1/14/2023 Judges 11:35 [NIV]

 

1/14/2023 Judges 11:35 [NIV]

"When he [Jephthah] saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, 'Oh no, my daughter! You have brought me down and I am devastated. I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break.' ”

This disturbing passage in Judges is not about God demanding a human sacrifice, but about Jephthah’s ignorance of God. Nowhere in the story does it describe God’s interaction with him other than empowering him to defeat the Ammonites. Jephthah is the one who made a rash vow to God, then insisted it be kept. The moral of the story is about how our foolish pride compounded by our ignorance of God can lead to twisted morality.

The world is filled with toxic religions that lead followers and repulsed observers away from God. When we interject our own thoughts and biases into the issue of God, rather than open ourselves to let the Holy Spirit of God show us Himself, we come away confused or hostile to Him. The Bible ultimately describes God’s very essence as Love and Light.

God desires a relationship with us that is not based on religion or theology or philosophy, but a one-to-one relationship that opens us to understanding what cannot be otherwise understood apart from Him. The One who inspired humans to write the Bible stands ready to show us what it means on multiple levels, as he interacts with us throughout our lives.


The rest of the story: Jephthah is a flawed judge who was a wanted criminal but picked by local leaders to stand up to their tormentors. God was ready to deliver Israel (again) and empowered their pick to do so. Every Bible preacher and teacher is a flawed individual who nevertheless can be used by God, but is still subject to the consequences of their choices. God help us keep close to Him and continue growing in grace and knowledge of Jesus!

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