Meat Hebrews 11.32
September 28th 2014
Let’s pray, sing the Word set to music, spend some time in silence and come back to cover Hebrews 11:32-34
PRAY
SONG
SILENCE
We left off with the final full example the writer brings up for us to consider relative to acting by faith.
When I say full example I mean he cites the specific incident from the persons life mentions, and last week that was Rahab.
So let’s read six more people he mentions but does not tell us why – verse 32
Hebrews 11:32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
Six new people who operated by tremendous faith – and some of them who failed with as much gusto as they succeeded.
So let’s work through them and learn from the examples they present in faith.
The first thing to note is the author, having approached his topic with a plethora of examples has come to the end of his detailed exhortation and asks (in the King James)
And what shall I say more?
“Amidst the examples I have already given what else can I say” AND “there are so many more examples I could mention but time (and presumably space) won’t allow for it.”
And so he seems to list some names that are brought to mind by the Holy Spirit – and he mentions six:
Gideon
Barak
Samson
Jepthae
David and
Samuel
By the way, unlike what the writer has done from Abel to Rahab, these names are out of chronological order, already breaking form (in what he has already said) and offering up information in a new format.
So let’s talk about each of these biblical characters, pulling from scripture and sort of summarizing the recorded information of their lives up while at the same time trying to figure out what faithful acts they exhibited that got them a mention here in chapter 11.
So he first meets Gideon.
Gideon
called also Jerubbaal (after he destroyed the pagan altars of Baal – so Jerubbaal means CONTENDER WITH BAAL.
He was the first (of the judges) whose history is circumstantially narrated in the Old Testament. When he was called it started the second period in the history of the judges.
After the victory gained by Deborah and Barak over Jabin (which we will discuss in a minute) Israel once more sank into idolatry, and the Midianites and Amalekites, with other “children of the east,” crossed the Jordan each year for seven successive years for the purpose of plundering and desolating the land.
In the face of this Gideon received a direct call from God to undertake the task of delivering the land from these warlike invaders.
He was of the family of Abiezer (Jos 17:2; 1Ch 7:18), and of the little township of Ophrah (Jg 6:11).
With ten of his servants, he first overthrew the altars of Baal and cut down the god which was upon it, and then blew the trumpet of alarm, and the people flocked to his standard on the crest of Mount Gilboa to the number of twenty-two thousand men.
These 23000 (however) were reduced to only three hundred and it was this small army (led by Gideon) that, armed with torches and pitchers and trumpets, rushed in from three different points on the camp of Midian at midnight, in the valley to the north of Moreh, and with the terrible war-cry, “For the Lord and for Gideon” over took them as the terror-stricken Midianites flew into confusion, and in the darkness slew one another, so that only fifteen thousand out of the great army of one hundred and twenty thousand escaped alive.
The memory of this great deliverance at the hand of God through faithful Gideon impressed itself deeply on the mind of the nation of Israel and the land rested fro some forty years.
Gideon died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of his fathers.
Soon after his death a change came over the people. They (of course) forgot Jehovah and turned to the worship of Baalim, but they were cruel to the house (or progeny) of Gideon.
Well old Gideon was fond of wives and concubines and from them he left behind seventy sons.
Apparently they were sort of collectively degenerate – with one exception – one bore to him from a concubine and named Abimelech.
He seemed to possess the courage and energy of his father, yet was also of a restless and unscrupulous ambition and with this spirit gathered all his brothers around and slaughtered all but one (Jotham) on a stone.
It appears that Gideon was noted for his great faith in the face of taking on the worshippers of Baal and in going into battle with an army of 120,000 men – with only 300 who bore torches, jars of clay, and horns, once again proving that the men and women of faith trust that God would deliver them as promised – inspite of what appeared to be insurmountable odds.
And of Barak. The account of Barak can be found in Judges 4:1-24 and I think it is worth reading – which we’ll do in a second.
But to understand Barak and his faith I think it is important to understand Deborah the prophetess.
She was the “wife” (apparently and depending on the Hebrew interpretation) of Lapidoth.
