Abimelech took his ax in his hand and cut a branch from the trees. 1:11), animal or family property, these could not be redeemed because they became holy (set apart) to the Lord. Rather than leaping at the chance to command Gilead's army, he patiently negotiated for a more powerful position. (8) They shattered and crushed the Israelites that year, and for 18 years they did the same to all the Israelites who were on the other side of the Jordan in the land of the Amorites in Gilead. In Psalm 15 one of the things King David said would cause a man to not be moved is. Therefore, I will not deliver you again. The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time. She gave up—sacrificed—the one thing that they prized most highly: their ability to have children. 5:2-5). And she had never been intimate with a man. Until further notice, we are continuing to meet online. “(1) Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and spoke to them and to all his maternal grandfather’s clan, saying, (2) “Please speak in the presence of all the lords of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that 70 men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you or that one man rule over you?’ Remember that I am your own flesh and blood.” (3) His mother’s relatives spoke all these words about him in the presence of all the lords of Shechem, and they were favorable to Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.” (4) So they gave him 70 pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith. Change ). Rather than leaping at the chance to command Gilead's army, he patiently negotiated for a more powerful position. (3) When I saw that you weren’t going to deliver me, I took my life in my own hands and crossed over to the Ammonites, and the LORD handed them over to me. Jephthah became the ninth judge of Israel, was an unlikely judge because he was born the illegitimate son of a prostitute. Before he left, he made a vow to the Lord that “if you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph will be the Lord’s or/and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering” (Judges 11:31). Also, you should remember that Gideon’s father renamed him Jerubbaal – meaning “Let Baal contend”. Abdon judged Israel eight years, (15) and when he died, he was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.”. Leviticus 27 describes this kind of vow in detail. 2:22). (9) Then he will sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood is to be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a sin offering. (16) But when they came from Egypt, Israel traveled through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. There are several aspects to these verses. He gave his 30 daughters in marriage to men outside the tribe and brought back 30 wives for his sons from outside the tribe. The people put him over themselves as leader and commander, and Jephthah repeated all his terms in the presence of the LORD at Mizpah.”, , who traveled through Gilead and Manasseh, and then through Mizpah of Gilead. (19) “Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, king of Heshbon. Now many have a problem with this in that it seems to place God as party to a crime. They failed to help, but then wanted to know why they had been excluded (which they hadn’t been – they excluded themselves). So Bullinger concludes Jephthah vowed to dedicate to God whoever came out to meet him, or if it were an animal, to offer it as a burnt offering. He considered the scenario, decided a human being or an animal could fulfill it, and provided for both circumstances. Many wounded died as far as the entrance of the gate. In fact, he was considered such a misfit that the entire town rejected him. Israel said to him, ‘Please let us travel through your land to our country,’ (20) but Sihon did not trust Israel. "And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord: 'If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord's, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.'" (6) All the days that he separates himself to the LORD he shall not go near a dead body. 30–31). If we are honest, we have no need to take an oath. Old Testament / 05-Judges / Jephthah's Vow / Bible People / Jephthanh; Jephthah’s Rash Vow. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Jephthah's Vow John O. Reid (1930-2016) (4) All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin. “(7) When they told Jotham, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim, raised his voice, and called to them: Listen to me, lords of Shechem, and may God listen to you: (8) The trees set out to anoint a king over themselves. They treated Abimelech deceitfully, (24) so that the crime against the 70 sons of Jerubbaal might come to justice and their blood would be avenged on their brother Abimelech, who killed them, and on the lords of Shechem, who had helped him kill his brothers.”. His mother was a prostitute and Jephthah was such an embarrassment to his family that they disowned him. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he hid himself. Though God advises us not to vow, we can still make vows if we so choose. Numbers 30 shows that God does not take reneging on our promises lightly. Instead she would now live perpetually as a virgin, as one of the women who ministered to the Lord at the Tabernacle (Ex. God tells us the best course to take in Matthew 5:34, "But I say to you, do not swear at all." We will deal with these in a few moments. The Second Commandment: False Worship Forbidden. Like Like. (5) If someone incurs guilt in one of these cases, he is to confess he has committed that sin. (4) All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin. Abimelech hired worthless and reckless men with this money, and they followed him.”. (27) So they went out to the countryside and harvested grapes from their vineyards. When he and the people who are with him come out against you, do to him whatever you can.”, “(34) So Abimelech and all the people with him got up at night and waited in ambush for Shechem in four units. Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. They agreed. Instead, Jephthah was horrified because he had to sacrifice his only hope for a lineage that would come through the marriage of his daughter. 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. (18) Then the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering. His vow was spoken, not on the eve of battle, but on the march to it. But she did not die! (9) ‘And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it.