Judges 11
1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. Gilead was his father.
And Jephthah the Gileadite has been a mighty man of valor, and he [is the] son of a harlot woman; and Gilead begets Jephthah,
2 Gilead's wife also gave birth to his other sons. When his wife's sons grew up, they forced Jephthah to leave the house and said to him, “You are not going to inherit anything from our family. You are the son of another woman.”
and the wife of Gilead bears sons to him, and the wife’s sons grow up and cast Jephthah out, and say to him, “You do not inherit in the house of our father; for you [are the] son of another woman.”
3 So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob. Lawless men joined Jephthah and they came and went with him.
And Jephthah flees from the face of his brothers, and dwells in the land of Tob; and vain men gather themselves together to Jephthah, and they go out with him.
4 Some days later, the people of Ammon made war against Israel.
And it comes to pass, after a time, that the sons of Ammon fight with Israel,
5 When the people of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah back from the land of Tob.
and it comes to pass, when the sons of Ammon have fought with Israel, that [the] elderly of Gilead go to take Jephthah from the land of Tob;
6 They said to Jephthah, “Come and be our leader that we may fight with the people of Ammon.”
and they say to Jephthah, “Come, and you have been for a captain to us, and we fight against the sons of Ammon.”
7 Jephthah said to the leaders of Gilead, “You hated me and forced me to leave my father's house. Why do you come to me now when you are in trouble?”
And Jephthah says to [the] elderly of Gilead, “Have you not hated me? And you cast me out from the house of my father, and why have you come to me now when you are in distress?”
8 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “That is why we are turning to you now; come with us and fight with the people of Ammon, and you will become the leader over all who live in Gilead.”
And [the] elderly of Gilead say to Jephthah, “Therefore, now, we have turned back to you; and you have gone with us, and have fought against the sons of Ammon, and you have been for head to us—to all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
9 Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you bring me home again to fight against the people of Ammon, and if Yahweh gives us victory over them, I will be your leader.”
And Jephthah says to [the] elderly of Gilead, “If you are taking me back to fight against the sons of Ammon, and YHWH has given them before me—am I for a head to you?”
10 The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “May Yahweh be witness between us if we do not do as we say!”
And [the] elderly of Gilead say to Jephthah, “YHWH is listening between us—if we do not do so according to your word.”
11 So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him leader and commander over them. When he was before Yahweh in Mizpah, Jephthah repeated all the promises he made.
And Jephthah goes with [the] elderly of Gilead, and the people set him over them for head and for captain, and Jephthah speaks all his words before YHWH in Mizpeh.
12 Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the people of Ammon, saying, “What is this conflict between us? Why have you come with force to take our land?”
And Jephthah sends messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, “What [is this] to me and to you, that you have come to me, to fight in my land?”
13 The king of the people of Ammon answered to the messengers of Jephthah, “Because when Israel came up out of Egypt, they seized my land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, over to the Jordan. Now give back those lands in peace.”
And the king of the sons of Ammon says to the messengers of Jephthah, “Because Israel took my land in his coming up out of Egypt, from Arnon, and to the Jabbok, and to the Jordan; and now, restore them in peace.”
14 Again Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the people of Ammon,
And Jephthah adds yet and sends messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon,
15 and he said, “This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take the land of Moab and the land of the people of Ammon,
and says to him, “Thus said Jephthah: Israel did not take the land of Moab, and the land of the sons of Ammon,
16 but they came up from Egypt, and Israel went through the wilderness to the Sea of Reeds and on to Kadesh.
for in their coming up out of Egypt, Israel goes in the wilderness to the Red Sea, and comes to Kadesh,
17 When Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, 'Please let us pass through your land,' the king of Edom would not listen. They also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he refused. So Israel stayed at Kadesh.
and Israel sends messengers to the king of Edom, saying, Please let me pass over through your land, and the king of Edom did not listen; and [Israel] has also sent to the king of Moab, and he has not been willing; and Israel abides in Kadesh,
18 Then they went through the wilderness and turned away from the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and they went along the east side of the land of Moab and they camped on the other side of the Arnon. But they did not go into the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was Moab's border.
and he goes through the wilderness, and goes around the land of Edom and the land of Moab, and comes in at the rising of the sun of the land of Moab, and they encamp beyond Arnon, and have not come into the border of Moab, for Arnon [is] the border of Moab.
19 Israel sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon; Israel said to him, 'Please, let us pass through your land to the place that is ours.'
And Israel sends messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and Israel says to him, Please let us pass over through your land, to my place,
20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So Sihon gathered all his army together and moved it to Jahaz, and there he fought against Israel.
and Sihon has not trusted Israel to pass over through his border, and Sihon gathers all his people, and they encamp in Jahaz, and fight with Israel;
21 Then Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel and they defeated them. So Israel took all the land of the Amorites who lived in that country.
and YHWH, God of Israel, gives Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they strike them, and Israel possesses all the land of the Amorite, the inhabitant of that land,
22 They took over everything within the territory of the Amorites, from the Arnon to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness to the Jordan.
and they possess all the border of the Amorite from Arnon, and to the Jabbok, and from the wilderness, and to the Jordan.
