Judges 10:17–11:11

¹⁷Then the sons of Ammon were summoned and they camped in Gilead. And the sons of Israel gathered together and camped in ^aMizpah.

¹⁸The people, the leaders of Gilead, said to one another, “Who is the man who will begin to fight against the sons of Ammon? He shall become head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

Chapter 11

Jephthah the Ninth Judge

¹Now ^aJephthah the Gileadite was a ¹valiant warrior, but he was the son of a harlot. And Gilead ²was the father of Jephthah.

²Gilead’s wife bore him sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out and said to him, “You shall not have an inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.”

³So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of ^aTob; and worthless fellows gathered themselves ¹about Jephthah, and they went out with him.

⁴It came about after a while that ^athe sons of Ammon fought against Israel.

⁵When the sons of Ammon fought against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob;

⁶and they said to Jephthah, “Come and be our chief that we may fight against the sons of Ammon.”

⁷Then Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “^aDid you not hate me and drive me from my father’s house? So why have you come to me now when you are in trouble?”

⁸The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “For this reason we have now returned to you, that you may go with us and fight with the sons of Ammon and ^abecome head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

⁹So Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, “If you take me back to fight against the sons of Ammon and the Lord gives them up ¹to me, will I become your head?”

¹⁰The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “^aThe Lord is ¹witness between us; surely we will do ²as you have said.”

¹¹Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and chief over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the Lord at ^aMizpah.