Jephthah Delivers Israel 1 WBS Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah. BSB BSB: Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father.
2 WBS And Gilead's wife bore him sons; and his wife's sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said to him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of a strange woman. BSB BSB: And Gilead’s wife bore him sons who grew up, drove Jephthah out, and said to him, “You shall have no inheritance in our father’s house, because you are the son of another woman.”
3 WBS Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and they went out with him. BSB BSB: So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where worthless men gathered around him and traveled with him.
4 WBS And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel. BSB BSB: Some time later, when the Ammonites fought against Israel
5 WBS And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah out of the land of Tob: BSB BSB: and made war with them, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob.
6 WBS And they said to Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon. BSB BSB: “Come,” they said, “be our commander, so that we can fight against the Ammonites.”
7 WBS And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, Did ye not hate me, and expel me from my father's house; and why have ye come to me now when ye are in distress? BSB BSB: Jephthah replied to the elders of Gilead, “Did you not hate me and expel me from my father’s house? Why then have you come to me now, when you are in distress?”
8 WBS And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. BSB BSB: They answered Jephthah, “This is why we now turn to you, that you may go with us, fight the Ammonites, and become leader over all of us who live in Gilead.”
9 WBS And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, shall I be your head? BSB BSB: But Jephthah asked them, “If you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the LORD gives them to me, will I really be your leader?”
10 WBS And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, The LORD be a witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words. BSB BSB: And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The LORD is our witness if we do not do as you say.”
11 WBS Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh. BSB BSB: So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their leader and commander. And Jephthah repeated all his terms in the presence of the LORD at Mizpah.
12 WBS And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou hast come against me to fight in my land? BSB BSB: Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, saying, “What do you have against me that you have come to fight against my land?”
13 WBS And the king of the children of Ammon answered to the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came out of Egypt, from Arnon even to Jabbok, and to Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably. BSB BSB: The king of the Ammonites answered Jephthah’s messengers, “When Israel came up out of Egypt, they seized my land, from the Arnon to the Jabbok and all the way to the Jordan. Now, therefore, restore it peaceably.”
14 WBS And Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the children of Ammon: BSB BSB: Jephthah again sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites
15 WBS And said to him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon: BSB BSB: to tell him, “This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or of the Ammonites.
16 WBS But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness to the Red sea, and came to Kadesh; BSB BSB: But when Israel came up out of Egypt, they traveled through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh.
17 WBS Then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land: but the king of Edom would not hearken to it . And in like manner they sent to the king of Moab; but he would not consent . And Israel abode in Kadesh. BSB BSB: 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. They also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel stayed in Kadesh.
18 WBS Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, but came not within the border of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab. BSB BSB: Then Israel traveled through the wilderness and bypassed the lands of Edom and Moab. They came to the east side of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon. But they did not enter the territory of Moab, since the Arnon was its border.
19 WBS And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land to my place. BSB BSB: And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him, ‘Please let us pass through your land into our own place.’
20 WBS But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his border: but Sihon collected all his people, and encamped in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. BSB BSB: But Sihon would not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So he gathered all his people, encamped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel.
21 WBS And the LORD God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. BSB BSB: Then the LORD, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, who defeated them. So Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites who inhabited that country,
22 WBS And they possessed all the borders of the Amorites, from Arnon even to Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to Jordan. BSB BSB: seizing all the land from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the wilderness to the Jordan.
23 WBS So now the LORD God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldst thou possess it? BSB BSB: Now since the LORD, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before His people Israel, should you now possess it?
24 WBS Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the LORD our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess. BSB BSB: Do you not possess whatever your god Chemosh grants you? So also, we possess whatever the LORD our God has granted us.
25 WBS And now art thou any thing better than Balak the son of Zippor king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them, BSB BSB: Are you now so much better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel or fight against them?
26 WBS While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and her towns, and in Aroer and her towns, and in all the cities that are along by the borders of Arnon, three hundred years? why therefore did ye not recover them within that time? BSB BSB: For three hundred years Israel has lived in Heshbon, Aroer, and their villages, as well as all the cities along the banks of the Arnon. Why did you not take them back during that time?
27 WBS Wherefore I have not sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me: the LORD the Judge be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon. BSB BSB: I have not sinned against you, but you have done me wrong by waging war against me. May the LORD, the Judge, decide today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.”
28 WBS But, the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not to the words of Jephthah which he sent him. BSB BSB: But the king of the Ammonites paid no heed to the message Jephthah sent him.
Jephthah’s Tragic Vow 31 WBS Then it shall be, that whatever cometh out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD'S, and I will offer it for a burnt-offering. BSB BSB: then whatever comes out the door of my house to greet me on my triumphant return from the Ammonites will belong to the LORD, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”
32 WBS So Jephthah passed over to the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hands. BSB BSB: So Jephthah crossed over to the Ammonites to fight against them, and the LORD delivered them into his hand.
33 WBS And he smote them from Aroer even till thou comest to Minnith, even twenty cities, and to the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel. BSB BSB: With a great blow he devastated twenty cities from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel-keramim. So the Ammonites were subdued before the Israelites.
34 WBS And Jephthah came to Mizpeh to his house, and behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. BSB BSB: And when Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, there was his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child; he had no son or daughter besides her.
35 WBS And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot go back. BSB BSB: As soon as Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have brought me to my knees! You have brought great misery upon me, for I have given my word to the LORD and cannot take it back.”
36 WBS And she said to him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth to the LORD, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thy enemies, even of the children of Ammon. BSB BSB: “My father,” she replied, “you have given your word to the LORD. Do to me as you have said, for the LORD has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites.”
38 WBS And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains. BSB BSB: “Go,” he said. And he sent her away for two months. So she left with her friends and mourned her virginity upon the mountains.
40 WBS That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.BSB BSB: that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
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