Parker, Julie, and Perry had just finished school and decided to do some studying at the local coffeeshop when Parker got to talking.
"So I need your help. I was reading this weird passage in Judges 11 where this guy named Jephthah sacrificed his daughter as an offering to God. This wouldn't be such a big deal but the story tells us that the Spirit of the Lord was upon him. Does God's Spirit cause people to do stuff like this? I thought that the Spirit was supposed to help people become more loving, gentle, patient and that kind of stuff. But that's not happening in this passage. It's messed up in my opinion."
Julie quickly spoke up, "This is probably where those Christian lunes get the idea to murder abortion doctors and then claim God told them to do it. This is why I am so suspicious of the Bible. It can brainwash people to do some pretty outrageous things."
Perry didn't like where this conversation was going so he interjected, "But in this story the daughter requests that the father stay true to his promise and sacrifice her. There's a difference between this and someone going out and killing abortion doctors against their will."
Parker responded, "So what you're telling me is that just because the girl wanted to die it was okay? So now the Bible teaches that assisted suicide is acceptable? If it's not one thing then it's another."
With a look of agreement Julie gave her two cents, "Either way it doesn't seem right. I would think that God would be against both child sacrifice and assisted suicide. But if God is against these things then why didn't He put Jephthah to death? I thought God was all about an eye for an eye. And last time we talked, people were put to death simply for stealing. This seems to be on the same level as an honor killing. Don't you think death is in order?"
How would you contribute to this conversation?
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Cole, a local pastor, sitting at the table next to the three turned to them and asked, "Do you mind if I invade your conversation? It's pretty interesting."
"Sure. It appears we've reached a dead end. We could use a little help," said Julie.
"No doubt Judges 11 is a tough passage. But it's a lot easier to understand if you read it in light of the entire book of Judges. To be honest this is the biggest error I see people make when they read the Bible. They read it like a quote book and not like a story. If you read Judges like a story you'll notice that there's a chorus repeated throughout the book."
"I think I remember what it is! Something like 'They did evil in the eyes of the Lord,'" Perry proudly contributed.
"That's right. Toward the end of the book the author also let's us know that there was no king at this time. What this tells us is that the book was not written to brag about how amazing the Jewish people were. And the fact that the author let's us know that there was no king at this time tells us that he's not trying to paint the judges out to be very impressive people either. And so do you think that we should assume Jephthah was being painted as a role model?"
Parker quickly answered, "Well no BUT the Spirit of the Lord was upon him."
"That's right but notice that God never endorses Jephthah's vow. He's completely silent. Also, the story never tells us that Jephthah made his vow because of the Spirit's influence. In fact, every other time in the book when the Spirit comes upon a judge it is to give them power to lead in battle. It seems that Jephthah receives the Spirit here because he is about to go to battle."
"But God's Spirit could have stopped Jephthah from making a HUGE mistake. But He didn't," said Julie.
"True. But the purpose of God's Spirit is to empower us NOT to turn us into robots. We still have to make choices. But what we see in this passage is that Jephthah is making choices based on his anti-Jewish, pagan background (even though he's a Jew!). This shows the type of person he is. He would rather try to gain the favor of a pagan war god that doesn't exist than simply trust in Yahweh. He should know that God despises and forbids human sacrifice. I guess Jephthah fails to realize that God doesn't operate like a pagan god. This makes it hard to believe that this guy is a leader over the Jewish people. This shows how corrupt the nation had become."
"But wait a minute. God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. How can you say He forbids human sacrifice?" asked Perry.
"Well, obviously Abraham knew God better than Jephthah did. Abraham seemed to know from the beginning that God would not allow Isaac to be sacrificed. And in fact, the story of Abraham provides a contrast with Jephthah. The fact that Jephthah and Abraham each have ONLY one child (Yehida in hebrew) that are both obedient connects the two stories. But that's where the similarities end. God speaks to Abraham whereas Jephthah speaks to God. God tests Abraham, Jephthah tests God. Abraham is the father of the promise called out of his home, Jephthah is the son of a prostitute cast out of his home. Abraham follows God's instruction, Jephthah follows pagan instruction. Abraham's sacrifice confirms his faithfulness, Jephthah's sacrifice confirms his faithlessness. The two men couldn't be more different!
"This is great because it also explains some of the craziness with Samson. As a kid I was taught he was a Biblical superhero who showed great faith. My teachers must have skirted over his weaknesses," Parker said.
"This goes to show that if you don't understand the BIGGER story you won't understand its SMALLER parts. And in Judges, the first three judges Othniel, Ehud, and Deborah are presented very briefly but also very positively. But then the last three judges Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson are given long and unfavorable treatments. The author organizes the book this way to make his point: Israel as a nation is on an ever-worsening downward spiral away from God."
Cole looked at his phone and noticed how late it was, "Well I hope this helps. I gotta run but thanks for letting me invade your conversation."
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