Judges 11
1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a great man of war; he was the son of a loose woman, and Gilead was his father.
Now Yiphthach the Gil'adite was a mighty man of valor, but he was the son of a harlot; and Gil'ad had begotten Yiphthach.
2 And Gilead's wife gave birth to sons, and when her sons became men, they sent Jephthah away, saying, You have no part in the heritage of our father's house, for you are the son of another woman.
And the wife of Gil'ad also bore him sons; and when the sons of the wife were grown up, they drove away Yiphthach, and said unto him, Thou shalt not inherit in the house of our father: for the son of another woman art thou.
3 So Jephthah went in flight from his brothers and was living in the land of Tob, where a number of good-for-nothing men, joining Jephthah, went out with him on his undertakings.
And Yiphthach fled away from his brothers, and dwelt in the land of Tob; and there gathered themselves to Yiphthach idle men, and they went out with him.
4 Now after a time the children of Ammon made war against Israel.
And it came to pass after some time, that the children of 'Ammon made war against Israel.
5 And when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the responsible men of Gilead went to get Jephthah back from the land of Tob;
And it was so, when the children of 'Ammon made war against Israel, that the elders of Gil'ad went to fetch Yiphthach out of the land of Tob.
6 And they said to Jephthah, Come and be our chief so that we may make war against the children of Ammon.
And they said unto Yiphthach, Come, and become a leader unto us, that we may fight with the children of 'Ammon.
7 But Jephthah said to the responsible men of Gilead, Did you not, in your hate for me, send me away from my father's house? Why do you come to me now when you are in trouble?
And Yiphthach said unto the elders of Gil'ad, Did ye not hate me, and drive me away out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now, when ye are in distress?
8 And the responsible men of Gilead said to Jephthah, That is the reason we have come back to you; so go with us and make war against the children of Ammon, and we will make you our head over all the people of Gilead.
And the elders of Gil'ad said unto Yiphthach, Therefore are we now come back to thee, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of 'Ammon; and thou shalt become unto us a head, unto all the inhabitants of Gil'ad.
9 Then Jephthah said to the responsible men of Gilead, If you take me back to make war against the children of Ammon, and if with the help of the Lord I overcome them, will you make me your head?
And Yiphthach said unto the elders of Gil'ad, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of 'Ammon, and the Lord give them up before me, shall I remain your head?
10 And the responsible men of Gilead said to Jephthah, May the Lord be our witness: we will certainly do as you say.
And the elders of Gil'ad said unto Yiphthach, The Lord shall be a hearer between us, if we do not so according to thy word.
11 So Jephthah went with the responsible men of Gilead, and the people made him head and chief over them; and Jephthah said all these things before the Lord in Mizpah.
Then went Yiphthach with the elders of Gil'ad, and the people appointed him over them as head and as leader; and Yiphthach spoke all his words before the Lord in Mitzpah.
12 Then Jephthah sent men to the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What have you against me that you have come to make war against my land?
And Yiphthach sent messengers unto the king of the children of 'Ammon, saying, What have I to do with thee, that thou art come unto me to fight against my land?
13 And the king of the children of Ammon said to the men sent by Jephthah, Because Israel, when he came up out of Egypt, took away my land, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok and as far as Jordan: so now, give me back those lands quietly.
And the king of the children of 'Ammon said unto the messengers of Yiphthach, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from the Arnon even unto the Yabbok, and unto the Jordan: and now restore these [lands] again in peace.
14 And Jephthah sent again to the king of the children of Ammon,
And Yiphthach again sent messengers unto the king of the children of 'Ammon;
15 And said to him, This is the word of Jephthah: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or the land of the children of Ammon;
And he said unto him, Thus hath said Yiphthach, Israel did not take away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of 'Ammon;
16 But when they came up from Egypt, Israel went through the waste land to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh;
For when they came up out of Egypt, Israel walked through the wilderness unto the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh;
17 Then Israel sent men to the king of Edom saying, Let me now go through your land; but the king of Edom did not give ear to them. And in the same way he sent to the king of Moab, but he would not; so Israel went on living in Kadesh.
And Israel then sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me pass, I pray thee, through thy land; but the king of Edom would not hearken; and also to the king of Moab they sent; but he would not consent: and Israel remained in Kadesh.
18 Then he went on through the waste land and round the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and put up their tents on the other side of the Arnon; they did not come inside the limit of Moab, for the Arnon was the limit of Moab.
Then they wandered through the wilderness, and traveled round the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came from the rising of the sun to the land of Moab, and encamped on the other side of the Arnon: but they came not within the border of Moab; for the Arnon is the boundary of Moab.
19 And Israel sent men to Sihon, king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, Let me now go through your land to my place.
And Israel sent messengers unto Sichon the king of the Emorites, the king of Cheshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land unto my place.
20 But Sihon would not give way and let Israel go through his land; and Sihon got together all his people, and put his army in position in Jahaz, and made war on Israel.
But Sichon trusted not Israel to [let them] pass through his territory; and Sichon assembled all his people, and encamped in Yahaz, and fought against Israel.