23 So then Yahweh, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites before his people Israel, and should you now take possession of their land?
And now, YHWH, God of Israel, has dispossessed the Amorite from the presence of His people Israel, and you would possess it!
24 Will you not take over the land that Chemosh, your god, gives you? So whatever land Yahweh our God has given us, we will take over.
That which your god Chemosh causes you to possess—do you not possess it? And all that which our God YHWH has dispossessed from our presence—we possess it.
25 Now are you really better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he dare to have an argument with Israel? Did he ever wage war against them?
And now, [are] you at all better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he strive with Israel at all? Did he fight against them at all?
26 While Israel lived for three hundred years in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities that are along the banks of the Arnon—why then did you not take them back during that time?
In Israel’s dwelling in Heshbon and in its towns, and in Aroer and in its towns, and in all the cities which [are] by the sides of Arnon [for] three hundred years—and why have you not delivered them in that time?
27 I have not done you wrong, but you are doing me wrong by attacking me. Yahweh, the judge, will decide today between the people of Israel and the people of Ammon.”
And I have not sinned against you, and you are doing evil with me—to fight against me. YHWH, the Judge, judges between the sons of Israel and the sons of Ammon today.”
28 But the king of the people of Ammon rejected the warning Jephthah sent him.
And the king of the sons of Ammon has not listened to the words of Jephthah which he sent to him,
29 Then the Spirit of Yahweh came on Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he passed through to the people of Ammon.
and the Spirit of YHWH is on Jephthah, and he passes over Gilead and Manasseh, and passes over Mizpeh of Gilead, and he has passed over from Mizpeh of Gilead to the sons of Ammon.
30 Jephthah made a vow to Yahweh and said, “If you give me victory over the people of Ammon,
And Jephthah vows a vow to YHWH and says, “If You give the sons of Ammon into my hand at all—
31 then whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the people of Ammon will belong to Yahweh, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”
then it has been, that which comes out from the doors of my house at all to meet me in my turning back in peace from the sons of Ammon—it has been for YHWH, or I have offered up a burnt-offering for it.”
32 So Jephthah passed through to the people of Ammon to fight against them, and Yahweh gave him victory.
And Jephthah passes over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them, and YHWH gives them into his hand,
33 He attacked them and caused a great slaughter from Aroer as far as Minnith—twenty cities—and to Abel Keramim. So the people of Ammon were put under the control of the people of Israel.
and he strikes them from Aroer, and to [where] you are going in to Minnith—twenty cities—and to the meadow of the vineyards, [with] a very great striking; and the sons of Ammon are humbled at the presence of the sons of Israel.
34 Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah, and there his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dancing. She was his only child, and besides her he had neither son nor daughter.
And Jephthah comes into Mizpeh, to his house, and behold, his daughter is coming out to meet him with timbrels, and with choruses, and except her alone, he has no son or daughter.
35 As soon as he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Oh! My daughter! You have crushed me with sorrow, and you have become one who causes me pain! For I have made an oath to Yahweh, and I cannot turn back on my promise.”
And it comes to pass, when he sees her, that he tears his garments and says, “Aah! My daughter, you have caused me to bend greatly, and you have been among those troubling me; and I have opened my mouth to YHWH, and I am not able to turn back.”
36 She said to him, “My father, you have made a vow to Yahweh, do to me everything you promised, because Yahweh has taken vengeance for you against your enemies, the Ammonites.”
And she says to him, “My father, you have opened your mouth to YHWH, do to me as it has gone out from your mouth, after that YHWH has done vengeance for you on your enemies, on the sons of Ammon.”
37 She said to her father, “Let this promise be kept for me. Leave me alone for two months, that I may leave and go down to the hills and grieve over my virginity, I and my companions.”
And she says to her father, “Let this thing be done to me; desist from me [for] two months, and I go on, and have gone down on the hills, and I weep for my virginity—I and my friends.”
38 He said, “Go.” He sent her away for two months. She left him, she and her companions, and they grieved her virginity in the hills.
And he says, “Go”; and he sends her away [for] two months, and she goes, she and her friends, and she weeps for her virginity on the hills;
39 At the end of two months she returned to her father, who did with her according to the promise of the vow he had made. Now she had never slept with a man, and it became a custom in Israel
and it comes to pass at the end of two months that she turns back to her father, and he does to her his vow which he has vowed, and she did not know a man; and it is a statute in Israel:
40 that the daughters of Israel every year, for four days, would retell the story of the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
from time to time the daughters of Israel go to talk to the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite, four days in a year.
