God raises up a judge, Jephthah, to deliver His people from the Ammonites. Jephthah is proof that God does not use the brightest or strongest or most popular to accomplish His will; in fact, He often uses the weak and unintelligent to prove that it was His strength, not the character of the human instrument that delivers. Jephthah is an illegitimate child that has been disowned by his family and clan, yet he does what no one else is willing to do - take a stand and defend the people of God against the enemies of God.
In the heat of the battle, Jephthah promises that whatever comes out of his home first when he returns victorious will be given to God as a sacrificial offering. He is greatly dismayed when his only child is first to emerge from the home. But Jephthah keeps his vow. What a lesson in obedience - even when it comes at great personal cost.
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