Question 1

Who is Jephthah and why was he rejected by his family?

Accepted Answer

Jephthah is introduced as a mighty warrior from Gilead, but also as the son of a prostitute. Because of his birth, his half-brothers drove him out so he would not share in the family inheritance. He fled to the land of Tob, where a band of needy men gathered around him. So he is both strong and deeply wounded by rejection. This background shows how people judged him for something he could not control, yet God later chose to use this same rejected man to help rescue Israel from its enemies.

Question 2

Why did the elders of Gilead ask Jephthah to lead them after driving him away?

Accepted Answer

When the Ammonites attacked Israel, the elders of Gilead realized they needed a strong leader. They remembered Jephthah’s courage and skill in battle and went to bring him back from Tob. Jephthah reminded them how they had hated and expelled him, and he questioned their motives. They admitted their need and agreed that if God gave victory through him, he would be their head. This shows how desperation led them to seek reconciliation and how God can turn a rejected person into a leader in a time of crisis.

Question 3

What was Jephthah arguing about with the king of Ammon?

Accepted Answer

The king of Ammon claimed that Israel had stolen his land and demanded that it be given back peacefully. Jephthah answered by sending messages that walked through Israel’s history. He explained that Israel had not taken land from Ammon or Moab, but had fought and taken land from the Amorites after being attacked. He also pointed out that God had given Israel this land and that it had been in Israel’s hands for about three hundred years without challenge. His argument is that Israel was not the aggressor and that the Ammonite attack was unjust.

Question 4

Why did Jephthah make a vow to God before the battle?

Accepted Answer

As Jephthah moved toward battle, the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he vowed that if God gave him victory over the Ammonites, whatever came out of the door of his house to meet him would belong to the Lord and be offered as a burnt offering. The passage shows his desire for God’s help, but also how rash and unwise his words were. Instead of resting in the Spirit already given, he tried to secure victory with a promise he had not thought through, which later brought deep grief into his own home.

Question 5

What happened to Jephthah’s daughter because of his vow?

Accepted Answer

When Jephthah came home after God had granted a great victory, his only child, his daughter, came out to meet him with tambourines and dancing. He was crushed, because his own vow now fell on her. She accepted that he had spoken to the Lord and asked only for two months to go to the mountains with her friends and weep over her virginity, since she would never marry or bear children. After that time, her father carried out his vow. The text highlights her faith and obedience, and the lasting sorrow that followed Jephthah’s hasty words.

Question 6

Did Jephthah actually kill his daughter, or did she remain unmarried?

Accepted Answer

The wording of this passage has been understood in more than one way. It clearly says Jephthah did to her according to his vow and that she never knew a man. Some readers think this means she was killed as a burnt offering, which fits the plain sense of his vow and the grief in the story. Others think she was dedicated to lifelong service to God and remained unmarried. Either way, the story shows how serious and painful a rash vow can be, touching the life of someone innocent.

Question 7

What does this passage teach about making vows to God?

Accepted Answer

This chapter shows that vows are serious and not to be spoken lightly. Jephthah tied himself to words he later wished he had never said, and his promise deeply affected his only child. God did give victory, but the vow brought sorrow instead of joy. The story warns against trying to bargain with God, as if his help could be bought with some extreme promise. It points us to speak carefully before God, to trust his grace rather than our own deals, and to remember that our choices can wound others.

Question 8

What does Jephthah’s story show about God’s character and leadership?

Accepted Answer

Jephthah’s story shows that God can raise up leaders from places people would never expect. Jephthah was rejected because of his birth, yet God used him to deliver Israel from the Ammonites. God’s Spirit came on him for the task, and the land dispute was settled by remembering how God had acted in the past. At the same time, the tragic vow shows that God’s work through someone does not make all their choices wise or safe. God is sovereign in giving victory, but people are still responsible for the promises they make.

Question 9

How can Jephthah’s story speak to people who have been rejected?

Accepted Answer

If someone has been pushed aside because of their background or family story, Jephthah’s life can feel familiar. He did nothing to choose his parents, yet he was driven out and treated as less than his brothers. God did not forget him in Tob. Over time, God shaped him into a leader, and the very people who rejected him came asking for help. His story encourages people to trust that God sees their pain, can work in hidden years, and can use them in his plans even when others have counted them out.

Judges 11:1

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.

Jephthah Delivers Israel

Jephthah’s Tragic Vow

Jephthah Delivers Israel

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Judges 11:1

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.

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Jephthah Delivers Israel

Jephthah’s Tragic Vow

Jephthah Delivers Israel

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