Judges 11
1 Jephthah of Gilead was a strong fighter. He was the son of a prostitute, and his father was Gilead.
Then Gilead begate Iphtah, and Iphtah the Gileadite was a valiant man, but the sonne of an harlot.
2 Gilead's wife gave him sons, who when they grew up, drove Jephthah away, telling him, “You won't inherit anything from our father because you are another woman's son.”
And Gileads wife bare him sonnes, and when the womans children were come to age, they thrust out Iphtah, and sayd vnto him, Thou shalt not inherite in our fathers house: for thou art the sonne of a strange woman.
3 Jephthah ran away from his brothers and went to live in the land of Tob. A gang of trouble-makers joined him and he led them out on raids.
Then Iphtah fledde from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there gathered idle fellowes to Iphtah, and went out with him.
4 Later on, the Ammonites were at war with Israel.
And in processe of time the children of Ammon made warre with Israel.
5 As the Ammonites were attacking Israel, the elders of Gilead came to get Jephthah from the land of Tob.
And when the children of Ammon fought with Israel, the Elders of Gilead went to fet Iphtah out of the land of Tob.
6 “Come and be our army commander,” they asked Jepthah, “so we can fight the Ammonites.”
And they saide vnto Iphtah, Come and be our captaine, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
7 “Weren't you the ones who hated me and drove me from my father's house?” Jephthah asked them, “Why are you coming to me now you're in trouble?”
Iphtah then answered the Elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expell me out of my fathers house? how then come you vnto me now in time of your tribulation?
8 “Yes, that's why we've turned to you now,” the elders of Gilead replied. “Come with us and fight the Ammonites, and you will be the leader of all the people of Gilead.”
Then the Elders of Gilead saide vnto Iphtah, Therefore we turne againe to thee now, that thou mayest goe with vs, and fight against the children of Ammon, and bee our head ouer all the inhabitants of Gilead.
9 “So if I go back with you and fight the Ammonites, and the Lord makes me victorious, then I'll be your leader?” Jephthah asked the elders of Gilead.
And Iphtah said vnto the Elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home againe to fight against the children of Ammon, if the Lord giue them before me, shall I be your head?
10 “The Lord will be a witness between us,” they replied. “We'll do whatever you say.”
And the Elders of Gilead saide to Iphtah, The Lord be witnesse betweene vs, if we doe not according to thy wordes.
11 So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their leader and army commander. And Jephthah repeated all his conditions before the Lord at Mizpah.
Then Iphtah went with the Elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captaine ouer them: and Iphtah rehearsed all his wordes before the Lord in Mizpeh.
12 Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites to ask him, “What have you got against me that you want to attack my land?”
Then Iphtah sent messengers vnto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to doe with me, that thou art come against me, to fight in my lande?
13 The king of the Ammonites replied to Jephthah's messengers, “Israel seized my land when they came from Egypt. It extended from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River, and across to the Jordan River. So give it back and there'll be no fighting.”
And the King of the children of Ammon answered vnto the messengers of Iphtah, Because Israel tooke my lande, when they came vp from Egypt, from Arnon vnto Iabbok, and vnto Iorden: now therefore restore those lands quietly.
14 Jephthah sent messengers back to the king of the Ammonites
Yet Iphtah sent messengers againe vnto the King of the children of Ammon,
15 to tell him, “This is Jephthah's reply: The Israelites did not take any land from Moab or from the Ammonites.
And said vnto him, Thus saith Iphtah, Israel tooke not the lande of Moab, nor the lande of the children of Ammon.
16 When they left Egypt, the Israelites went through the desert to the Red Sea and arrived at Kadesh.
But when Israel came vp from Egypt, and walked through the wildernesse vnto the redde Sea, then they came to Kadesh.
17 They sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Please let us pass through your country,’ but the king of Edom refused to listen. They also sent the same request to the king of Moab, and he refused too. So they remained at Kadesh.
And Israel sent messengers vnto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, goe thorowe thy lande: but the King of Edom woulde not consent: and also they sent vnto the King of Moab, but he would not: therefore Israel abode in Kadesh.
18 Eventually the Israelites traveled through the desert, avoiding the lands of Edom and Moab. They arrived on the east side of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon River. But they did not enter Moab territory, for the Arnon River was its border.
Then they went through the wildernesse, and compassed the lande of Edom, and the lande of Moab, and came by the Eastside of the lande of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, and came not within the coast of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab.
19 Then the Israelites sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, who ruled from Heshbon, and asked him, ‘Please let us pass through your land to our own country.’
Also Israel sent messengers vnto Sihon, King of the Amorites, the King of Heshbon, and Israel said vnto him, Let vs passe, we pray thee, by thy lande vnto our place.
20 But Sihon didn't trust the Israelites to pass through his territory. So he assembled his army, set up camp at Jahaz, and attacked the Israelites.
But Sihon consented not to Israel, that he shoulde goe through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Iahaz, and fought with Israel.
21 However, the Lord, the God of Israel, handed over Sihon and all his people to the Israelites, who defeated them. So the Israelites took over all the land inhabited by the Amorites.
