by Prisca | 20 July 2021 08:46 pm07
Welcome to our continuing study on women in the Bible. Today, we focus on a remarkable and often overlooked woman: Jephthah’s daughter, the only child of one of Israel’s judges.
Jephthah was one of the judges of Israel (Judges 11). In those times, a judge wasn’t merely a legal figure they held national leadership roles, akin to kings, though without the royal title. Jephthah, a mighty warrior, rose to prominence during a time of great crisis when the Ammonites oppressed Israel.
Judges 11:1 (ESV) “Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior…”
As Jephthah prepared for war against the Ammonites, he made a vow to God out of desperation:
Judges 11:30-31 (ESV)
“And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, ‘If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace… shall be the Lord’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.’”
Jephthah likely expected a servant or animal to greet him not his only child. But when he returned victorious, his daughter came out to meet him, dancing with tambourines, full of joy.
Judges 11:34 (ESV)
“Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah. And behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances. She was his only child…”
His joy turned into anguish.
Upon hearing her fate, the daughter of Jephthah didn’t panic, rebel, or resist. Instead, she submitted to her father’s vow, knowing that God had delivered Israel.
Judges 11:36 (ESV)
“And she said to him, ‘My father, you have opened your mouth to the Lord; do to me according to what has gone out of your mouth, now that the Lord has avenged you on your enemies, on the Ammonites.’”
Rather than fear death, she mourned one thing: her virginity. She would never marry or have children.
Judges 11:37-38 (ESV)
“So she said to her father, ‘Let this thing be done for me: leave me alone two months, that I may go up and down on the mountains and weep for my virginity…’”
After two months, she returned, and her father fulfilled the vow.
There’s much theological debate here. Some scholars believe she was literally offered as a burnt offering, while others argue that she was consecrated to perpetual virginity, serving God for life, much like women in temple service (cf. Exodus 38:8; 1 Samuel 2:22). However, the plain reading of Judges 11:39 suggests an actual sacrifice:
Judges 11:39 (ESV)
“And at the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow that he had made…”
Regardless of the interpretation, her submission and sacrifice remain extraordinary.
Many admire Isaac for his near sacrifice in Genesis 22. But consider this: Isaac didn’t know he was the sacrifice.
Genesis 22:7-8 (ESV)
“Isaac said… ‘Where is the lamb for a burnt offering?’ Abraham said, ‘God will provide…’”
Isaac was spared by divine intervention. Jephthah’s daughter was not spared. She faced her fate with full understanding and willing submission, just like Christ.
Her story mirrors Christ’s:
Voluntary submission: She chose to face death, as Christ did.
Single sacrifice: She offered herself once for a greater cause.
Unknown and uncelebrated: Like many silent heroes of the faith, she remains largely forgotten.
Hebrews 11:35 (ESV)
“Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.”
Jephthah’s daughter fits this verse perfectly. She is unnamed in Scripture, yet her faith speaks louder than many named heroes.
Jesus said:
Matthew 12:42 (ESV)
“The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it…”
If the Queen of Sheba will judge a generation for failing to seek wisdom, how much more will Jephthah’s daughter stand to judge women who refuse to give themselves wholly to God?
She gave up:
Her youth
Her marriage
Her future
Her life
All for the sake of God’s honor and her father’s vow.
Know your identity in God not through the world’s eyes.
Sacrifice is part of faith true Christianity involves cost (Luke 9:23).
Your gender is not a limitation some of the greatest faith in Scripture was shown by women.
Live with eternity in mind Jephthah’s daughter looked beyond this life.
To the women reading this:
You are not too young, too poor, or too weak to serve God powerfully. Learn from heroines like Jephthah’s daughter women whose faith shook heaven, even if they are forgotten on earth.
She wasn’t poor her father was a national leader.
She wasn’t nameless to God her story is preserved in Scripture.
She wasn’t pitiful she was powerful in spirit.
She didn’t fear death she embraced it, trusting in the resurrection and reward.
May you be inspired by the faith of this forgotten daughter of Israel, and may her courage stir your heart to rise in bold faith, as a woman, as a servant, and as a disciple of Christ.
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