And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord. He said, "If you give me victory over the Ammonites, I will give to the Lord whatever comes out of my house to meet me when I return in triumph. I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering" (Judges 11:30-31).Jephthah made a vow to God as he headed out to battle. He was trying to bargain with the Lord. Jephthah promised to sacrifice to God whatever came out of his house when he got back home to Mizpah.
Israelites were permitted to make vows as long as they followed the laws given by God that governed vows (Deuteronomy 23:21-23). If a person made a vow, then the Lord expected him or her to keep it (Ecclesiastes 5:1-6).
When Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, his daughter came out to meet him, playing on the tambourine and dancing for joy. She was his one and only child; he had no other sons or daughters (Judges 11:34).Nowhere in the text are we told that Jephthah actually killed his one and only child. But one vital lesson we can learn from this account is that if we want our promises to be taken seriously we must be willing to do what we say we will do (Matthew 5:33-37). More importantly, we better make sure we don't make a vow that's too painful to keep!
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