What About Jephthah's Vow?
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin Articles, uncategorizedA querist asks, “Did Jephthah really offer his daughter as a burnt sacrifice? I’ve heard ‘yes’ and ‘no’ from different preachers and have always wondered if he did.”
Jephthah, one of Israel’s judges (Judges 11:1-40; Judges 12:1-7), vowed to the Lord that if the He would grant him victory over the evil Ammonites, the first thing that came out to meet him upon his return home, would be Jehovah’s, and would be offered up as a burnt offering (Judges 11:31; cf. Leviticus 1:1-17).
As Jephthah returned home from his victory over the Ammonites, his only daughter came out to meet him, causing Jephthah great anguish (Judges 11:35).
With this background in mind, let us look at the following four observations regarding Jephthah’s vow:
1) The marginal rendering of the Hebrew in Judges 11:31 reads, “or I will offer it.” This rendering would give Jephthah’s vow an alternative sacrifice. The vow would then read, “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, or I will offer it.” Jephthah would have an alternative, either to dedicate his daughter to the Lord’s service (cf. 1 Samuel 1:19-28), or that she would be offered as a burnt sacrifice.
2) Regarding Jephthah’s daughter, let us note that in Judges 11:39, “she knew no man.” This phrase would refer to her spending the rest of her life as a virgin, never to marry and experience a family. She could not have experienced this perpetual virginity had her life been terminated as a burnt sacrifice.
3) In Judges 11:40, it is interesting to note that the daughters of Israel went “yearly” (Heb. “from year to year”) “to lament the daughter of Jephthah.” The phrase, “to lament” in the marginal reading is rendered, “Or, to talk with.” If this is the case, it would have been difficult to have talked with a dead girl. The “daughters of Israel” obviously went to her “yearly” to give her encouragement in her dedication to the Lord’s service (we all need encouragement, do we not?).
4) The idea of human sacrifice was never sanctioned by God (Deuteronomy 18:9-14; cf. Deuteronomy 12:31; Leviticus 18:21).
In addition to the above thoughts, Bro. Wayne Jackson. editor of the Christian Courier, offers some additional considerations regarding Jephthah’s vow.
Related Articles:
- Jephthah’s Vow, Part 1 (Judges 11)
- Jephthah’s Vow, Part 2 (Judges 11)
- Jephthah’s Daughter
- Does God Accept Human Sacrifice?