Judges 10 — Church Fathers

Josue

Chapter 9

Chapter 11

Ruth

Chapter 10

Judges 10:1-9

PHILISTINE OPPRESSIONISRAEL RETURNS TO THE LORDJEPHTHAH’S LEADERSHIP IS SOUGHTJEPHTHAH’S MESSAGE TO THE AMMONITESJEPHTHAH’S VOW AND VICTORY

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1 After Abimelech there arose Ruler in Israel Thola the son of Phua the uncle of Abimelech, a man of Issachar, which dwelt in Samir of mount Ephraim: 2 notes

2 and judged Israel three and twenty years, and died and was buried in Samir. 2 notes

3 After him succeeded Jair the Galaadite, who judged Israel for two and twenty years, 2 notes

4 having thirty sons sitting upon thirty ass colts, & Princes of thirty cities, which of his name were called Havoth Jair, that is, the towns of Jair, until this present day, in the Land of Galaad. 2 notes

5 And Jair died, and was buried in the place, which is called Camon. 2 notes

6 But the children of Israel joining new sins to their old, did evil in the sight of our Lord, & served the idols, Baalim and Astaroth, & the gods of Syria and of Sidon and of Moab and of the children of Ammon and of the Philisthiims: and they left our Lord, and did not serve him. 2 notes

7 Against whom our Lord being wrath, delivered them into the hands of the Philisthiims and of the children of Ammon. 2 notes

8 And they were afflicted and sore oppressed for eighteen years, all that dwelt beyond Jordan in the Land of the Amorrhite, which is in Galaad: 2 notes

9 in so much, that the children of Ammon passing over Jordan wasted Judas and Benjamin and Ephraim: and Israel was afflicted exceedingly. 2 notes

10 And crying to our Lord, they said: We have sinned to thee, because we have forsaken our Lord God & have served Baalim.

11 To whom our Lord spake: Have not the Ægyptians and the Amorrheites, and the children of Ammon and the Philisthiims,

12 the Sidonians also and Amalech and Chanaan oppressed you, & you cried to me, and I delivered you out of their hand?

13 And yet you have forsaken me, and have worshipped strange gods: therefore I will not add to deliver you any more:

14 go and invocate the gods which you have chosen: let them deliver you in the time of distress.

15 And the children of Israel said to our Lord: We have sinned, render to us whatsoever pleaseth thee: only now deliver us.

16 In saying which things, they threw away out of their coasts all the idols of strange gods, and served our Lord God: who sorrowed for their miseries.

17 Therefore the children of Ammon crying together pitcht their tents in Galaad: against whom the children of Israel being assembled camped in Maspha.

18 And the Princes of Galaad said every one to their neighbours: Who of us shall first begin to fight against the children of Ammon, shall be the Duke of the people of Galaad.

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Judges 10:1-9 2 entries

PHILISTINE OPPRESSIONISRAEL RETURNS TO THE LORDJEPHTHAH’S LEADERSHIP IS SOUGHTJEPHTHAH’S MESSAGE TO THE AMMONITESJEPHTHAH’S VOW AND VICTORY

ON HUMAN SACRIFICE.

St. Ephrem the Syrian (c. 306–373)

People imitate those who do good deeds, therefore, not out of love for these good deeds but because of their utility. . . . The king of Moab took note of Jephthah.^[1] But, because it was his firstborn and a human being rather than an animal that he killed, God took pity on him, since he did it in affliction and not through love. In the case of Jephthah, if it had been one of his servants who had been first to encounter him, he would have killed him. But, in order that people would not engage in the sacrifice of their fellow human beings, he caused his own daughter to meet him, so that others would be afraid, lest they offer human beings by vow to God.

Commentary on Tatian’s Diatessaron 10.3

A RASH VOW.

St. Jerome (c. 347–420)

And whereas he [Jovinianus] prefers the fidelity of the father Jephthah to the tears of the virgin daughter, that corroborates our point. For we are not commending virgins of the world so much as those who are virgins for Christ’s sake. Most Hebrews blame the father for the rash vow he made, If you will indeed deliver the children of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be that whatsoever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be for the Lord’s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. Supposing (the Hebrews say) a dog or an ass had met him, what would he have done? Their meaning is that God so ordered events that he who had improvidently made a vow should learn his error by the death of his daughter.

Against Jovinianus 1.23