inhabitants of Gilead."

Then the sons of Ammon were summoned: Verse 17 changes course and describes two armies. One was Ammon's army who assembled in Gilead in the Trans-Jordan. The other army was Israel's which was more of a militia. They assembled at Mizpah on the west side of the Jordan River. The time for confrontation between Israel and its eastern oppressor was at hand. But something was missing. Israel did not have a field general.

Who is the man who will begin to fight against the sons of Ammon: Israel's chiefs sat in council trying to decide who would lead them into battle. They decided in order to get a military general capable of achieving victory, they would have to offer him something valuable. That something of value was that if this general succeeded, he would become the head over all the Israelites who lived in Gilead.

Notice these council chiefs did not have in mind a Judge, who would be raised up by God. A Judge ruled by divine guidance and not by human agreement. Second, Gilead was not an allotted tribal territory. In other words, Gilead was not one of the 12 well-defined districts which had been assigned by Moses and Joshua to one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Rather, this was a political region set up by men. These men who formed the military general search committee could use the term "head" or "chief" when describing the position which this candidate would assume (if he was victorious), but in reality they all knew this person would be a king.

Judges Chapter 10 Part One (Verses 1-6)

Introduction
As a preface to this short chapter, let me mention we probably should pause and study the Book of Ruth at this point. This is about the time in history when the story of Ruth occurs (although, it may have taken place as early as the end of Gideon's life). Ruth's adventures took place during the time of the Judges, before Samson came on to the scene. But for the sake of continuity, we are going to stay in the Book of Judges.

This week, we begin a three chapter series on the exploits of a fellow named Jephthah. But before we begin his story, we are introduced to two of the five "minor" Judges. They are called "minor" because almost nothing is recorded about them. Compared to the seven Judges who have reasonably extensive narratives explaining their actions and purposes, the other five Judges were not as important.

The five minor Judges lived before or even possibly during the same time as Jephthah. Jephthah's era of operation is towards the end of the four century period called the time of the Judges.

Hopefully, it is becoming clear to everyone that the time of the Judges was a time of transition. The transition I am referring to was from a time when Israel operated under a typical Middle Eastern tribal structure in which each tribe sought mainly to care for its own interests (the time immediately following Joshua) to the time when Israel would recognize their need for a king and thus would operate more like a nation-state. Transition periods within societies are invariably messy and uneasy times of turmoil and unrest. People instinctively feel a sense of instability and change.

Additionally, we see these various Judges we are studying operated only in specific regions of Canaan, with only some of the tribes involved in each case. Essentially, God was raising up Judges to deal with local problems with His people (which usually centered on idolatry and the oppression of a foreign government) and not problems which faced all 12 tribes equally or simultaneously. We also see the period of the Judges was one of Israel's steadily declining morality, values and faithfulness to God. It was a period when their dedication to follow God's commands was replaced by a dedication to follow some evolving mix of Torah, pagan religion practices, men's doctrines and then rationalizing them all to fit with whatever the current wants, needs and societal conditions dictated.

TWO MINOR JUDGES AND MORE OPPRESSION

A. Two "minor" Judges

1. (Judges 10:1-2) Tola
Now after Abimelech died, Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar, arose to save Israel; and he lived in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. He judged Israel twenty-three years. Then he died and was buried in Shamir.

Tola: Chapter ten begins by briefly introducing us to two of the five so-called "minor" judges. There is relatively little detail about either person. We are told Tola saved Israel, but that is about it. He ruled them for twenty-three years. He was from the tribe of Issachar; however, he lived in the hills of Ephraim. 

In other words, he did NOT live in the territory given by allotment to Issachar. This fits with the geopolitical map of those days in which Issachar only occupied a few cities and towns within their own territory. They moved into and shared places in their brother's territories. The reason for this is quite simple: The Canaanites who occupied their allotted land were too strong for them to dislodge.

Tola resided in the general area where Abimelech operated. When the text says he "arose to save Israel" could have something to do with dealing with the aftermath of the Abimelech debacle. But that is just my speculation.


2. (Judges 10:3-5) Jair
After him, Jair the Gileadite arose and judged Israel twenty-two years. He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys, and they had thirty cities in the land of Gilead that are called Havvoth-jair to this day. And Jair died and was buried in Kamon.

Jair: Jair is only identified as being from Gilead, and no family heritage is given. Some think he was from the tribe of Manasseh. However, this is only concluded because Gilead was in the area of the half tribe of Manasseh, on the eastern side of the Jordan River. We have to be very careful with these identities especially by this time in Israel's history. A lot of intermarriage among the Israelite tribes had taken place, and movement of families and whole clans from their allotted territory into another had also occurred. Being from Gilead could mean he was from the tribe of Gad, or simply that his family of whatever tribe was living in Gilead. Thus, he may have been more identified by where he lived than what tribe he belonged to. 

