Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version After the two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin. From this comes the Israelite tradition New Living Translation When she returned home, her father kept the vow he had made, and she died a virgin. So it has become a custom in Israel English Standard Version And at the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow that he had made. She had never known a man, and it became a custom in Israel Berean Standard Bible After two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she had never had relations with a man. So it has become a custom in Israel King James Bible And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel, New King James Version And it was so at the end of two months that she returned to her father, and he carried out his vow with her which he had vowed. She knew no man. And it became a custom in Israel New American Standard Bible And at the end of two months she returned to her father, who did to her what he had vowed; and she had no relations with a man. And it became a custom in Israel, NASB 1995 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, NASB 1977 And it came about at the end of two months that 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, Legacy Standard Bible And it happened at the end of two months that she returned to her father, and he did to her according to the vow which he had made; and she did not know a man. Thus it became a custom in Israel, Amplified Bible At the end of two months she returned to her father, who did to her as he had vowed; and she had no relations with a man. It became a custom in Israel, Christian Standard Bible At the end of two months, she returned to her father, and he kept the vow he had made about her. And she had never been intimate with a man. Now it became a custom in Israel Holman Christian Standard Bible At the end of two months, she returned to her father, and he kept the vow he had made about her. And she had never been intimate with a man. Now it became a custom in Israel American Standard Version And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew not man. And it was a custom in Israel, Contemporary English Version Then she went back to her father. He did what he had promised, and she never got married. That's why English Revised Version And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she had not known man. And it was a custom in Israel, GOD'S WORD® Translation At the end of those two months she came back to her father. He did to her what he had vowed, and she never had a husband. So the custom began in Israel Good News Translation After two months she came back to her father. He did what he had promised the LORD, and she died still a virgin. This was the origin of the custom in Israel International Standard Version Later, after the two months were concluded, she returned to her father, and he fulfilled what he had solemnly vowed—and she never married. That's how the custom arose in Israel NET Bible After two months she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. She died a virgin. Her tragic death gave rise to a custom in Israel. New Heart English Bible It happened at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to what he had vowed. And she was a virgin. It became a custom in Israel, Webster's Bible Translation And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel, Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleAfter two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she had never had relations with a man. So it has become a custom in Israel World English Bible At the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed. She was a virgin. It became a custom in Israel Literal Translations Literal Standard Versionand it comes to pass at the end of two months that she turns back to her father, and he does to her his vow which he has vowed, and she did not know a man; and it is a statute in Israel: Young's Literal Translation and it cometh to pass at the end of two months that she turneth back unto her father, and he doth to her his vow which he hath vowed, and she knew not a man; and it is a statute in Israel: Smith's Literal Translation And it will be from the end of two months, and she will turn back to her father and he will do to her his vow which he vowed: and she knew not man. And it will be a law in Israel, Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleAnd the two months being expired, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed, and she knew no man. From thence came a fashion in Israel, and a custom has been kept: Catholic Public Domain Version And when the two months expired, she returned to her father, and he did to her just as he had vowed, though she knew no man. From this, the custom grew up in Israel, and the practice has been preserved, New American Bible At the end of the two months she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. She had not had relations with any man. It became a custom in Israel New Revised Standard Version At the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to the vow he had made. She had never slept with a man. So there arose an Israelite custom that Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleAnd at the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow; and she knew no man. And it became a custom among the children of Israel, Peshitta Holy Bible Translated And after two months she came to her father, and he did to her according to the vow that he vowed, and she had not known a man sexually, and there was a pledge for her among the children of Israel OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed; and she had not known man. And it was a custom in Israel, Brenton Septuagint Translation And it came to pass at the end of the two months that she returned to her father; and he performed upon her his vow which he vowed; and she knew no man: Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context Jephthah's Tragic Vow…38“Go,” he said. And he sent her away for two months. So she left with her friends and mourned her virginity upon the mountains. 