And the Lord God of Israel gaue Sihon and all his folke into the handes of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the lande of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that countrey:
22 They occupied all the territory of the Amorites from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River, and from the desert to the Jordan River.
And they possessed all the coast of the Amorites, from Arnon vnto Iabbok, and from the wildernesse euen vnto Iorden.
23 It was the Lord, the God of Israel, who drove out the Amorites before his people Israel, so why should you take it over?
Nowe therefore the Lord God of Israel hath cast out the Amorites before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possesse it?
24 Why don't you keep whatever your god Chemosh gave you, and we'll keep whatever the Lord our God has given us?
Wouldest not thou possesse that which Chemosh thy god giueth thee to possesse? So whomesoeuer the Lord our God driueth out before vs, them will we possesse.
25 Do you think you're so much better than Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel with Israel or attack them?
And art thou nowe farre better then Balak the sonne of Zippor King of Moab? did he not striue with Israel and fight against them,
26 Israelites have been living in Heshbon, Aroer, their villages, and in all the towns along the banks of the Arnon River for three hundred years. Why didn't you take them back during that time?
When Israel dwelt in Heshbon and in her townes, and in Aroer and in her townes, and in all the cities that are by the coastes of Arnon, three hundreth yeeres? why did ye not then recouer them in that space?
27 I have not sinned against you, but you have done me wrong by going to war against me. Let the Lord, the Judge, decide today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.”
Wherefore, I haue not offended thee: but thou doest me wrong to warre against me. The Lord the Iudge be iudge this day betweene the children of Israel, and the children of Ammon.
28 But the king of Ammon didn't pay any attention to what Jephthah had to say.
Howbeit the King of the children of Ammon hearkened not vnto the wordes of Iphtah, which he had sent him.
29 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah. He passed through Gilead and Manasseh, then on through Mizpah of Gilead. From there he advanced to attack the Ammonites.
Then the Spirite of the Lord came vpon Iphtah, and he passed ouer to Gilead and to Manasseh, and came to Mizpeh in Gilead, and from Mizpeh in Gilead he went vnto the children of Ammon.
30 Jephthah made a solemn promise to the Lord, saying, “If you make me victorious over the Ammonites,
And Iphtah vowed a vowe vnto the Lord, and said, If thou shalt deliuer the children of Ammon into mine handes,
31 I will dedicate to the Lord whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me on my safe return from the battle. I will present it as a burnt offering.”
Then that thing that commeth out of the doores of mine house to meete me, when I come home in peace from the children of Ammon, shall be the Lordes, and I will offer it for a burnt offering.
32 Jephthah advanced to attack the Ammonites, and the Lord gave him the victory over them.
And so Iphtah went vnto the children of Ammon to fight against them, and the Lord deliuered them into his handes.
33 He soundly defeated them, capturing twenty cities from Aroer to the area around Minnith, up as far as Abel-keramim. This is how the Ammonites were conquered by the Israelites.
And he smote them from Aroer euen till thou come to Minnith, twentie cities, and so foorth to Abel of the vineyardes, with an exceeding great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were humbled before the children of Israel.
34 When Jephthah arrived home in Mizpah, there came his daughter out to meet him, with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child—he had no son or daughter apart from her.
Nowe when Iphtah came to Mizpeh vnto his house, beholde, his daughter came out to meete him with timbrels and daunces, which was his onely childe: he had none other sonne, nor daughter.
35 The moment he saw her, he ripped his clothes in agony and cried out, “Oh no, my daughter! You have crushed me completely! You have destroyed me, for I made a solemn promise to the Lord and I can't go back on it.”
And when hee sawe her, hee rent his clothes, and saide, Alas my daughter, thou hast brought me lowe, and art of them that trouble me: for I haue opened my mouth vnto the Lord, and can not goe backe.
36 She replied, “Father, you have made a solemn promise to the Lord. Do to me what you promised, for the Lord brought vengeance your enemies, the Ammonites.”
And she said vnto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth vnto the Lord, doe with me as thou hast promised, seeing that the Lord hath auenged thee of thine enemies the children of Ammon.
37 Then she went on to say to him, “Just let me do this: let me walk through the hills for two months with my friends and grieve the fact that I'll never marry.”
Also she saide vnto her father, Doe thus much for me: suffer me two moneths, that I may goe to the mountaines, and bewaile my virginitie, I and my fellowes.
38 “You can go,” he told her. He sent her away for two months, and she and her friends went into the hills and cried because she would never marry.
And he sayde, Goe: and he sent her away two moneths: so she went with her companions, and lamented her virginitie vpon the moutaines.
39 When the two months were over, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had promised, and she was a virgin. This is the origin of the custom in Israel
And after the ende of two moneths, she turned againe vnto her father, who did with her according to his vowe which he had vowed, and she had knowen no man. and it was a custome in Israel:
40 that every year the young women of Israel leave for four days to weep in commemoration of the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
The daughters of Israel went yere by yere to lament the daughter of Iphtah the Gileadite, foure dayes in a yeere.
