Jephthah: OT Bad Boy or Hero of the Faith? Or Both? Part 2

The Daughter of Jephthah, by Alexandre Cabanel (1879)

This article continues from a previous article, introducing Jephthah from Hebrews 11 and Judges 10-11. Was he truly a “hero of the faith?” Read on and learn more.

Was Jephthah’s vow rash or a sign of faith? 11:29-32

Jephthah is empowered for battle by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit came on people in the Old Testament to accomplish a task but also to infuse character. People who argue that Jephthah didn’t sacrifice his only daughter point out that the vow comes contextually right after the empowering of the Holy Spirit. Vows to God are not to be made rashly or hastily. Remember Ecclesiastes 5:2-6:

“Do not be quick with your mouth,
    do not be hasty in your heart
    to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven
    and you are on earth,
    so let your words be few.
A dream comes when there are many cares,
    and many words mark the speech of a fool.

When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow.  It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.  Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, ‘My vow was a mistake.’ Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?”

But Jephthah’s vow wouldn’t be the first time someone’s words were spoken out of enthusiasm. And it’s hard getting around the Hebrew word in Judges 11:31 which translates as a “whole burnt offering.”

Yet God, who detests human sacrifice (Lev.18:21; Deut.12:31), grants an overwhelming victory (11:32-33). How could he endorse in Hebrews 11 a Jephthah as a hero of the faith if he indeed sacrificed his daughter?

After the overwhelming victory over the Ammonites (vv.32-33), Jephthah’s elation quickly turns to despair (v.34ff.). He never expected his only daughter to appear first at the door. For those who believe he literally sacrificed his daughter point out that while it’s a sin to break a vow, it’s an even greater sin to fulfill it. Such was the case if he truly killed his daughter. If so, Jephthah was no better than the Ammonites who practiced child sacrifice.

But those who argue against Jephthah killing his daughter insist that she was merely being sacrificed to a life of service to the Lord (cf. Exodus 38:8) instead of enjoying marriage and family life. And a burnt offering can be symbolic in the sense that the entire animal (in this case, a daughter) is offered up as a living sacrifice (Rom.12:1). As another example of lifetime service and sacrifice, consider the prophetess Anna in Luke 2:36-38:

There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

This scene in Judges reminds us of Abraham’s willingness to offer his one and only son Isaac, the child of promise, as a sacrifice. And of course, God the Father offered his one and only Son Jesus for the once-for-all sacrifice for the sins of the world. (Romans 8:32)

Both men, Abraham and Jephthah, were willing to sacrifice that which was dearest to them, entrusting the outcome to God. Jephthah, not knowing who would come first out of his house, committed to God, that for him, was the most costly sacrifice, his only daughter.

After her willingness to submit to her father’s vow, Jephthah’s daughter justifiably mourns her future but returns to her father. Judges 11:39 emphasizes her virginity, not the sacrifice.

And the remembrance in vv.39b-40 certainly couldn’t honor a human sacrifice. Instead, Jephthah’s daughter is held up as an example of faithfulness and submission to God’s will. This is another way of looking at Jephthah’s story.

Wherever you stand on Jephthah, remember that all the heroes of Hebrews 11 were flawed people. For example, Abraham had a child through his wife’s servant. Jacob was scheming and treacherous. Moses failed to enter the promised land because of impatience. Rahab, well, you know about her past! Samson and David had very public moral failures. To be clear, God never condoned these actions.

Yet they are all commended for their faith. Jephthah, for his part, by faith “conquered kingdoms”. (Hebrews 11:32)

The 16th century reformer Martin Luther once said, “God uses crooked sticks to draw straight lines.”

Jephthah was just such a crooked stick that God used to straighten things out, at least for a time, in his divided country.