Well for twenty years Jabin, the king of Hazor, had reign over Israel and the spirit of patriotism seemed non-existent in the entire nation.
It was in this setting that Deborah roused the people from their lethargy and her fame spread far and wide.
Judges 4:6 and 5:7 suggest that she had became a “mother in Israel.” In time “the children of Israel came up to her for judgment” and she sat in her tent under the palm tree “between Ramah and Bethel.”
Deborah worked very hard to break the yoke of bondage that was around the neck of Israel.
It was at this time that she summoned the man Barak (from Kadesh) to take the command of 10,000 men of the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali and to lead them to Mount Tabor on the plain of Esdraelon.
Barak agreed to the task if Deborah accompanied him – which she did.
So with 10,000 men she organized an army, gave the signal for attack, and the men rushed down impetuously upon the army of Jabin (which was at the time commanded by a warrior named Sisera) and due to Barak’s leadership the nation of Israel gained a great and decisive victory.
As stated, we read about this in Judges 4, which says:
Judges 4:1 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead.
2 And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles.
3 And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.
4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.
5 And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.
6 And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?
7 And I will draw unto thee to the river Kishon Sisera, the captain of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude; and I will deliver him into thine hand.
8 And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go.
9 And she said, I will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour; for the LORD shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.
10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and he went up with ten thousand men at his feet: and Deborah went up with him.
11 Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.
12 And they shewed Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor.
13 And Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the river of Kishon.
14 And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thine hand: is not the LORD gone out before thee? So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him.
15 And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet.
16 But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host of Sisera fell upon the edge of the sword; and there was not a man left.
17 Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.
18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a mantle.
19 And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him.
20 Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No.
21 Then Jael Heber’s wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.
22 And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will shew thee the man whom thou seekest. And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail was in his temples.
23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children of Israel.
24 And the hand of the children of Israel prospered, and prevailed against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.
The story of Barak is interesting because he showed his faith in the prophetess and insights of Deborah – presumably trusting she had God’s ear.
It is also noteworthy to see that the prophetess Deborah lead the Nation of Israel and it was a time of victory not defeat.
And then we have Samson – one of my favorite Old Testament figures.
Interestingly enough I have found that Samson is sort of treated like the male Rabab in Christianity as commentators, in light of him being mentioned here in Hebrews 11, always want to make sure we don’t hold Samson up as a good example in EVERYTHING he did, just in those places where he proved himself to be a man of faith.
Samson, a Hebrew name which means, “of the sun,” was the only son of Manoah, born at Zorah.
We can read about the narrative of his life in Judges 13, which says:
Judges 13:1 And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.
2 And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not.
3 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.
4 Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing:
5 For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.
6 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name:
7 But he said unto me, Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, neither eat any unclean thing: for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb to the day of his death.
8 Then Manoah intreated the LORD, and said, O my Lord, let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.
9 And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again unto the woman as she sat in the field: but Manoah her husband was not with her.
10 And the woman made haste, and ran, and shewed her husband, and said unto him, Behold, the man hath appeared unto me, that came unto me the other day.
11 And Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said unto him, Art thou the man that spakest unto the woman? And he said, I am.
12 And Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass. How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?
13 And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.
14 She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe.
15 And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, I pray thee, let us detain thee, until we shall have made ready a kid for thee.
16 And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread: and if thou wilt offer a burnt offering, thou must offer it unto the LORD. For Manoah knew not that he was an angel of the LORD.
17 And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honor?
18 And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?
19 So Manoah took a kid with a meat offering, and offered it upon a rock unto the LORD: and the angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on.
20 For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground.
21 But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the LORD.
22 And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God.
23 But his wife said unto him, If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as these.
24 ¶ And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him.
25 And the Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.
Samson was a “Nazarite unto God” from his birth, the first Nazarite mentioned in Scripture and one of three biblical Nazarites from birth (with the other two being Samuel and John the Baptist).
