The Foolish Vow

Scripture Text: Judges 11:29-40

And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, I will burn as an offering the first person that comes out of my house to meet me, when I come back from the victory. I will offer that person to you as a sacrifice.”

Judges 11:30-31

The conflict with the Ammonites reached its peak with their defeat by Jephthah (vv. 29, 32-33). However, the climax of Jephthah's story centers upon his foolish vow (vv. 30-31, 34-40). In order to gain God's favor, he promised to sacrifice whatever came out of his house after his victorious return. This reflected a misguided application of the principle of offering to God the best of one's treasure. Theoretically, a vow to make a burnt offering was valid (Lev. 22:18-20), which also specifies what a valid offering entails (perfect animals).

Human sacrifice was strictly forbidden in Israel (Lev. 18:21; 20:2, Deut. 12:31; 18:10; Jer. 19:5; Ezek. 20:30-31; 23:37, 39). Yet Jephthah's foolishness impelled him to make such a vow and apparently follow through with this abomination. The tragic result of Jephthah's vow was the sacrifice of his only child, his daughter (v. 39).

In verse 35c, Jephthah said, "For I have opened my mouth to the Lord, and I cannot take back my vow.” Vows were solemn affairs, made only to God. People were not forced to take them, but if they did, they had to be kept under normal circumstances (Deut. 23:21-23; Ps. 15:4; Eccles. 5:4-6). But any vow that would end in sin was not binding; keeping it could not please God, and the Levitical laws provided for such instances (Lev. 5:4-6).

Therefore, Jephthah represented a strange mixture of faith and foolishness. While he acknowledged God (vv. 21, 23, 27, 30-31), overall, his foolishness seemed to outweigh his faith (v. 31). The cyclical nature of Israel's history, with the need for moral leadership, repeats in cycles of disobedience, suffering, repentance, and deliverance, emphasizing the continuous need for ethical, principled, and godly leadership.

Reflect

1. Are you a leader or a Christian whose heart is mixed with faith and foolishness?

2. Are you a leader or a Christian who always vows just to gain God's favor?

3. Or are you a leader or a Christian who seriously and carefully obeys the will and commands of the Lord?

Remember

As believers-followers of our Lord Jesus, the best thing that we can do is to avoid foolish vows and avoid also the cycle of disobedience to God seriously. That's why we need to fix our faith on Jesus Christ alone. We must continue to obey His will and all His commands right now and forever, even when we are facing challenges or hardships in our lives.

Read

Titus 3:3-8

Pray

Dear God, I acknowledge Your divine ways, goodness, faithfulness, and promises for the sake of Your people. Thank You for the lessons I've learned from the life of Jephthah – as a leader, father, husband, and warrior. Lord, please help me not to neglect applying the godly character that You have entrusted to me, not to neglect protecting and serving my family, and not to neglect doing the will of God through obedience in the Lord Jesus Christ with the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' Name. Amen!