We’re going to continue studying the women that appear in the book of Judges. Today, we’re going to talk about a young woman whose name doesn’t appear in the Bible. We don’t know her name, but we know her actions. It’s important that we remember that what matters is what we do. The influence we have in our families, communities, churches, workplaces, etc. doesn’t necessarily mean we will be remembered by our names. This is a sad story to be sure. The people of Israel had sinned in the eyes of God. We find this story in chapter 11 in the book of Judges.

“Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his mother was a prostitute” (v. 1). We see in the previous chapters that he people of Israel had turned away from the Lord’s path many times, and they fell into the hands of their enemies. Being captured, they worshipped foreign idols, but the Lord helped them each time they cried out and asked for forgiveness. He raised up judges, leaders, in order to free them. There had been Deborah, who we previously studied, but this story took place approximately 100 years later. They abandoned Him and didn’t serve Him.

Jephthah was the son of a prostitute. At this time, the people would have dozens of children from different women, and this always caused conflict. “Gilead’s wife also bore him sons, and when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. ‘You are not going to get any inheritance in our family,’ they sad, ‘because you are the son of another woman.’ So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where a gang of scoundrels gathered around him and followed him” (v. 2-3). Gilead’s sons threw Jephthah out of the house, because he was from a different woman.

The Ammonites were at war with the Israelites, and the Israelites couldn’t defeat them. The elders of Gilead sought after

“Some time later, when the Ammonites were fighting against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. ‘Come,’ they said, ‘be our commander, so we can fight the Ammonties.’ Jephthah said to them, ‘Didn’t you hate me and drive me from my father’s house? Why do you come to me now, when you’re in trouble?’ The elders of Gilead said to him, ‘Nevertheless, we are turning to you now; come with us to fight the Ammonites, and you will be head over all of us who live in Gilead.’ Jephthah answered, ‘Supposed you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me – will I really be your head?’ The elders of Gilead replied, ‘The Lord is our witness; we will certainly do as you say'” (v. 4-10). So Jephthah went and became leader.

It says in verse 29, “Then the Spirit of the Lord came to Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites.” 

Then he made a strange promise that I’m sure went against the Lord’s ways. “And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord: ‘If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering'” (v. 30-31).

What does this promise imply? It implies a human sacrifice. If it were an animal, the sacrifice would be fine, but he ran the risk of it being human. They went to war and the Lord handed the Ammonites over to the Israelites.

“When Jephthah returned to his home in Mispah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of timbrels! She was an only child. Except for her, he had neither son nor daughter” (v. 34). What came out of his door on his triumphant return was his only child, his daughter.

“When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, ‘Oh now, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break'” (v. 35). A vow to the Lord is something you have to complete; it’s a promise. But not when it’s something that doesn’t bring joy to the Lord. God had said in several places in Leviticus that human sacrifices were not okay – He didn’t accept them. This was a custom that the foreigners around the Israelites did. They would offer sacrifices to their idols. But God isn’t. another idol, He’s the Lord of all the earth. What God wants is the hearts and lives of people in the sense that we live according to His will. God promotes life and all actions that have to do with healthy living. He was never in agreement with human sacrifices.

But Jephthah made this vow pressured by foreign religions. He thought he was doing what was good and right. He didn’t truly know God, and the daughter, whose name we don’t know, says, “‘My father,’ she replied, ‘you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me just as you promised, now that the Lord has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites'” (v. 36).

She believed that it was right and that God would be happy with this sacrifice. She agreed to help her father complete his vow. “‘But grant me this one request,’ she said. ‘Give me two months to roam the hills and weeks with my friends, because I will never marry'” (v. 37). During this time, a girl who didn’t have children was a disgrace and brought dishonor on her family. She wouldn’t be able to have kids and her life was to be cut short for a crazy practice, one that wasn’t correct in God’s eyes.

The story ends with, “After the two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin” (v. 39). The passage doesn’t judge the actions of Jephthah, just relates them. Now that we know the grace of the Lord He gave by sacrificing His only son – we know this was the ultimate sacrifice.

We learn and remember that we don’t have to (and shouldn’t) perform human sacrifices to please the Lord. And when we make promises, we need to take into account if it involves another person. We can’t say, “if this happens or this miracle occurs, then my son or daughter will be xyz.” We can only make promises for ourselves. We need to comply with the word of the Lord, walk in His ways, and ensure that our families and whoever else we have contact with would know the word of God.

This story of Jephthah’s daughter helps us to reflect on being the best daughters and sons to our Heavenly Father, so we may be a blessing to our families, which includes being submissive to His will.

Thank you brothers and sisters, and may God bless you. We hope you join us for another segment of our Women in the Bible series.