Friday, February 12: Judges 11- Jephthah

I found Jephthah’s story so rich I decided to sit with it two times today contemplating verses 1-30 in the morning and 29-40 later in the day.

Verses 1-30; second chances…

Rejected, abused and eventually run off by his family, Jephthah’s early life was one of compounding disappointment. As painful as it must have been, I found two elements of the account fascinating, even inspiring.

First Jephthah never gave up or gave in to the devastation of his early life. He didn’t allow those rejections to define him. Forced from his family, he rebuilt his life in another town where his natural leadership gifts drew others to follow him. How he was able to do this, I don’t know. I can only guess since the text is silent. But that he did this is a certainty.

Second, Jephthah maintained the spiritual heritage of his Israelite family even though his brothers ran him out of town. Another way to say this is that Jephthah didn’t blame God or turn his back of God for his lousy family and the abuse they heaped on him. Instead he apparently stayed close to the Lord despite his family rejecting him. It is amazing to me that during a time when Israel has forsaken the Lord, Jephthah recites perfectly the history of his people to the attacking king, and before a single sword clashes Jephthah turns to the Lord for help and strength with a vow.

As the story goes, Jephthah’s people turn to him in their hour of need and God blesses him and graces him as the one to save Israel from the Amorite threat. And so God gives Jephthah a second chance with his family.

I love second chance stories. But what strikes me this morning is how Jephthah reacted and lived with the rejections of his early years. He never gave up on God and never gave up on himself… here’s the morsel I chewed on during the day…

Lord, thank You for the myriad of second chance You have given me, and You continue to give to be. Thank You. … amen.

 

Verses 29-40; a man of his word…

For me these verses are some of the most disturbing in scripture… I cringe reading it. At the same time, Jephthah inspires me because he lives up to his word, despite the supreme cost. Jephthah is Abraham without the angel shouting, “STOP.” [Tidbit, Hebrews 11:32 lauds Jephthah as a man of faith!]

We live in an era when a person’s word is broken at the mere thought of discomfort or when a better offer is presented

[examples abound, athletes and coaches regularly sign contracts which they then break when they want more money or a better coaching job comes calling… why give your word in the contract in the first place? Marriages break up after pledging “fidelity” (whatever happened to that concept!?!) and vowing that the marriage will “be for better or worse.”]

Jephthah, reminds us that a vow before God is a vow no matter how difficult it is to fulfill and in this case no matter how foolish a vow it was to make in the first place.

Like it or not Jephthah is a man of his word, period.

Jephthah’s example is a prime reason why I read through the Bible yearly. Back in the 70’s I prayed, “Lord if I can find the money to buy this new Bible call the NIV, I will read it every year of my life.” Well I found the money and bought the Bible, I read it voraciously early on. But honestly, there have been seasons and years when I have said to myself I have read it so many times maybe this year I can only read parts of it… Invariably Jephthah comes to mind. If he can fulfill his vow of sacrificing the first thing that came out of his house, which to his dismay turned out to be his daughter, then I can suck it up and be a man of my word and read God’s word.

Lord Jesus, this story drives me to two connected prayers. First Lord, guard my heart and mouth from making foolish and impulsive vows to You or to others. Secondly, Lord give me the fortitude to be a man of my word, and when I make a vow to You or others to keep it. Amen.