id Jephthah sacrifice His daughter as a burnt offering unto God. In a word, yes! But is it really possible in modern times for anyone to humbly say, "Absolutely, he did?" Or is any theologian who dares to say a doctrine is absolute, deemed arrogant? Because honestly speaking, the text is about as clear as any text of scripture gets. That is to say, until the experts and historians get their hands on it. In fact, there wouldn't even be any question about what it says if not for our very human sensibilities. The fact is, we have certain human traits that often hinder us from accepting (receiving) the record of events of the Bible in the context that they occurred. Did Jephthah sacrifice his daughter as a burnt offering unto God? Yes he did. Let us briefly go over the text of the event, in the context that it occurred.

Judges 11:1-2

• "Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
• And Gilead's wife bare him sons; and his wife's sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of a strange woman."

Judges 11:3

• "Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him."

Judges 11:5-7

• "And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob:
• And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
• And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?"

Judges 11:9-11

• "And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, shall I be your head?
• And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, The LORD be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words.
• Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh."

Judges 11:30-31

• "And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands,
• 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, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering."

Let's look at the context of the times in which this occurred. In those days, animals lived in a part of the house. We can surmise that his animals, sheep or goats, usually would be the first to hear him and come out. Or perhaps that he would even call them out, and this is the scenario that he expected. But we can't really know for sure because God doesn't give us this specific information. But we certainly can imagine his horror when he returned from the ammonites and saw his only child and beloved daughter as the first one to come forth of the doors of his house to meet him. I suppose it was only then that he came to realize that He had made a rash, vain and foolish vow unto God. And that his vow to God could not be "righteously" broken.

Judges 11:34-35

• "And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
• And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back."

Numbers 30:1-2

• "And Moses spake unto the heads of the tribes concerning the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded.
• If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth."

Deuteronomy 23:21-23

• "When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.
• But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.
• That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth."

Hebrews 11:32-34

• "And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
• Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
• Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens."

Psalms 76:11

• "Vow, and pay unto the LORD your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared."

Psalms 141:3

• "Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips."

To be sure, this is a hard pill to swallow for some people. I have read commentaries where some theologians seem to be attempting to explain away this event, declaring that (1)he never really killed her, but made her a sacrifice in some other way, because it doesn't really say as a "burnt offering." Or (2)that he probably forsook his vow and instead relegated her to be a virgin servant who would never marry. And in these rationalizations, some point to the vow of Hannah and say that it is similar. But the truth is, the two vows have little in common except that they are both vows (solemn oaths). Other than that, they are completely different.

1st Samuel 1:11

• "And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head."

1st Samuel 6:14

• "And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD."

Numbers 24:13

• "If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak?"

Judges 11:35-37

• "And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.
• And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.
• And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows."

"do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth, forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thy enemies, even of the children of Ammon."

In other words, the Lord has kept His part of the bargain that Jephthah made, now she agrees that he must keep his! There really shouldn't be any question. He must keep "the vow that came out of his mouth." Not an alleged, unheard, unwritten, "implied" vow of celibacy for her that comes out of the mouths of some theologians. But the ACTUAL vow of making whatever came out first, a burnt offering. That is the vow that came out of his mouth. And thus that is the vow that she agrees should be kept. She only asked to have two months to mourn the fact that she never married, that she might bare seed. Because it was a shame in those days for a woman to die childless, losing all hope of the glory of posterity.

