Judges 11:15-25

15 saying unto him, Thus hath Jephthah said, Israel did not take land from Moab, nor land from the sons of Ammon,

16 but Israel came up from Egypt and walked through the wilderness unto the Red sea and came to Kadesh.

17 Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land. But the king of Edom would not hear them. And in like manner they sent unto the king of Moab, but he would not consent either; therefore Israel abode in Kadesh.

18 Then they went along through the wilderness and went around the land of Edom and the land of Moab and came by the side of the rising of the sun to the land of Moab; they pitched their camp on the other side of Arnon and did not enter within the border of Moab, for Arnon was the border of Moab.

19 And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon, king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my place.

20 But Sihon did not trust Israel to pass through his border; but Sihon gathered all his people together and pitched camp in Jahaz and fought against Israel.

21 But the LORD God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them; so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorite that inhabited that land.

22 And they possessed all the border of the Amorites from Arnon even unto Jabbok and from the wilderness even unto the Jordan.

23 So now the LORD God of Israel has expelled the Amorites from before his people Israel and should thou possess it?

24 If Chemosh thy god should expel anyone for you, would thou not possess it? So whoever the LORD our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.

25 Art thou better now in any thing than Balak, the son of Zippor, king of Moab? Peradventure did he ever strive against Israel? Peradventure did he ever fight against them?

Judges 11:15-25 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 11

This chapter gives an account of another judge of Israel, Jephthah, of his descent and character, Jud 11:1-3 of the call the elders of Gilead gave him to be their captain general, and lead out their forces against the Ammonites, and the agreement he made with them, Jud 11:4-11 of the message he sent to the children of Ammon, which brought on a dispute between him and them about the land Israel possessed on that side Jordan the Ammonites claimed; Israel's right to which Jephthah defended, and made it clearly to appear, hoping thereby to put an end to the quarrel without shedding of blood, Jud 11:12-27 but the children of Ammon not attending to what he said, he prepared to give them battle, and previous to it he made a vow, and then set forward and fought them, and got the victory over them, Jud 11:28-33 and the chapter concludes with the difficulties Jephthah was embarrassed with upon his return home, on account of his vow, and the performance of it, Jud 11:34-40.