29 Now the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah , so that he passed through Gilead and Manasseh ; then he passed through Mizpah of Gilead , and from Mizpah of Gilead he went on to the sons of Ammon . 30 Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said , "If You will indeed give the sons of Ammon into my hand , 31 then it shall be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon , it shall be the Lord'S , and I will offer it up as a burnt offering ." 32 So Jephthah crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them; and the Lord gave them into his hand . 33 He struck them with a very great slaughter from Aroer to the entrance of Minnith , twenty cities , and as far as Abel-keramim . So the sons of Ammon were subdued before e the sons of Israel . 34 When Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah , behold , his daughter was coming out to meet him with tambourines and with dancing . Now she was his one and only child ; besides her he had no son or daughter . 35 When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said , "Alas , my daughter ! You have brought me very low , and you are among those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the Lord , and I cannot e take it back ." 36 So she said to him, "My father , you have given your word to the Lord ; do to me as you have said e e , since e the Lord has avenged you of your enemies , the sons of Ammon ." 37 She said to her father , "Let this thing be done for me; let me alone e two months , that I may go e to the mountains and weep because of my virginity , I and my companions ." 38 Then he said , "Go ." So he sent her away for two months ; and she left with her companions , and wept on the mountains because of her virginity . 39 At the end of two months she returned to her father , who did to her according to the vow which he had made ; and she had no relations with a man . Thus it became a custom in Israel , 40 that the daughters of Israel went yearly to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in the year .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Judges 11:29-40
Commentary on Judges 11:29-40
(Read Judges 11:29-40)
Several important lessons are to be learned from Jephthah's vow. 1. There may be remainders of distrust and doubting, even in the hearts of true and great believers. 2. Our vows to God should not be as a purchase of the favour we desire, but to express gratitude to him. 3. We need to be very well-advised in making vows, lest we entangle ourselves. 4. What we have solemnly vowed to God, we must perform, if it be possible and lawful, though it be difficult and grievous to us. 5. It well becomes children, obediently and cheerfully to submit to their parents in the Lord. It is hard to say what Jephthah did in performance of his vow; but it is thought that he did not offer his daughter as a burnt-offering. Such a sacrifice would have been an abomination to the Lord; it is supposed she was obliged to remain unmarried, and apart from her family. Concerning this and some other such passages in the sacred history, about which learned men are divided and in doubt, we need not perplex ourselves; what is necessary to our salvation, thanks be to God, is plain enough. If the reader recollects the promise of Christ concerning the teaching of the Holy Spirit, and places himself under this heavenly Teacher, the Holy Ghost will guide to all truth in every passage, so far as it is needful to be understood.