Jephthah was a "nobody" when God decided to put on him the "garment of greatness". In Judges 11:1-3, we read that Jephthah was the son of a harlot. As a result of the nature of his background, his household rejected him as their own, saying: "" thou shall not inherit in our father's house, for thou art the son of a strange woman." Consequently, Jephthah fled from his brethren and dwelt in a foreign land.
In the course of time, the Ammonites declared war on Israel and the elders of Israel, being threatened by the might of the Ammonites, decided to look for who would rescue them. So, they remembered the exploits of Jephthah whilst he was with them and went to fetch him to lead them to war. Jephthah agreed, on the condition that he was made the Head of his household if |God delivered the Ammonites unto his hands.
It was at this stage Jephthah vowed to God thus: "if thou shall without fail deliver the children of Ammon unto my hands then it shall be that whatever cometh from the doors of my house to meet me ............., I will offer it up for a burnt offering". (Judges 11:30-31). When Jephthah returned from the war victorious, it was his only daughter who came forth to meet him. In verse 39, we read: "And it came to pass at the end of two months that she (Jephthah's daughter) returned unto her father WHO DID WITH HER ACCORDING TO HIS VOW WHICH HE HAD VOWED.
So, the question is: "Did Jephthah really offer his daughter as a burnt offering unto the Lord as he had vowed?" In Deut. 18:10-12, God warned Israel, amongst other things, thus: "there shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or daughter to pass through the fire (offer as a burnt offering as other nations do)......... for all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord........ thou shall be perfect with the Lord thy God." Read also Deut. 12:31-32 and Leviticus 20:2-5.
Jephthah knew that God did not allow Abraham to sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering unto the Lord; Jephthah was also conversant with the Laws of Moses regarding God's warning to Israel not to sacrifice son or daughter as a burnt offering. Above all, God will not violate His own Word as clearly stated in the afore-mentioned Scriptures. So, what did Jephthah do.
Giving one's child as a burnt offering unto the Lord is simply giving away one's child COMPLETELY to the service of the Lord. Jephthah's daughter was his only child and by giving her away completely to God with NO HEIR TO INHERIT HIS HOME means giving his daughter as a "burnt offering" unto the Lord. In other words, Jephthah simply did what Hannah did to Samuel - 1 Samuel 1:11-12 and 24-28 and this is a lesson for us to learn from. When you give all that you have unto God with all SINCERITY, it will move God to surprise us with unimaginable blessings. Jephthah eventually became, not only the Head of his household, but also a Judge in Israel.
