Jephthahs Vow (Easton)

DIC dictionary-entry · status:draft · license:PD

(Judges 11:30,31 ). After a crushing defeat of the Ammonites, Jephthah returned to his own house, and the first to welcome him was his own daughter. This was a terrible blow to the victor, and in his despair he cried out, 'Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low...I have opened my mouth"> StudyL ı ght .org Plug in, Turn on and Be En light ened! Not Yet a Member? Click to Sign Up Now! --> --> Bible Study Tools Lang uage Tools Study Lib rary Hist orical Writings Pas toral Resources Per sonal Resources Site Resources Lectionary Calendar Saturday, June 6th, 2026 the Week of Proper 4 / Ordinary 9 video advertismenet advertisement advertisement advertisement Attention! For 10¢ a day you can enjoy StudyLight.org ads free while helping to build churches and support pastors in Uganda. Click here to learn more! Home » Bible Dictionaries » Easton's Bible Dictionary » Letter J Bible Dictionaries Jephthah's Vow Easton's Bible Dictionary Search for… Enter query below: or A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z Prev Entry Jephthah Next Entry Jephunneh Resource Toolbox Print Article ( Judges 11:30,31 ). After a crushing defeat of the Ammonites, Jephthah returned to his own house, and the first to welcome him was his own daughter. This was a terrible blow to the victor, and in his despair he cried out, "Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low...I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and cannot go back." With singular nobleness of spirit she answered, "Do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth." She only asked two months to bewail her maidenhood with her companions upon the mountains. She utters no reproach against her father's rashness, and is content to yield her life since her father has returned a conqueror. But was it so? Did Jephthah offer up his daughter as a "burnt-offering"? This question has been much debated, and there are many able commentators who argue that such a sacrifice was actually offered. We are constrained, however, by a consideration of Jephthah's known piety as a true worshipper of Jehovah, his evident acquaintance with the law of Moses, to which such sacrifices were abhorrent ( Leviticus 18:21 ; 20:2-5 ; Deuteronomy 12:31 ), and the place he holds in the roll of the heroes of the faith in the Epistle to the ( Hebrews 11:32 ), to conclude that she was only doomed to a life of perpetual celibacy.

Source

• part_of source-manifest/easton — Easton's Bible Dictionary (PD)