He had thirty sons: What we do know about Jair is that he came from a high social status. He judged the area for 22 years (one less than Tola before him). He held sway over 30 cities, each one governed by one of his thirty sons. If he had thirty sons, Jair most likely would have had at least as many daughters, meaning he had many wives. This also means he lived as royalty. This is further confirmed by the statement in which his thirty sons rode on thirty donkeys. Donkeys were highly esteemed as riding animals and often carried special recognition. Jair and his family would have been a well-known and large royal family. Although Jair was only a judge, he acted very much like a king.

The small mention of Jair and his royal lifestyle gives us every reason to believe he followed in the kingly lifestyle observed by Gideon and his sons. This was fully brought into play as overt royalty by Abimelech. This ought to help us see the significant change which occurred with Gideon, when he elevated himself into a status and lifestyle well beyond that of any Judge before him. This was prodded along by those who Gideon had delivered pleading with him to assume the role as their king. He refused to take on the title, but it is self-evident he accepted the trappings of royalty Jair therefore had a precedent and likely was also asked to be a king.

The first Trans-Jordan Judge
Jair was the first Judge to operate in the Trans-Jordan. There were fewer Hebrews on the east side of the river. They were generally more isolated from the Baal worship centers which were more concentrated in Canaan where the nine and a half tribes lived. Very probably, the two and a half tribes who took up residence on the east side of the Jordan River had considerably less temptation to fall into idolatry than their brothers on the west bank.

The mere fact Jair was raised up as a Judge indicates idolatry eventually came to the Trans-Jordanian Hebrews. We also know during Jair's time there was no oppression from a foreign enemy. The trouble which Jair dealt with was strictly "in-house". The Midianites had passed through this region; however, they did not stay or conquer it. 


B. Apostasy, servitude and supplication

1. (Judges 10:6) Israel's seven-fold apostasy
Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; thus they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him.

Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD: Verse six gives us a statement of the general conditions of ALL Israel, of all the 12 tribes, in the time time immediately following the death of the Judge Jair. The condition was one of national apostasy and the adopting of other gods. We have discussed at length what was occurring in the time of the Judges was syncretism, the melding of Canaanite pagan beliefs with the religion of the Hebrews. (Some scholars have taken to calling this the Canaanization of Israel.)

Straying from God little by little
Sometimes it is easy to forget how we arrived at a certain destination when there was never an intent to do so. That was Israel's situation. Almost immediately upon Joshua's death, Israel started to water down God's instructions to rid the land of Canaan of pagans and their gods. The LORD explicitly told Israel they were to drive out or kill all who were dedicated to the Mystery Babylon religions. Instead, Israel decided peace and brotherly love was a better course of action and that meant they should find ways to get along with these pagans. This also meant they had to show respect and tolerance for these gentiles' gods and customs.

It is interesting to note the wording the Bible uses to introduce each of the cycles of rebellion and apostasy which precipitated the need for a Judge was usually the same: "The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD." The key thing to note is it was evil from God's point of view. In other words, there was a disconnect between how the people of Israel viewed their moral and spiritual condition and how God viewed it.

I wonder if ever in mankind's history, a people or a nation ever viewed their own actions as evil? I wonder if Israel ever thought that what they were doing (while they were doing it) was wicked and ungodly? From their perspective, they were doing what was right and good. But all too often from God's perspective, they were doing wrong. Humans have an amazing capacity to deny and rationalize our bad behavior, or to even attribute to God things we do, even though He specifically prohibits them.

The way this happens is by slowly replacing or mixing God's Word with our own thoughts and opinions. If a lie is told often enough and loud enough, eventually it is taken as truth and few even challenge it. Once a tradition (Christian, Jewish or secular) is practiced long enough, how it came into being and what it actually symbolized and whether it is in harmony with God's will is no longer questioned. Those who might be so bold as to challenge established doctrines and customs are seen as troublemakers, people who are creating disunity and even heretics. So there is always great peer pressure in communities and congregations of people to keep quiet, put your brain in neutral and just go along with the flow. 

The endless list of gods Israel worshiped: From God's perspective, the main evil Israel was committing was worshiping other gods. We get a list of the names of the other gods they were worshiping. This is not a hierarchy of gods. Rather, it is a listing of names of the chief gods worshiped by some of the nations which were located in and around Canaan.

