Judges 11:8-18

8 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, For this same reason we turn again to thee now that thou may go with us and fight against the sons of Ammon and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.

9 Then Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the sons of Ammon and the LORD delivers them before me, shall I be your head?

10 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, Let the LORD hear between us, if we do not comply with thy words.

11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and prince over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh.

12 And Jephthah sent ambassadors unto the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me that thou art come against me to fight in my land?

13 And the king of the sons of Ammon replied unto the ambassadors of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even unto Jabbok and unto the Jordan; now, therefore, restore those lands again peaceably.

14 Then Jephthah sent ambassadors again unto the king of the sons of Ammon,

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.

Judges 11:8-18 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.