Judges 12:5 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites. And when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said, "Let me go over," the men of Gilead said to him, "Are you an Ephraimite?" When he said, "No,"

NIV: The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a survivor of Ephraim said, "Let me cross over," the men of Gilead asked him, "Are you an Ephraimite?" If he replied, "No,"

NASB: And the Gileadites took control of the crossing places of the Jordan opposite Ephraim. And it happened whenever any of the survivors of Ephraim said, 'Let me cross over,' that the men of Gilead would say to him, 'Are you an Ephraimite?' If he said, 'No,'

CSB: The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim. Whenever a fugitive from Ephraim said, "Let me cross over," the Gileadites asked him, "Are you an Ephraimite?" If he answered, "No,"

NLT: Jephthah captured the shallow crossings of the Jordan River, and whenever a fugitive from Ephraim tried to go back across, the men of Gilead would challenge him. 'Are you a member of the tribe of Ephraim?' they would ask. If the man said, 'No, I’m not,'

KJV: And the Gileadites took the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites: and it was so, that when those Ephraimites which were escaped said, Let me go over; that the men of Gilead said unto him, Art thou an Ephraimite? If he said, Nay;

NKJV: The Gileadites seized the fords of the Jordan before the Ephraimites arrived. And when any Ephraimite who escaped said, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead would say to him, “ Are you an Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,”

The exact reasons for this conflict between the men of Ephraim and the people of Gilead are hard to understand. Jephthah led Gilead to defeat the Ammonites (Judges 11:32–33). After the battle, armed Ephraimites marched into Gilead territory and began making threats and accusations (Judges 12:1–4). They might have been angry they were not called sooner to the war—though they had ample time to help (Judges 10:17–18; 11:4)—but are more likely looking to capture territory. Regardless of motives, it quickly becomes clear that Ephraim greatly miscalculated their chances of winning.

Jephthah takes the threat from Ephraim seriously enough to gather his Gilead fighters and attack the invading forces. Gilead strikes Ephraim hard and completely subdues them. Then Gilead's fighters take control of the fords of the Jordan River (Judges 3:28) over which the men of Ephraim could have escaped back into their own territory. As the scattered Ephraimite soldiers arrive at the fords to retreat, the men of Gilead kill the trespasser one-by-one rather than letting them go. They even devise a test to know if a man is from Ephraim or from Gilead (Judges 12:6).

Judges 12:1–7 introduces a new and unexpected conflict in Gilead. The men of the tribe of Ephraim cross the Jordan River armed for war. They demand to know why they were not included in the fight against the Ammonites. They threaten to kill Jephthah and insult the people of Gilead as "fugitives from Ephraim." Their approach implies they have come to defeat the Gileadites and take their land. Jephthah and his army strike and defeat the invaders. They cut off their escape at the fords of the Jordan, a civil war resulting in much bloodshed. Jephthah's tenure as judge ends after a relatively short six years.

Jephthah's controversial term as judge continues. The men of Ephraim arrive, armed for war and demanding to know why they weren't invited to fight against the Ammonites. They insult Gilead and threaten Jephthah. Jephthah's army defeats them and cuts off their escape back to Ephraim. A tragic number of Ephraimites are killed in the civil war between the two peoples of Israel. Jephthah dies and is followed by three lesser-known judges: Ibzan of Bethlehem, Elon the Zebulunite, and Abdon of Pirathon.

Judges 12 follows Jephthah's terrible task of fulfilling his foolish vow, which costs him his only child. Now he faces an unexpected confrontation from the men of Ephraim. They cross over the Jordan from the west, threatening to kill Jephthah for not including them in the fight against the Ammonites and taunting the people of Gilead. Jephthah defeats the men of Ephraim, killing many in a civil war. Jephthah is followed as judge by Ibzan of Bethlehem, Elon the Zebulunite, and Abdon of Pirathon. This leads to the introduction of another infamous biblical figure: Samson.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).