Nevertheless, this language of virginity has given rise to some theologians arguing that the man's daughter was really lamenting about not being able to ever be married (perpetual virginity), and not about dying a virgin. This despite the fact that there is not one single example in all of scripture of any woman vowed to perpetual virginity, nor a vow of any parent to make their daughter such. The whole idea is designed simply to negate the text, since no parent was ever recorded using such power over their children, and there is no such law in the Holy scriptures. And as evidence their objections are solidly founded, they say that "human sacrifice was against the law" as if God's children never violated God's law. Adultery and murder was also against God's law, but King David committed it, and is still listed as one of the heroes of faith. So that argument clearly does not rest on any firm foundation. In truth she was mourning having to be the object of her father's vow (being a sacrifice offering) "without" ever having the chance to marry and leave seed behind. In this patriarchal society, bearing children to have an inheritance was the great hope and blessing of every woman in those days. Lest we forget, her sacrifice "was" the vow that both she and her father declared had to be kept. And the clear words of the vow made make no mention of her virginity. She mentions it as something she would mourn only after she knew the vow had to be kept. And thus she requested two months to bewail the fact that this vow forfeiting her life is what was going to happen and she would die childless, without ever being married. And think about this circumspectly. Why would she request two months mourning if she was simply going to be a virgin for life. This is a woman of God who told her father she knew he had to keep his vow. If it was merely a vow that her virginity was to remain perpetually, then she would have her whole long life to mourn it. Why would she request two months? It makes no sense. Unless of course, afterward the two months, there would be no opportunity to mourn. Again, these theories that attempt to negate the text, once examined carefully, make absolutely no sense whatsoever. The text of the word of God speaks for itself, and it speaks rather clearly on the matter. It is only man that finds it unpalatable in his humanistic reasoning, because it offends his sensibilities. As a result, he is often judging by "what seems right in his own eyes" rather than by what the Bible actually says. But in humility, we must read the text with the Spirit to receive it, rather than wish it away.

Judges 11:39-40

• "And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel,
• That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year."

Some have even attempted to blame God in asking, "if God hates human sacrifice, why would He allow Jephthah to sacrifice his daughter?" We could equally ask the loaded question, "if God hates murder, why would He allow David to be an adulterer and murder the woman's husband?" If God hates sin why would He allow any Christian to sin? You see, the question is designed to prove nothing, but simply to cloud the issue. The fact is, God is "not" obligated to move anyone not to sin, and it is self evident that God often uses man's sins to His glory. He restrains sin (when He does) by His Sovereign Grace, and for His own good will and pleasure, NOT because He is obligated to do so. So these type questions are not relevant to whether Jephthah sacrificed his daughter, or if it was a sin.

There is no room in interpretation of the text for both positions, so we have to simply surrender to the authoritative word and not allow it to perplex us. We already know the vow that was vowed, and the determination that "it" must be kept, so there should be no question. Yes, Jephthah sacrificed his daughter, for it was the only thing that he could do, having vowed this to Holy God as a condition of his victory in battle. Killing his daughter was wrong, but why he did it was right. In other words, it was the only thing he could do having made the promise to God. He chose sending his daughter to God, rather than breaking his oath to God. And God commends him as a man of great faith. So rather than sit in unrighteous judgment of Him, we should rejoice that he and his daughter are eternally in the presence of God, forever positioned as children of great faith. Children of a faith that obviously was far greater than most professed children of God today. The faith that loves God above all, even an only daughter. Faith that says, in a choice like this, I choose faithfulness to God over all. For God can make his daughter live again, but breaking a conditional solemn vow, after those conditions were fulfilled of God, is a serious matter than cannot be lightly regarded.

There are some who claim that a vow to sacrifice of one’s child to God would not be valid because God forbid such sacrifices, but the called sacrifice of Isaac, even though it was not carried out, is introduced by God as a test of Abraham’s faith (Gen. 22:1). What is the purpose God has for recording this incident? I believe that it is also a test of Jephthah's faith, recorded to teach us never to make a Covenant/Vow/Oath/Promise to God in exchange for some favor or desire from God. Some may object saying, "What was Jephthah to do?" But the answer is that he should not have offered his help with conditions in the first place, and should not have asked God out of his own vanity or desire. He should have offered sacrifice to God unconditionally. Asked humbly for God's favor and then out of gratitude offered a burnt offering. And the lesson to us today is the same. To humble ourselves before God, with no conditions, only declaring that "thy will be done in all things." And to make sure you know what you are promising, before you open your mouth to promise. This is a glorious lesson for God's people that He will not be manipulated or bargained with on our terms, but as omniscient and Holy potentate, ordains things with us according to His own terms. God wanted Jephthah to be Judge of Israel, but in bringing him to be so, He sets forth a glorious example of foolish vowing, and faithful obedience to the law. i.e., of the continuity and interconnection of both law and Grace.