21 And the Lord, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hands of Israel, and they overcame them; so all the land of the Amorites, the people of that land, became Israel's.
and the Lord the God of Israel delivered Sichon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them; and Israel took possession of all the land of the Emorites, the inhabitants of that country.
22 All the limit of the Amorites was theirs, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok and from the waste land even to Jordan.
And they took possession of all the territory of the Emorites, from the Arnon even unto the Yabbok, and from the wilderness even unto the Jordan.
23 So now the Lord, the God of Israel, has taken away their land from the Amorites and given it to his people Israel; are you then to have it?
So now the Lord the God of Israel hath dispossessed the Emorites from before his people Israel, and shouldst thou possess it?
24 Do you not keep the lands of those whom Chemosh your god sends out from before you? So we will keep all the lands of those whom the Lord our God sends out from before us.
Truly! that which Kemosh thy god may give thee to possess, even that canst thou possess; but whatsoever the Lord our God hath driven out from before us, even that will we possess.
25 What! are you any better than Balak, the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever take up a cause against Israel or make war against them?
And now art thou then any better than Balak the son of Zippor, the king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them?
26 While Israel was living in Heshbon and its daughter-towns and in Aroer and its daughter-towns and in all the towns which are by the side of the Arnon, for three hundred years, why did you not get them back at that time?
[And] while Israel hath dwelt in Cheshbon and in its towns, and in 'Ar'or and in its towns, and in all the cities that are along the margins of the Arnon, three hundred years: why did ye not recover them within that time?
27 So I have done no wrong against you, but you are doing wrong to me in fighting against me: may the Lord, who is Judge this day, be judge between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.
Whereas I myself have not sinned against thee, and thou doest me wrong to war against me: may the Lord, the Judge, decide this day between the children of Israel and the children of 'Ammon.
28 The king of the children of Ammon, however, did not give ear to the words which Jephthah sent to him.
Nevertheless the king of the children of 'Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Yiphthach which he had sent to him.
29 Then the spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah, and he went through Gilead and Manasseh, and came to Mizpeh of Gilead; and from Mizpeh of Gilead he went over to the children of Ammon.
Then came upon Yiphthach the spirit of the Lord, and he passed through Gil'ad and Menasseh, and passed through Mitzpeh of Gil'ad, and from Mitzpeh of Gil'ad he passed over unto the children of Ammon.
30 And Jephthah took an oath to the Lord, and said, If you will give the children of Ammon into my hands,
And Yiphthach made a vow unto the Lord, and said, If thou wilt indeed deliver the children of 'Ammon into my hand,
31 Then whoever comes out from the door of my house, meeting me when I come back in peace from the children of Ammon, will be the Lord's and I will give him as a burned offering.
Then shall it be, that whatsoever cometh forth out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of 'Ammon, shall belong to the Lord, and I will offer it up for a burnt-offering.
32 So Jephthah went over to the children of Ammon to make war on them; and the Lord gave them into his hands.
So Yiphthach passed over unto the children of 'Ammon to fight against them: and the Lord delivered them into his hand.
33 And he made an attack on them from Aroer all the way to Minnith, overrunning twenty towns, as far as Abel-cheramim, and put great numbers to the sword. So the children of Ammon were crushed before the children of Israel.
And he smote them from 'Aro'er, even till thou comest to Minnith, twenty cities, and unto Abel-keramin, with a very great defeat; and the children of 'Ammon were humbled before the children of Israel.
34 Then Jephthah came back to his house in Mizpah, and his daughter came out, meeting him on his way with music and with dances; she was his only child; he had no other sons or daughters.
And Yiphthach came to Mizpah unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his sole child; he had beside her neither son nor daughter.
35 And when he saw her he was overcome with grief, and said, Ah! my daughter! I am crushed with sorrow, and it is you who are the chief cause of my trouble; for I have made an oath to the Lord and I may not take it back.
And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his garments, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast bent me down very low, and thou art one of those that trouble me; for I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.
36 And she said to him, My father, you have made an oath to the Lord; do then to me whatever you have said; for the Lord has sent a full reward on your haters, on the children of Ammon.
And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me in accordance with what hath proceeded out of thy mouth; since the Lord hath taken vengeance for thee on thy enemies, on the children of 'Ammon.
37 Then she said to her father, Only do this for me: let me have two months to go away into the mountains with my friends, weeping for my sad fate.
And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: Let me alone two months, that I may descend to the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I with my companions.
38 And he said, Go then. So he sent her away for two months; and she went with her friends to the mountains, weeping for her sad fate.
And he aid, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity on the mountains.
39 And at the end of two months she went back to her father, who did with her as he had said in his oath: and she had never been touched by a man. So it became a rule in Israel,
And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, and he fulfilled on her his vow which he had vowed; and she knew no man; and it became a custom in Israel,
40 For the women to go year by year sorrowing for the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite, four days in every year.
That the daughters of Israel went from year to year to lament for the daughter of Yiphthach the Gil'adite four days in the year.