39 After two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she had never had relations with a man. So it has become a custom in Israel 40that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.… Cross References Genesis 22:1-18 Some time later God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he answered. / “Take your son,” God said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” / So Abraham got up early the next morning, saddled his donkey, and took along two of his servants and his son Isaac. He split the wood for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had designated. ... 1 Samuel 1:11 And she made a vow, saying, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then I will dedicate him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall ever touch his head.” 2 Kings 3:27 So he took his firstborn son, who was to succeed him, and offered him as a burnt offering on the city wall. And there was great fury against the Israelites, so they withdrew and returned to their own land. Leviticus 27:28-29 Nothing that a man sets apart to the LORD from all he owns—whether a man, an animal, or his inherited land—can be sold or redeemed; everything so devoted is most holy to the LORD. / No person set apart for destruction may be ransomed; he must surely be put to death. Numbers 30:2 If a man makes a vow to the LORD or swears an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word; he must do everything he has promised. Deuteronomy 23:21-23 If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to keep it, because He will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. / But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty of sin. / Be careful to follow through on what comes from your lips, because you have freely vowed to the LORD your God with your own mouth. Psalm 15:4 who despises the vile but honors those who fear the LORD, who does not revise a costly oath, Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow. / It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. Hebrews 11:32-34 And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, / who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, / quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. Matthew 5:33-37 Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’ / But I tell you not to swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; / or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. ... Acts 5:1-11 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. / With his wife’s full knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds for himself, but brought a portion and laid it at the apostles’ feet. / Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and withhold some of the proceeds from the land? ... Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 1 Corinthians 10:11 Now these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. James 5:12 Above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or earth or by any other oath. Simply let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No,” no, so that you will not fall under judgment. 1 Samuel 14:24-45 Now the men of Israel were in distress that day, for Saul had placed the troops under an oath, saying, “Cursed is the man who eats any food before evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies.” So none of the troops tasted any food. / Then all the troops entered the forest, and there was honey on the ground. / And when they entered the forest and saw the flowing honey, not one of them put his hand to his mouth, because they feared the oath. ... Treasury of Scripture And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel, did with. Leviticus 27:4 And if it be a female, then thy estimation shall be thirty shekels. Judges 11:31 Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. Leviticus 27:28,29 Notwithstanding no devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the LORD of all that he hath, both of man and beast, and of the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed: every devoted thing is most holy unto the LORD… Deuteronomy 12:31 Thou shalt not do so unto the LORD thy God: for every abomination to the LORD, which he hateth, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods. custom, or ordinance. Jump to Previous Custom End Israel Israelite Months Oath Relations Statute Touched Turneth Virgin Vow VowedJump to Next Custom End Israel Israelite Months Oath Relations Statute Touched Turneth Virgin Vow VowedJudges 11 1. The covenant between Jephthah and the Gileadites, that he should lead12. The treaty of peace between him and the Ammonites is in vain 29. Jephthah's vow 32. His conquest of the Ammonites 34. He performs his vow on his daughter. After two months This phrase indicates a specific period of time that Jephthah's daughter spent in the mountains, mourning her fate. The two-month period reflects a time of preparation and reflection, which is significant in biblical narratives. It parallels other instances in Scripture where time is set aside for mourning or preparation, such as the 40 days Moses spent on Mount Sinai. she returned to her father and he did to her as he had vowed And she had never had relations with a man So it has become a custom in Israel Persons / Places / Events 1. JephthahA judge of Israel, known for his rash vow to God, which led to a tragic fulfillment involving his daughter. 2. Jephthah's Daughter The unnamed daughter of Jephthah, who becomes the subject of her father's vow and its fulfillment. 3. Mizpah The place where Jephthah lived and where he made his vow to the Lord. 4. The Vow Jephthah's promise to offer as a burnt offering whatever came out of his house to greet him if he returned victorious from battle. 