{"id":55737,"date":"2019-05-19T13:45:02","date_gmt":"2019-05-19T10:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=55737"},"modified":"2022-12-11T14:55:30","modified_gmt":"2022-12-11T12:55:30","slug":"what-was-jephthah-thinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/what-was-jephthah-thinking\/","title":{"rendered":"What Was Jephthah Thinking?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What was Jephthah thinking when he vowed, \u201cIf You indeed give the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me on my safe return from the Ammonites shall be the Eternal\u2019s, and I shall offer it up as a burnt offering\u201d (vv. 30-31)?<\/span><\/p>\n

We, of course, cannot be certain and there is the possibility is that he wasn\u2019t thinking at all, and rashly declared the first thought that sprang into his head. Perhaps he was swayed by regional cultural norms of battle-vows attested also in ancient Greece (cf. the stories of Idomeneus of Crete or Meander) and or the corrosive norms of Canaanite culture, as proposed by<\/span> Rabbi Michael Hattin<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Or perhaps Jephthah let his sudden rise to power go to his head, and cloud his judgment. When the story begins, Jephthah, an illegitimate son, has been ignominiously banished by his half-brothers, and is living beyond the borders of the family territory and also outside of the law. But when the Gileadites are in serious trouble and need a leader who can get things done, Jephthah\u2019s their man. He calls on God to witness the terms of his engagement and gets to work.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tries negotiating with the enemy but recounting Biblical history does not inspire the Ammonite leaders to compromise what they consider their own interests. Jephthah prepares for war. Confident in the righteousness of his cause, and certain that God is with him, he takes the fateful vow. What could go wrong? Nothing, Jephthah assures himself: \u201cGod is with God\u2019s people, God is on my side, all will be well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

God is indeed with God\u2019s people, and they are victorious over the Ammonites. But Jephthah soon learns that his self-confidence was misplaced. His daughter, his only child, eager to celebrate her father\u2019s and her people\u2019s triumph with music and dancing, rushes out to greet him (vv. 33-34), and everything comes crashing down.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jephthah is guilty of hubris, excessive pride and arrogance before God. He pushed God\u2019s hand, if it may be said, with rash words, and learns the limit of his power. For the public good, God seemingly acquiesces to the vow, but will not reward an attitude of \u201ceverything will be okay,\u201d by ensuring that Jephthah is met first by a sheep or goat. Indeed, \u201cpride goes before ruin\u201d (Proverbs 16:18).
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

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