A Promising Start-Judges 11:1-28

The season that we are currently in has a funny way of keeping people humble. Everyone who is honest with themselves knows that the problems our world and country face with the pandemic what it is, economy what it is, politics what they are, and other pressures that exist are beyond any single person’s pay grade to solve. Over the last several months we have come face-to-face with the realization that we cannot guarantee our own victory in any number of things (in all things). Add to this what we know about ourselves and those personal struggles, idiosyncrasies, past experiences, and the chapters of our lives that we choose not to read aloud, and it is any wonder that we ever grow haughty, prideful, and self-sufficient, believing that we can conquer this world and all the things therein in our own strength. In Judges 11 we are introduced to a new deliverer—Jephthah. His introduction and installation in Israel teaches readers how they can remain dependent on the Lord to do what only he can do when/if they are tempted to do things by themselves.

a. A Truly Humble Beginning-11:1-3

When we last left Israel, they were searching for their next deliverer to help save them from a new and frightening set of oppressors—the sons of Ammon and the Philistines. We were left dangling by the cliff-hanger of 10:18 which asked “Who is next?” and in verse 1 of chapter 11 we find quick relief with the introduction of Jephthah—“Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior,…” (11:1a). What we learn of Jephthah upon his introduction is given to us by means of three descriptors in this verse—his name, his heritage, and his character. First, “Jephthah” means “god has opened” indicating, perhaps, his mom’s great joy in being able to conceive and bear this son. Second, “the Gileadite” reveals what family and region Jephthah calls home. Later we will learn that Jephthah is a bona fide Gileadite with a noble father who bears the same name as his people. Third, “a valiant warrior” tells us something of his character. The story in the remainder of chapter 11 will portray Jephthah as a “resourceful warrior, one without any hint of timidity” (Block, Judges, Ruth, 352). This quick introduction immediately establishes Jephthah as the next deliverer in Israel.

However, as with many of the other deliverers, Jephthah is far from perfect (at least by ancient standards). The text indicates this with the conjunction “but” that introduces the second half of verse 1—“but he was the son of a harlot. And Gilead was the father of Jephthah” (11:1b). Sure Jephthah may have had a noble father and all of the blessings appertaining thereunto, but his mom was, as the Bible describes her, a harlot. God was highly intolerant of any sexual relations outside the bonds of marriage, including those with professional prostitutes. What is worse, some have suggested that Jephthah’s mom was not just a harlot but a Canaanite harlot at that! In this way Jephthah takes his place among flawed people called upon to lead Israel. Ehud was left-handed, Barak was hesitant, Gideon was a coward, Abimelech was the son of a concubine, and Jephthah too is illegitimately born into a noble family.  

Jephtah’s precarious birth later comes back to haunt him. Jephthah’s mom and questions of his illegitimacy is eventually used as cover to shun him out of the family—“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,’…” (11:2). While on the surface the issue seems to be that Jephthah is a not a full sibling to these other children, the text makes it clear that it was the inheritance that motivated this expulsion from the family (it is always about the money). “Whether Jephthah, as the firstborn, had rights to a double portion, or whether they were divided equally…elimination of one party would increase the shares of the others” (Walton, Matthews, and Chavalas, IVPBBC, 267).

“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…” (11:3). While readers might be driven to sympathy for this would-be deliverer given the ill-treatment of his brothers and his humble beginnings, one cannot help but draw parallels between Jephthah and Abimelech (and we all remember how unsympathetic a character he was earlier). Neither man was a full-fledged son and both gathered around themselves “lawless men”/”worthless fellows” (see 9:4). Yikes, is this cycle going to go the way of Abimelech (bloody, corrupt, etc.)?

With the introduction of this new deliverer out of the way, the story continues in verse 4.

b. A Very Peculiar Calling-11:4-11

“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;…” (11:4-5). We return in verse 4 to the struggle between Israel and her oppressors and Israel’s search for relief from the mounting pressure. Due to the size of the threat and the growing need for “all hands on deck,” The brothers who once shunned Jephthah into obscurity now call out to him for help.

However, more than just calling for help, they call him to be their leader-“Come and be our chief that we may fight against the sons of Ammon” (11:6). This is curious for several reasons. Why would Jephthah’s family who once drove him out of town now want him to be their leader? Is it because he, in their minds, is expendable and they would rather him be the target for the arrows of Ammon? Or is it because Jephthah had already developed a reputation for skill in battle and effectiveness in leading campaigns alongside his band of worthless men? Regardless of why he is called to lead so quickly, Jephthah is going to milk this request for everything it is worth.

“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?’…” (11:7). Jephthah seizes the irony of the situation by asking them why having sentenced him to a life of perpetual distress, should he now come to them when they were in trouble (Block, Judges, Ruth, 355). Jephthah finds himself in a relatively powerful position, holding all the proverbial cards. The last thing that he wants is to be used by the very family that shunned him earlier. Apparently Jephthah perceives that the elders are trying to acquire Jephthah’s services at the lowest possible price. Dragging things out here might get his half-brothers to offer him more in return for his services (Chisholm, Judges and Ruth, 346).