5. Israel The nation that Jephthah was leading and delivering from the oppression of the Ammonites. Teaching Points The Weight of WordsJephthah's account teaches us the importance of considering our words carefully, especially when making promises to God. The Consequences of Rash Decisions This passage highlights the potential consequences of making hasty decisions without seeking God's guidance. Faith and Obedience Despite the tragic outcome, Jephthah's inclusion in Hebrews 11 reminds us that God can use imperfect people for His purposes. Cultural Practices and God's Will The establishment of a custom in Israel from this event shows how cultural practices can emerge from significant events, but they must always be weighed against God's will and commandments. The Role of Women in Scripture Jephthah's daughter, though unnamed, plays a significant role in this account, reminding us of the often-overlooked contributions of women in biblical history. Bible Study Questions and Answers 1. What is the meaning of Judges 11:39?2. How does Judges 11:39 illustrate the importance of keeping vows to God? 3. What lessons can we learn from Jephthah's actions in Judges 11:39? 4. How does Judges 11:39 connect with Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 on vows? 5. How can we apply the seriousness of vows in our daily Christian walk? 6. What does Jephthah's story teach about the consequences of rash promises? 7. Did Jephthah actually sacrifice his daughter as a burnt offering in Judges 11:39? 8. How does Judges 11:39 align with God's prohibition of human sacrifice? 9. What cultural practices influenced Jephthah's vow in Judges 11:39? 10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Judges 11? 11. Who is Jephthah in biblical history? 12. Judges 11:34–39: If Jephthah’s daughter was actually sacrificed, why is there no explicit condemnation of this act elsewhere in Scripture? 13. Judges 11:30–31: How can a just God permit Jephthah’s vow, which appears to condone human sacrifice? 14. Psalm 106:34-35 suggests Israel did not fully conquer or destroy surrounding nations--how does this align with biblical passages that claim they subdued the land completely? What Does Judges 11:39 Mean After two monthsJephthah’s daughter had asked for “two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends because I will never marry” (Judges 11:37). Those sixty days were not a stall tactic; they were a season of honest lament, like the thirty days Israel mourned for Moses in Deuteronomy 34:8, or the time allowed for rites of grief in Numbers 20:29. Her return shows she accepted the cost of her father’s vow rather than fleeing from it—an obedience reminiscent of Isaac walking back down Moriah with Abraham in Genesis 22:7-8. she returned to her father • The phrase underscores voluntary submission. She honored the fifth commandment (Exodus 20:12) and echoed Christ’s attitude in Luke 22:42, “yet not My will, but Yours be done.” • Jephthah, for his part, now faced the full weight of Numbers 30:2, “When a man makes a vow to the LORD…he must not break his word.” His daughter’s presence made the decision unavoidable; faithfulness would be costly for them both. he did to her as he had vowed Scripture never applauds the rashness of that vow (Judges 11:30-31), yet it records its fulfillment. How was it carried out? Two biblical facts stand side by side: 1. God expressly forbids human sacrifice (Leviticus 18:21; Deuteronomy 12:31). 2. Burnt offerings were to be wholly consumed (Leviticus 1:9). Because God’s law cannot contradict itself, many understand Jephthah to have kept the vow by dedicating his daughter to lifelong service at the tabernacle, not by taking her life. Leviticus 27:2-4 shows persons could be “devoted to the LORD” and redeemed; yet a rash vow could also remain unredeemed (Psalm 15:4, “who keeps his oath even when it hurts”). Her perpetual virginity—an irreversible sacrifice of future family and inheritance—would satisfy the letter of her father’s words without transgressing God’s prohibition of murder. And she had never had relations with a man The text repeats her virginity to stress what was lost: • In Israel, bearing children was tied to covenant hope (Genesis 17:7; Ruth 4:14-15). • Perpetual celibacy meant forfeiting that blessing, a living sacrifice comparable to the Nazirites who were “holy to the LORD” for life (Judges 13:5). • Women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting are noted in Exodus 38:8 and 1 Samuel 2:22; Jephthah’s daughter likely joined their ranks. So it has become a custom in Israel Judges 11:40 adds, “Every year the young women of Israel go to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah…four days each year.” Her story became an annual reminder that: • God takes our words seriously (Ecclesiastes 5:4-5). • Rash vows can wound innocents (Proverbs 12:18). • Even in flawed situations, faithfulness and purity still shine (Hebrews 11:32-34 includes Jephthah among the faithful). The custom functioned like the Passover (Exodus 12:26-27) or the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:24-26): a repeated act that keeps a lesson alive across generations. summary Judges 11:39 records the sober fulfillment of a reckless promise. After two months of mourning, Jephthah’s daughter willingly returned, and her father honored his vow by setting her apart to lifelong virgin service—an outcome faithful to his words yet not in conflict with God’s law against human sacrifice. Her loss became Israel’s yearly lesson on the gravity of vows, the cost of obedience, and the enduring call to honor the LORD with wholehearted devotion. (39) Who did with her according to his vow.