And it's Monday again...

I think that because my Sundays have been so busy I need to set a reminder that I need to share the week's Sermon Sunday post. Or one of ya'll need to message me if it hasn't been posted by 8pm on each Sunday! Accountability is one thing I am not afraid of! So, without further delay...

So far we have looked at the lives of some of Israel’s judges—Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, and then we looked at Gideon’s son Abimelech, a man who tried to force a position and his brother who escaped his attempt to destroy him. There are two judges who are just briefly mentioned with no real details of their lives—Tola and Jair.

This brings us to chapter 11 and Jephthah.

Judges 11:1 Jephthah the Gileadite was a valiant warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father.2 Gilead’s wife bore him sons, and when they grew up, they drove Jephthah out and said to him, “You will have no inheritance in our father’s family, because you are the son of another woman.” 3 So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob. Then some worthless men joined Jephthah and went on raids with him.

4 Some time later, the Ammonites fought against Israel. 5 When the Ammonites made war with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. 6 They said to him, “Come, be our commander, and let’s fight the Ammonites.”

7 Jephthah replied to the elders of Gilead, “Didn’t you hate me and drive me out of my father’s family? Why then have you come to me now when you’re in trouble?”

Based on his early life, Jephthah might have been voted “Least Likely to Succeed” in high school. An illegitimate son of a prostitute, he was rejected by his family and his hometown.

Have you ever had people in your life who were unkind, hateful maybe, possibly they just didn’t think of you and then one day they’re seeking to have a place in your life? Social media does this well. People we are barely even acquaintances with find your profile and send you a friend request…Or have you had someone who has been a superficial relationship try to weigh-in with advice on a serious matter in your life? Have you ever just wanted to say, “You haven’t been a solid and trusted voice in my life so far, why should I give you that place now?” I think that is what Jephthah was going through only they wanted nothing to do with him until they say his strengths and battle readiness and their own struggle and weakness. He wasn’t even worth their familial association but now they want him in command of their troops!

8 They answered Jephthah, “That’s true. But now we turn to you. Come with us, fight the Ammonites, and you will become leader of all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

I feel like Jephthah is a much better person than many! “Yep. You’re right. We hated you. But now that we can benefit from your ability, come and be with us and for us!” It’s like the person who wins the lottery and the trolls come from every bridge to get their chance at something. But Jephthah sees it, and he leans into the constant that he knows.

9 So Jephthah said to them, “If you are bringing me back to fight the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me, I will be your leader.”

10 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The Lord is our witness if we don’t do as you say.” 11 So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead. The people made him their leader and commander, and Jephthah repeated all his terms in the presence of the Lord at Mizpah.

Jephthah trusts that the Lord is in it and therefore, He fights for Him, not the people. He knows that if his motives and intentions are to honor the Lord, to follow Him and to be obedient to the purposes of God, then the rest will take care of itself. How often do we stress and worry about what others will think or turn the other way out of hurt or anger and by doing so we miss out on fully walking in God’s plans?

What happens next is pretty astounding.

12 Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, asking, “What do you have against me that you have come to fight me in my land?”

13 The king of the Ammonites said to Jephthah’s messengers, “When Israel came from Egypt, they seized my land from the Arnon to the Jabbok and the Jordan. Now restore it peaceably.”

14 Jephthah again sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites 15 to tell him, “This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or the land of the Ammonites. 

Jephthah is really good at reminding people of the truth that led them to their position. He spends time recounting how the Israelites asked for permission to pass through different areas and were denied. Their journey took longer because they held up and walked around those areas as much as they could. When they approached the land of the Ammonites, they once again asked the King to allow them to pass but the King instead rallied troops against them and Israel won the battle and took possession of the land! Had the king simply allowed them to pass through, it would have been a calm and quick journey. He teaches them that it was God who brought their land to the Israelites!

23 “The Lord God of Israel has now driven out the Amorites before his people Israel, and will you now force us out? 24 Isn’t it true that you can have whatever your god Chemosh conquers for you, and we can have whatever the Lord our God conquers for us? 25 Now are you any better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel or fight against them? 26 While Israel lived three hundred years in Heshbon and Aroer and their surrounding villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, why didn’t you take them back at that time? 27 I have not sinned against you, but you are doing me wrong by fighting against me. Let the Lord who is the judge decide today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.” 28 But the king of the Ammonites would not listen to Jephthah’s message that he sent him.

This king was out for a fight and while Jephthah attempted to set the record straight and avoid conflict, the battle was inevitable and Jephthah wasn’t afraid because he knew God was on his side. What he did next, however, might rank with one of the most bonehead moments in history. Because while he said, “Let the Lord who is judge decide,” his next prayer seems unnecessary.

29 The Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah, who traveled through Gilead and Manasseh, and then through Mizpah of Gilead. He crossed over to the Ammonites from Mizpah of Gilead. 30 Jephthah made this vow to the Lord: “If you in fact hand over the Ammonites to me, 31 whoever comes out the doors of my house to greet me when I return safely from the Ammonites will belong to the Lord, and I will offer that person as a burnt offering.

WHY? Why was it even a thought to pray?

32 Jephthah crossed over to the Ammonites to fight against them, and the Lord handed them over to him. 33 He defeated twenty of their cities with a great slaughter from Aroer all the way to the entrance of Minnith and to Abel-keramim. So the Ammonites were subdued before the Israelites.

34 When Jephthah went to his home in Mizpah, there was his daughter, coming out to meet him with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child; he had no other son or daughter besides her. 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have devastated me! You have brought great misery on me.[a] I have given my word to the Lord and cannot take it back.”

36 Then she said to him, “My father, you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me as you have said, for the Lord brought vengeance on your enemies, the Ammonites.” 37 She also said to her father, “Let me do this one thing: Let me wander two months through the mountains with my friends and mourn my virginity.”

38 “Go,” he said. And he sent her away two months. So she left with her friends and mourned her virginity as she wandered through the mountains. 39 At the end of two months, she returned to her father, and he kept the vow he had made about her. And she had never been intimate with a man. Now it became a custom in Israel 40 that four days each year the young women of Israel would commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.

Jephthah defeated 20 of their cities! Yet his victory was quickly overshadowed by his hasty vow and the realization that he would be sacrificing not just his only daughter but his only offspring. God didn’t ask him to do it! He vowed on his own. But here we are again…”you have devastated me,” as if she had any clue or knowledge as to what had been prayed! All of Jephthah’s dynasty and legacy plans were over because he made an impulsive promise to God.

After supernaturally overcoming Israel’s enemy and finally being accepted as a leader, Jephthah’s momentary joy was quickly overshadowed by the grief of his only daughter’s unnecessary death—caused by a foolish vow he made. Despite this, God did use him to deliver Israel and to gain a short period of peace for the nation.

12:7

7 Jephthah judged Israel six years, and when he died, he was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.

What do we learn from this man’s life?

1. God can and will use anyone in spite of any perceived or legitimate deficiencies.

2. Trust God’s plan and His empowerment. “If He leads you to it, He’ll lead you through it.” “God qualifies the called.” These are things we say in the church but do we believe them?

3. Be careful what you pray and promise. Don’t be hasty and rash in your excitement but true the Lord completely.