First, the people of Israel served the two main gods of Canaan, Baal and Ashoreth. Second, they severed the gods of neighboring nations including Hadoth, Baal, Moath and Anath (Syrian gods), the gods of Sidon, the gods of the Moabites (their main god being Chemosh), the gods of Ammon (Molech was their highest deity) and the gods of the Philistines (Baal and Dagon). This is not an exhaustive list; it is simply representative. Verse six is speaking about the overall condition of Israel. It is not as though an Israelite would worship all these gods. If the person lived among the Canaanites, he worshiped the Canaanite gods. If he lived in the north near Syria, he worshiped the Syrian god Moath. If he lived next to the Philistines, he would worship Dagon, etc.

They forsook the LORD and did not serve Him: We get another key statement in verse six which is easy to overlook. Israel abandoned God and did not serve Him. Do not get the idea that the Hebrews no longer worshiped the God of Israel. (If you would have accused them of this, they would have vehemently denied it.) In their misguided minds, they had in no way abandoned God. Most still celebrated Shabbat, observed the feasts, went to the Tabernacle at specific times, offered up burnt offerings and so on. Rather, the Israelites worshiped the God of Israel AND the gods of the local pagans as well. This dual worshiped seemed to make sense to them. The problem is, God makes it very clear that we cannot worship Him AND something else. Any kind of mixing of our worship amounts to abandoning Him in His eyes...and His perspective is the only one which really matters.

Judges Chapter 9 Part Seven (Verses 34-57)

4. (Judges 9:34-41) Abimelech defeats the rebellion of the men of Shechem, organized by Gaal
So Abimelech and all the people who were with him arose by night and lay in wait against Shechem in four companies. Now Gaal the son of Ebed went out and stood in the entrance of the city gate; and Abimelech and the people who were with him arose from the abush. When Gall saw the people, he said to Zebul, "Look, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains." But Zebual said to him, "You are seeing the shadow of the mountains as if they were men." Gaal spoke again and said, "Behold, people are coming down from the highest part of the land, and one company comes by way of the diviner's oak." Then Zebul said to him, "Where is your boasting now with which your said, 'Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?' Is this now the people whom you despised? Go out now and fight with them!" So Gaal went out before the leaders of Shechem and fought with Abimelech. Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him; and many fell wounded up to the entrance of the gate. Then Abimelech remained at Arumah, but Zebul drove out Gaal and his relatives so that they could not remain in Shechem.

Now Gaal the son of Ebed went out and stood in the entrance of the city gate: In the morning, Zebul and Gaal were standing inside the open city gate. They were both looking to see if Abimelech was anywhere to be seen. Obviously, Gaal did not know that Zebul had sent for Abimelech. When Gall sees Abimelech's men moving on the mountainside, with the morning light still dim and the shadows long, Zebul tries to convince Gall that he was just seeing things. This would give Abimelech's men more time to get closer to the city before they were discovered.

Where is your boasting now: When it was not possible to conceal the plan any longer, Zebul tunred and flings Gaal's boastful words right back into his face. Zebul turns the tables and provokes Gaal to leave the safety of the thick defensive walls of Shechem to go out and take on the man he had so little regard for.

Abimelech chased him: No details are given about the battle. We are only given the outcome. We know Abimelech gave chase, Gaal took flight and many fell wounded and strewn all along the way to the city gate. Abimelech returns back to Arumah. Zebul is left to drive out what few members of Gaal's gang remain inside Shechem.


5. (Judges 9:42-45) Abimelech attacks the citizens of Shechem and conquers the city
Now it came about the next day, that the people went out to the field, and it was told to Abimelech. So he took his people and divided them into three companies, and lay in wait in the field; when he looked and saw the people coming out from the city, he arose against them and slew them. Then Abimelech and the company who was with him dashed forward and stood in the entrance of the city gates; the other two companies then dashed against all who were in the field and slew them. Abimelech fought against the city all that day, and he captured the city and klilled the people who were in it; then he razed the city and sowed it with salt.

Now it came about the next day: With Gaal now banished from Shechem, Abimelech could do almost anything he pleased in bringing full destruction to those who rebelled against him. The morning after the last of Gaal's men were expelled, the regular townsfolk of Shechem went out the cuty gates to tend their fields. They figured the fighting was over. It was time to get back to normal life. However, this was wrong. Abimelech and his men were laying wait to take revenge. As soon as the Shechemites were in the fields and deep into their hoeing, pruning and harvesting, then the attack would come.

So he took his people and divided them into three companies: Abimelech used the rather standard battle tactic of dividing his men into three groups. (This same technique was used by his father Gideon to defeat the Midianites.) The one company he led which immediately headed to the city gates where he secured the entrance to the city. By doing this, the townsfolk, out in the field, had no where to run. They were slaughtered in the fields by the other two companies of men. When this act was completed, Abimelech led his troops inside the city to begin destruction there.