--In this significant euphemism the narrator drops the veil--as though with a shudder--over the terrible sacrifice. Of course, "did with her according to his vow" can only mean "offered her up for a burnt offering" (Judges 11:31). "Some," says Luther, "affirm that he did not sacrifice her; but the text is clear enough." The attempt, first started by Rabbi Kimchi, to make this mean "kept her unmarried until death"--i.e., shut her up in a sacred celibacy--is a mere sophistication of plain Scripture. That he did actually slay her in accordance with his cherem is clear, not only from the plain words, but also for the following reasons:--(1) The customs of that day knew nothing about treating women as "nuns." If there had been any institution of vestals among the Jews we should without fail have heard of it, nor would the fate of Jephthah's daughter been here regarded and represented as exceptionally tragic. (2) There are decisive Scriptural analogies to Jephthah's vow, taken in its most literal sense--Abraham (Genesis 23:3), Saul (1Samuel 14:44), &c. (See on Judges 11:31.) (3) There are decisive Pagan analogies, both Oriental (2Kings 3:27; Amos 2:1) and classical. Thus Idomeneus actually sacrificed his eldest son (Serv. ad 'n. iii. 331) in an exactly similar vow, and Agamemnon his daughter Iphigenia. (4) The ancient Jews, who were far better acquainted than we can be with the thoughts and customs of their race and the meaning of their own language, have always understood that Jephthah did literally offer his daughter as "a burnt offering." The Targum of Jonathan adds to the words "it was a custom in Israel" the explanation, "in order that no one should make his son or his daughter a burnt offering, as Jephthah did, and did not consult Phinehas the priest. Had he done so, he would have redeemed her with money"--i.e., Phinehas would have decided that it was less crime to redeem such a cherem than to offer a human sacrifice. It is curious to find that another legend (hagadah) connects Phinehas with this event in a very different way. It says that Phinehas sanctioned, and even performed the sacrifice, and that for this very reason he was superseded by the indignation of the Israelites, which is the reason they offer for the fact that Eli was of the house, not of Phmehas, but of Ithamar (Lightfoot, Works, i. 12-18). In the same way Idomeneus, after sacrificing his eldest son, is punished by the gods with plague and by his citizens with banishment. Josephus agrees with these Jewish authorities, and says that Jephthah offered (holokautosen) his daughter (see on Judges 11:31); and so does Rabbi Tanchum. The opinion was undisputed till a thousand years after Christ, when Rabbi Kimchi invented the plausible hypothesis which has pleased so many commentators who carry their own notions to the Bible ready made, and then find them there. Ewald contents himself with saying that this "timid modern notion needs no refutation." It is remarkable that we find a similar vow as late as the sixth century after Christ. Abd Almuttalib, grandfather of Mohammed, vows to kill his son Abd Allah if God will give him ten sons. He had twelve sons; but when he wishes to perform his vow the Koreish interfere, and Abd Almuttalib, at the bidding of a priestess, gives one hundred camels as a ransom (Weil, Mohammed, p. 8). . . . Verse 39. - Who did with her according to his vow. Nothing can be more express than this statement. In fact, except the natural horror we feel at a human sacrifice, there is nothing to cast the least shade of doubt upon the fact that Jephthah's daughter was offered up as a burnt offering, in accordance with heathen notions, but, as Josephus says, neither "conformably to the law, nor acceptably to God." Most of the early Jewish commentators and all the Christian Fathers for ten or eleven centuries (Origen, Chrysostom, Theo-doret, Jerome, Augustine, etc.) held this view. Luther's comment is, "Some affirm that he did not sacrifice her, but the text is clear enough." She knew. Rather, she had known.Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew Afterמִקֵּ֣ץ ׀ (miq·qêṣ) Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct Strong's 7093: An extremity, after two שְׁנַ֣יִם (šə·na·yim) Number - md Strong's 8147: Two (a cardinal number) months, חֳדָשִׁ֗ים (ḥo·ḏā·šîm) Noun - masculine plural Strong's 2320: The new moon, a month she returned וַתָּ֙שָׁב֙ (wat·tā·šāḇ) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again to אֶל־ (’el-) Preposition Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to her father, אָבִ֔יהָ (’ā·ḇî·hā) Noun - masculine singular construct | third person feminine singular Strong's 1: Father and he did וַיַּ֣עַשׂ (way·ya·‘aś) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 6213: To do, make to her לָ֔הּ (lāh) Preposition | third person feminine singular Strong's Hebrew as he had vowed. נָדָ֑ר (nā·ḏār) Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 5087: To promise And she וְהִיא֙ (wə·hî) Conjunctive waw | Pronoun - third person feminine singular Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are had never לֹא־ (lō-) Adverb - Negative particle Strong's 3808: Not, no had relations יָדְעָ֣ה (yā·ḏə·‘āh) Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person feminine singular Strong's 3045: To know with a man. אִ֔ישׁ (’îš) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person So it has become וַתְּהִי־ (wat·tə·hî-) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be a custom חֹ֖ק (ḥōq) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 2706: Something prescribed or owed, a statute in Israel בְּיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (bə·yiś·rā·’êl) Preposition-b | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc Links Judges 11:39 NIVJudges 11:39 NLT Judges 11:39 ESV Judges 11:39 NASB Judges 11:39 KJV Judges 11:39 BibleApps.com Judges 11:39 Biblia Paralela Judges 11:39 Chinese Bible Judges 11:39 French Bible Judges 11:39 Catholic Bible OT History: Judges 11:39 It happened at the end of two (Jd Judg. 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