Did Jephthah, a Judge of Israel, Sacrifice His Daughter as a Burnt Offering unto God? In a word. Yes! And despite modern commentators frequently choosing not to define this text consistently and literally, for well over 1000 years all (excluding Nicholas of Lyra, 1270-1340) interpreted this text literally; In other words, that Jephthah sacrificed his daughter in death. Because that is not only exactly what the text says, but because there is not one word in all the following verses that might even imply that a denial that she was so offered and died.

And let's be clear, though many may try to make it so, this event is not really about murder, human sacrifice, abominations of molech or Jephthah's barbarism. This is an object lesson in faith, trust, confidence and obedience for God's children. All things work together for good to them that love God. That's a given. And Jephthah certainly did Love God. He proved it in deed, by sacrificing his only daughter "because" He could not bare to defraud God of what He had faithfully promised. In this "test of faith" Jephthah put his daughter in God's hands and trusted His divine providence over her. God had fulfilled Jephthah's conditions of the vow, and he could not go back on his word concerning his. And in our continuing instruction, God uses this as a teaching tool that we understand this test of faith, that we will not make or take our oaths to God lightly or carelessly. Because according to God's law, that we vow unto the Lord must be seen through to its fulfillment. Moreover, note that God never requested Jephthah to make this oath, Jephthah offered it on his own accord, hoping to bargain with God. And he is chastised for it. The text does not specifically condemn either Jephthah, or his vow, because it is ultimately a lesson by God and test of faith to demonstrate our total dependence upon Him. That he who loves world, money, father or mother, son or daughter, more than God, is not worthy of Him. Have we yet learned that lesson, or are we still in denial living like the world with the word's sensibilities?

The conclusion of this matter is that Jephthah did Sacrifice His Daughter. And he was neither a barbarian, nor a heartless murderer. He was one of the great heroes of faith. A child of God who understood a lot better than many children of God today, the seriousness of keeping our vows to God. Many Christians today can't really understand such faith, because they are in a place where many can't even manage to understand the seriousness of keeping their solemn marriage vows before God. Much less such a vow as this. But great men of faith like Jephthah, are of a greater character, and faithfulness. With our modern day "no-kind-of-personal-sacrifice-whatsoever" Christianity, it is easy to sit in our ivory towers and pass judgment on the actions of men who are truly of greater faith. But I say no, let us pray that we could live our lives in such faithfulness and respect of God. Yes, there are always these stories in scripture that present us with many challenging questions. But we must endeavor not to attempt to understand them by what seems right in our own eyes, but to understand them in the light of the whole Bible. The early world and culture that they occurred in, is often the context of the lesson that must be gleaned from them. It is sometimes a culture far removed from modern day society, and far removed from our spiritual palate. And remember, God often records in scripture the human weaknesses of the biblical heroes to illustrate that we are all but flesh. None of us are in ourselves perfect or without fault. For example, God didn't forbear to record the faithful Noah becoming extremely drunk, or Lot's daughters conniving to procreating with him, or Abraham having children by Hagar or lying about his relationship with Sarah, etc., etc. All these things are recorded to illustrate that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness (2nd Corinthians 12:9). No one is an island wherein they are righteous in and of themselves. We have to learn that there is a big difference between what we read in scripture as Biblical fact, versus the word of God endorsing or approving such unsound actions by these men of God.

Romans 7:22-23

• "For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
• But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members."

Ultimately, I believe that as a man of God Jephthah didn't think of it as taking his daughter's life away, rather he believed through faith that he placed her in the hands of the Lord. He knew the seriousness of the vow he had made, however vainly he had made it. Both he and his daughter understood that what had come out of his mouth as a Covenant or oath, he could not go back on it. He knew his redeemer lives, and that through belief and obedience, God would honor his faithfulness, even as it is the faith of Christ in him. It is sad to me that with Jephthah, as with no other, some Christians feel compelled to go out of their way to vindicate him from the judgment of men, when that is not necessary. When I look at the life of Jephthah, I don't see a horrible man who has no qualms in killing his only daughter for the sake of a foolish vow. I see a man of great honor and integrity who loved God so much that he simply could not bear to defraud Him (Deuteronomy 23:21; 1Jo 2:4-5), even at the expense of his only daughter whom he "Obviously" loved dearly. Now that is a man of faith deemed worth mentioning by Holy God in Hebrew's book of the heroes of faith. And certainly not for simply defeating the the Amorites.

...Selah!