The first recorded event of his life was his marriage with a Philistine woman of Timnath (Jg 14:1-5). Such a marriage was not forbidden by the law of Moses, as the Philistines did not form one of the seven doomed Canaanite nations according to Exodus 34:11-16 and/or Deuteronomy 7:1-4).
It was, however, an unblessed marriage. According to Judges 14:20 his wife was soon taken from him and given “to his companion.”
We don’t really know the circumstances of this – but we do know that Samson took revenge by burning the “standing corn of the Philistines.”
We learn in Judge 15:1-8 that the Philistines, in turn and revenge “burnt her and her father with fire.”
Not a good move. Because it caused Samson to avenge her death. This is how it went down.
Judge 15:7 And Samson said unto them, Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.
8 And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.
9 Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi.
10 And the men of Judah said, Why are ye come up against us? And they answered, To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.
11 Then three thousand men of Judah went to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what is this that thou hast done unto us? And he said unto them, As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.
12 And they said unto him, We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines. And Samson said unto them, Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.
13 And they spake unto him, saying, No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand: but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock.
14 And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.
15 And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.
16 And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.
17 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand, and called that place Ramathlehi.
18 And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?
19 But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.
20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
After this we have an account of his exploits at Gaza and of his infatuation for Delilah and her treachery and then of his melancholy death.
He perished in the last terrible destruction he brought upon his enemies.
Judges 16:20 says “So the dead which he slew at his death were more (in terms of social and political importance=the elite of the people) than they which he slew in his life.”
With all Samson’s foibles (especially when it came to women) he obviously evidenced remarkable confidence in God, by relying on the strength which he gave him to do supernatural things.
We don’t know which act or acts of his life the writer is referring, but whatever they were, they were accomplished by Samson having enough faith to call on God to give him strength – which he did.
After reviewing all the story of Samson I can’t help but think (myself) that Samson’s greatest feat of faith came in the end of his life.
I suggest this because it was AFTER his failure to keep his secret, it was AFTER he fell prey to Delila, and it was AFTER they blinded him and he was put in prison grinding away in the millhouse.
Right?
I mean he could have resigned himself over to utter defeat and just accepted his fate as being deserved and that God was through with him.
But instead, there was a great gathering of Philistines, in a hall of about 3000 people. And they brought Samson out from the grindhouse, blinded, but with hair that had grown back. And so he had a lad place him between two pillars and this is what we read:
(Judges 16:28) And Samson called unto the LORD, and said, O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.
29 And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was borne up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left.
30 And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.”
I love the story of Samson partly because of the heroic nature, partly because of his feet of clay for women, and partly because despite the fact that he fell into the hands of the Philistines by way of Delila, and lost his strength,was physically maimed and temporarily rendered as all other men, he cried out to the living God, and in faith asked Him to empower him . . . just one more time.
And God responded, showing that while Samson may have paid the price on earth for his weaknesses, God reacts to faith.
Okay – tough one now, folks – Jephthae.
Let’s begin by reading what scripture says of him – Judges 11:1-40. It’s a wild story.
1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
2 And Gilead’s wife bare him sons; and his wife’s sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said unto him, “Thou shalt not inherit in our father’s house; for thou art the son of a strange woman.”
3 Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him.
4 And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.
5 And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob:
6 And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
7 And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father’s house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?
8 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.
9 And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, shall I be your head?
10 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah, The LORD be witness between us, if we do not so according to thy words.
11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh.
12 And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land?
(I am going to skip over verses 13-28 – just note that they contain a discussion over why the Children of Ammon are battling the Children of Israel. At verse 29 we enter into the troubling part of Jephthah.)
But we might assume that Jephthah was included in Hebrews 11 because of His faith and trust that God would lead Him into victory against the children of Ammon.
Seems like an act of great faith. The trouble is at verse 29 we read about a big mistake Jephthah makes and some people think THIS is the reason he is mentioned in Hebrews 11.
29 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon.
30 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands,
31 Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD’S, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.
32 So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hands.
33 And he smote them from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.
34 And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.
36 And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.
37 And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows.
38 And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.
39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel,
40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.
