Judges 11:15 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and said to him, “Thus says Jephthah: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites,

NIV: saying: 'This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites.

NASB: and they said to him, 'This is what Jephthah says: ‘Israel did not take the land of Moab nor the land of the sons of Ammon.

CSB: to tell him, "This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites.

NLT: 'This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not steal any land from Moab or Ammon.

KJV: And said unto him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:

NKJV: and said to him, “Thus says Jephthah: ‘Israel did not take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the people of Ammon;

The king of Ammon has replied to a message from Jephthah, asking why the Ammonites are preparing to attack Gilead (Judges 11:12–14). According to the king, the land originally belonged to the Ammonites. He suggests it was taken by Israel after the Israelites came up out of Egypt over 300 years earlier (Exodus 12:50–51).

Jephthah has now sent another group of envoys to Ammon with a detailed response. He intends to show that the king is factually wrong about his claim. This verse contains Jephthah's opening statement, supported with several arguments over the following verses. This history lesson starts with a clear and concise statement: Israel did no such thing.

At the time of this discussion, Moab possessed a region east of the Dead Sea to the south of Gilead.

Judges 11:12–28 is Jephthah's attempt to negotiate with the Ammonites. He exchanges messages with the king of Ammon, asking the reason for this war on their land. Jephthah corrects the king's response that Israel wrongly took the land from them during the time of Moses. He offers several forms of rebuttal. Jephthah notes that Ammon was never in control of Gilead. Instead, the Amorites attacked Israel and God have his people victory. Greater kings have not attempted to take the region away; it had not been disputed for centuries. However, the Ammonite king will not listen.

A man named Jephthah is driven away from his home in Gilead by jealous brothers. He settles in Tob, where he becomes warrior chief of a criminal band. Gilead's elders later recruit Jephthah to lead the fight against their Ammonite oppressors. After a failed negotiation attempt, Jephthah vows to make a burnt offering to the Lord of whatever comes to meet him if God gives him victory over the Ammonites. Israel thoroughly defeats Ammon, and Jephthah's daughter, his only child, greets him. Jephthah carries out his vow after his daughter grieves never marrying or having children.

Judges 11 answers the question raised at the end of the previous chapter: who could lead Gilead's fight against the Ammonites? The elders recruit Jephthah, a warrior driven away by his family in Gilead. Jephthah agrees to return and is appointed leader of Gilead. Jephthah raises an army and makes a foolish vow to the Lord in exchange for victory. Israel defeats Ammon, but Jephthah's vow costs him his only child, his daughter. His victory also creates civil strife in Israel, leading to a minor civil war.

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).

Accessed 5/6/2024 11:07:12 AM