“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.’…” (11:8). In this response to Jephthah’s inquiry, the elders state that regardless of what has occurred, they have returned to him and are prepared to make it worth his while if he decides to join forces with them against the sons of Ammon. They offer Jephthah the presidency over all the residents of Gilead if he will come and help bring the victory over this new threat.

Despite this offer, Jephthah is not going to let them off that easy, he continues to drag them along in verse 9—“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?’…” (11:9). Paraphrase: “you mean, you will make me king? Little ol me? Really?”

“The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, ‘The Lord is witness between us; surely we will do as you have said.’…” (11:10). Paraphrase: “Yes, we promise.” Jephthah has successfully manipulated them into offering him the rulership of his people. Satisfied that his demands have been met for his services, he agrees to help. “…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…” (11:10). Thankfully, the reader can breathe a sigh of relief. Jephthah is not the same person as Abimelech before him (though there are some similarities). Unlike Abimelech who came to power through murder and whose campaign was financed by money from a pagan treasury, Jephthah did not actively pursue leadership (at least initially), does not resort to violence, and appears to be a worshiper of the Lord (Chisholm, Judges and Ruth, 347).

c. A Tired Old Dispute-11:12-26

Now that Jephthah’s leadership has been established, he must confront the new threat facing Israel. This Jephthah does in verses 12-13 and in so doing arrives at the underlining reasons for this conflict—“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 against 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.’…” (11:12-13). The issue between these two parties is land. The Ammonites believed that their jurisdiction had been invaded by those God led out of Egypt and they would like these escaped slaves to leave the premises.

Obviously there has been some confusion and Jephthah races to clear it up—“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 also sent 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 Jabbok, 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 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?...” (11:14-26). Amid all the technicalities and history that Jephthah reports there are three takeaways that the reader needs to learn from this defense. 1) In many cases, Israel sought to pass through territories, not take them over and it was only when safe passage was not granted that God gave the land into their hands. 2) The land currently in dispute was taken from the Amorites, not the Ammonites. So why are the Ammonites laying claim to it now that Israel possesses it? If they have a problem with anyone, it would be with the Amorites not Israel. 3) Israel has taken over other regions without problems with neighbors, why is this different? Jephthah determines to keep what the Lord has given to Israel and suggests that the sons of Ammon had their chance to right wrongs in the past but they had missed their opportunity. Now was not the time to pick a fight with God’s people.  

d. A Firm Resolution-11:27-28

Jephthah puts it even more simply as his firm resolution is made in verses 27-28. The first element of this resolution is a concluding indictment against God’s enemies—“I therefore have not sinned against you, but you are doing me wrong by making war against me;…” (11:27a). Here Jephthah concludes his speech with a declaration of his personal innocence and a direct accusation of wrongdoing on the part of the Ammonites for their military aggression against Israel (Block, Judges, Ruth, 363).

Immediately following this indictment is Jephthah’s commitment to let God ultimately take care of the matter in question—“may the Lord, the Judge, judge today between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon’” (11:27b). This is a rare but important acknowledgement of God’s ultimately authority and power in Judges. While in other episodes that we have examined in the book people have grown self-absorbed and self-confident in the midst of conflict, here, at the beginning of this chapter, Jephthah acknowledges that this is ultimately God’s fight for God’s people and God will see them through by judging the Ammonites accordingly. Jephthah is confident in his cause because his confidence lies not in himself, but in his God. this is a lesson that we must all learn from today as we navigate the struggles and difficulties we may come across.

But before we talk about how this all applies to us in appropriate ways, it is important that we at least mention the response of the Ammonites to Jephthah’s case—“But the king of the sons of Ammon disregarded the message which Jephthah sent him,…” (11:28). While Jephthah would have liked to handle this dispute with words and not rush to the battlefield, this response on the part of the sons of Ammon makes military conflict inevitable.

So What?

Regardless of whether Jephthah will maintain this posture of reliance on the Lord and commitment to him moving forward remains to be seen. However, this posture of trusting the Lord with all things and refraining from dependence on oneself is one that all God’s people should assume, regardless of what threats they come up against. Though our world of self-reliance and self-sufficiency would have us believe that “we can do it!” no matter what, the Bible unapologetically reveals that we cannot fight the battles we come against well and reach the victory on the other side in and through our own power. Jephthah realized this early in his tenure as judge. While he was called to serve as judge, God was the ultimate judge in the situation.  Similarly, while the Lord might call us to be agents of change, witness, leadership, and light, only God can provide the transformation, supply the truth, serve as sovereign Lord, and provide the light its source. Maintaining this perspective requires that we remember from whence we came. I imagine that Jephthah’s humble beginnings and early issues with his brothers went a long way in reminding him of his dependency on the Lord to ultimately fight his battles for him (at least here). Similarly, before God called us into his service we were completely flawed and scarred. Remembering this keeps us from believing our own press and helps us return to God all the glory for what he does in and through us and in and through his church.