Abimelech fought against the city all that day: The text says the fighting and destruction went on all day. Abimelech effected a rather senseless slaughter of all the inhabitants of Shechem, destroyed the buildings and sowed the land with salt. Sowing the land with salk is not lliteral, although it may have been ceremonial. It simply means that the land and the city became a wasteland and was unusable.

6. (Judges 9:46-49) The massacre at the tower of Shechem
When all the leaders of the tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered the inner chamber of the temple of El-berith. It was told Abimelech that all the leaders of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. So Abimelech went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people who were with him; and Abimelech took an axe in his hand and cut down a branch from the trees, and lifted it and laid it on his shoulder. Then he said to the people who were with him, :What you have seen me do, hurry and do likewise." All the people also cut down each one his branch and followed Abimelech, and put them in the inner chamber and set the inner chamber on fire over those inside, so that all the men of the tower of Shechem also died, about a thousand men and women.

When all the leaders of the tower of Shechem heard of it: Now as it happens in an aristocracy, while to common folks were fighting and dying, the upper class (who lived in another area of the city) made a mad dash to a place for their special protection. They fled from their normal quarters insde the city to the fortess-temple of their called called El-berith, meaning covenant with El. El was the Canaanit word for "highest god". It was usually considered to be above Baal. While the move from inside the city was obviously because the lords of Shechem and their families felt the temple-fortress was the strongest building available to protect them. However, without a doubt, the main reason they went there was in hopes that their god, El, would protec tthem.

It was told Abimelech that all the leaders of the tower of Shechem were gathered together: When Abimelech heard about the movements of the town's leadership, he took counter measures. He led his men to a nearby hill which had a dense growth of fir tress. he and his men chopped off branches, brought them to the temple-tower now oacked with the upper crust of Shechem, laid the branchs against it and then light them on fire. The greenness of the branches would have made for a horrible smoking while it burned through the wooden door and wooden roof which were standard for that time. Thus, many were killed as they sat huddled together. Over 1000 men and women were killed at the base of El's temple.


7. (Judges 9:50-55) God's judgment on Abimelech
Then Abimelech went to Thebez, and he camped against Thebez and captured it. But there was a strong tower in the center of the city, and all the men and women with all the leaders of the city fled there and shut themselves in; and they went up on the roof of the tower. So Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it, and approached the entrance of the tower to burn it with fire. But a certain woman threw an upper millstone on Abimelech's head, crushing his skull. Then he called quickly to the young man, his armor bearer, and said to him, "Draw your sword and kill me, so that it will not be said of me, 'A woman slew him.'" So the young man pierced him through, and he died. When the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, each departed to his home.

Then Abimelech went to Thebez: With the central city of Shechem now in ruins, Abimelech moved against the neighboring coty of Thebez. This city was about nine northeast of Shechem. Thebez had apparently acted in sympathy with Shechem. The central part of Thebez was taken rapidly. Many of the people, not just the aristocracy, fled to the refuge of what is called a fortified tower.

Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it: Never one to waste a successful tactic, Abimelech used fire to force those who took refuge in the tower to come out or die by smoke and fire. But, this time, there was a different result. Abimelech approached the side of the tower to take hateful revenge by personally setting the branches against it which were lit on fire, a woman in the roof flung an upper millstone over the edge, striking Abimelech on his head and crushing his skull.

An upper millstone: An upper millstone was around 15 inches in diameter and about 3-4 inches thick. It would have weighed around 20 pounds. It must have struck at a glancing blow because if it would have hit Abimelech's head bluntly, he would have died instantly. However, Abimelech was aware enough to know it was a woman who threw the stone. He asks his armor bearer to run him through so that he would not suffer what was seen as the humiliation of being killed by a woman in battle.

8. (Judges 9:56-57) Summation: The certainty of God's judgments
Thus God repaid the wickedness of Abimelech, which he had done to his father in killing his seventy brothers. Also God returned all the wickedness of the men of Shechem on their heads, and the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal came upon them.

Verse 56 and 57 explains God pays back those for whom judgment is due. Perhaps, we as Believers, are not to pay back, but God does. God repaid Abimelech and the men of Shechem for all the wrong they had done. If God does not pay back, then His justice system is a farce. What is justice if there is no punishment for a crime. 

Paul brings up this exact principle in Galatians chapter 6:
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. (Galatians 6:7)

God's law of retribution will not be foiled. It may not happen in this world, but it will occur in the next.