The Book of Judges

Jdg 11:1 Now Jeph´-thah the Gil´-e-ad-ite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gil´-ead begat Jeph´-thah.

Jdg 11:2 And Gil´-e-ad’s wife bare him sons; and his wife’s sons grew up, and they thrust out Jeph´-thah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father’s house; for thou art the son of a strange woman.

Jdg 11:3 Then Jeph´-thah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jeph´-thah, and went out with him.

Jdg 11:4 And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.

Jdg 11:5 And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gil´-e-ad went to fetch Jeph´-thah out of the land of Tob:

Jdg 11:6 And they said unto Jeph´-thah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.

Jdg 11:7 And Jeph´-thah said unto the elders of Gil´-e-ad, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father’s house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?

Jdg 11:8 And the elders of Gil´-e-ad said unto Jeph´-thah, 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 Gil´-e-ad.

Jdg 11:9 And Jeph´-thah said unto the elders of Gil´-e-ad, 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?

Jdg 11:10 And the elders of Gil´-e-ad said unto Jeph´-thah, The Lord be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words.

Jdg 11:11 Then Jeph´-thah went with the elders of Gil´-e-ad, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jeph´-thah uttered all his words before the Lord in Miz´-peh.

Jdg 11:12 And Jeph´-thah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land?

Jdg 11:13 And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jeph´-thah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jab´-bok, and unto Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably.

Jdg 11:14 And Jeph´-thah sent messengers again unto the king of the children of Ammon:

Jdg 11:15 And said unto him, Thus saith Jeph´-thah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:

Jdg 11:16 But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness unto the Red sea, and came to Ka´-desh;

Jdg 11:17 Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of E´-dom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land: but the king of E´-dom would not hearken thereto. And in like manner they sent unto the king of Moab: but he would not consent: and Israel abode in Ka´-desh.

Jdg 11:18 Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of E´-dom, 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.

Jdg 11:19 And Israel sent messengers unto Si´-hon king of the Am´-or-ites, the king of Hesh´-bon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my place.

Jdg 11:20 But Si´-hon trusted not Israel to pass through his coast: but Si´-hon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Ja´-haz, and fought against Israel.

Jdg 11:21 And the Lord God of Israel delivered Si´-hon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Am´-or-ites, the inhabitants of that country.

Jdg 11:22 And they possessed all the coasts of the Am´-or-ites, from Arnon even unto Jab´-bok, and from the wilderness even unto Jordan.

Jdg 11:23 So now the Lord God of Israel hath dispossessed the Am´-or-ites from before His people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it?

Jdg 11:24 Wilt not thou possess that which Che´-mosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the Lord our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.

Jdg 11:25 And now art thou any thing better than Ba´-lak the son of Zip´por, king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them,

Jdg 11:26 While Israel dwelt in Hesh´-bon and her towns, and in Ar´-o-er and her towns, and in all the cities that be along by the coasts of Arnon, three hundred years? why therefore did ye not recover them within that time?

Jdg 11:27 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.

Jdg 11:28 Howbeit the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jeph´-thah which he sent him.

Jdg 11:29 Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jeph´-thah, and he passed over Gil´-e-ad, and Ma-nas´-seh, and passed over Miz´-peh of Gil´-e-ad, and from Miz´-peh of Gil´-e-ad he passed over unto the children of Ammon.

Jdg 11:30 And Jeph´-thah vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said, If Thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands,

Jdg 11:31 Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth 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 up for a burnt offering.

Jdg 11:32 So Jeph´-thah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them into his hands.

Jdg 11:33 And he smote them from Ar´-oer, even till thou come to Min´-nith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.

Jdg 11:34 And Jeph´-thah came to Miz´peh unto 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.

Jdg 11:35 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 unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.

Jdg 11:36 And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto 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 thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.

Jdg 11:37 And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows.

Jdg 11:38 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.

Jdg 11:39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel,

Jdg 11:40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jeph´-thah the Gil´-e-ad-ite four days in a year.