This story has caused no small disagreement among biblical expositors as to the character of Jephthah.
Again, the thinking is first, Did Jepthah, who made a rash vow, actually carry the death of his daughter out? And if so, is it THIS that makes him a candidate for Hebrews 11?
And if this is the case WHY? How?
I would first point out that comparing Rahab and Samson to the question we have with Jepthah is NOT the same thing – which has escaped a number of commentators.
Rahab was a harlot but the writer of Hebrews was not including her in the Hall of Fame of faith due to her harlotry. It was due to her faith and trust in the promises made to her in saving the spies.
Samson, while failing in his flesh with women was not held up as a bastion of faith FOR this failure – but because in spite of it, he continued to be a man of faith.
But to suggest that Jepthah was named in Hebrews 11 because he had his daughter sacrificed would be a mistake in the comparative.
Jepthah made a rash and foolish promise to God – certainly he was not mentioned because he saw the promise through to the end.
And while we are at it, there is a lot of question as to weather he carried the action out on his daughter or not – we’ll discuss this in a minute.
But first of all I think we are safe in believing that Jepthah was included here in Hebrews 11 due to his confidently depending on God’s protection in the confrontation with Ammon’s sons.
Now, to his daughter.
Jepthah, it seems, did not believe his daughter would come out to greet him upon his return but an animal of some sort.
But his daughter appeared – breaking his and her heart.
If He sacrificed her due to the promise then we have a person who went even further than Abraham and Isaac.
At the same time, we have to admit that God could have had a dog run out ahead of Jepthah’s daughter – but He didn’t. And if He didn’t, and he permitted Jepthah to actually sacrifice her as many commentators suppose, we have a problem with our explanation of Abraham and Isaac.
Some have suggested the valor Jepthah showed in carrying this rash vow out to the fullest – I have to question this view.
In reading the actual text, it seems to me that Jepthah does NOT physically take the life of his daughter but endorses a life of celibacy (and therefore childlessness) for her – possibly, for a Jewish woman, a fate worse than death.
Remember, this is what the narrative says:
37 And she said unto her father, “Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows.
Now, we could read this in a sort of mystical, Lord of the Rings sort of way – that she is a wandering mountain woman dressed in black roaming in the mountains and wailing . . . OR we could suggest that she was going to go and visit her peers or even possible other women whose fathers had pledged them too.
(verse 38)
38 And he said, “Go.” And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.
39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed:
Now, what was the vow? That whatever met him on his return he would offer up as a burnt offering.
So, many believe that when verse 39 says that he did with her according to his vow,” that this is exactly what he did – took her life and offered her up as a burnt offering.
Some go so far as to suggest this is a “beautiful picture” of God giving up His only begotten Son as the same.
I personally have a real hard time with this view – you may not – I do. I do not believe God would hold Jepthah to such a thing. He could have “repented” (changed his mind with God, right?)
Some say that when an oath was given that was it – done – no changing minds. You have to decide for yourselves.
But if we read the whole passage I think we have a much clearer understanding of what this meant.
39 “And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man.”
In light of this added line I am of the opinion that the sacrifice of Jepthah was that his only daughter would maintain her virginity throughout her life, and therefore bear no children, and being the ONLY child of Jepthah, would bring him no grandchildren – that was the burnt offering both he and his daughter committed to do.
“And it was a custom in Israel,
40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.”
In the King James this passage can be read that for four daughters out of the year the daughters of Israel mourned her death.
But Adam Clarke, in his studies and commentary believes this translation is far afield of what it should be and strongly suggests, appealing to the Hebrew, that the verse should read:
“But this custom prevailed in Israel that the virgins of Israel went at different times, four days in the year, to the daughter of Jephthah, that they might comfort her.”
He adds:
“This translation gives evidence that the daughter of Jephthah was not sacrificed: nor does it appear that the custom or statute referred to here lasted after the death of Jephthah’s daughter.”
I can’t help but agree with Adam Clarke – NOT because the former translation disagrees with MY senses, but because it stands stronger with the overall descriptions of God and His ways.
Q and A
