I've always hated story #53: "Jepthah's Promise". I always felt sorry for the daughter who had to spend the rest of her days at the tabernacle because her father made a numb-nuts promise to God. Who did he think he was, making promises for other people? What if it had been you that he saw first coming out of the house to meet him? Wouldn't you have told him to pound sand? I'd have been like, "If you want to go around making promises to God, Jepthah, promise your own life... not someone else's!" Dumb ass.
A "My Book of Bible Stories" tale that I've always hated
by JimmyPage 72 Replies latest jw friends
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AdzLS8
I love them all. They are fantastic
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Kudra
The bible account of Jepthah's daughter is generally believed to have him literally sacrifice (as in kill for god) her. The dubs water it down by making it sound like she is "sacrificed into god's service" at a temple. But I think actual bible scholars understand that she is killed.
Praise Jah! What a loving god. Let's fashion our lives around his principles!!
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PEC
Kudra, please don't confuse us with the facts.
Philip
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betterdaze
Judges 11
30 Then Jeph´thah made a vow to Jehovah and said: “If you without fail give the sons of Am´mon into my hand,
31 it must also occur that the one coming out, who comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Am´mon,
must also become Jehovah’s, and I must offer that one up as a burnt offering . ”
39 And it came about at the end of two months that she made her return to her father, after which he carried out his vow that he had made toward her. -
aniron
That would not fit in with that Jehovah did not approve of human sacrifices.
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snowbird
Jeremiah 7:31 They've constructed Topheth altars for burning babies in prominent places all through the valley of Ben-hinnom, altars for burning their sons and daughters alive in the fire—a shocking perversion of all that I am and all I command. MSG
In keeping with the above Scripture, I'm in the camp of those who believe that she was not killed but was dedicated to service at the Temple, and that the other girls visited her to offer condolences for her having to remain a virgin for the rest of her life.
Sylvia
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PrimateDave
Judges 11:40: "So it became a custom in Israel 40 for the maidens of Israel to go every year, for four days in the year, and chant dirges for the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite." JPS Tanakh
The account seems pretty clear that Jephthah killed his daughter. This is not surprising considering how much brutality is depicted in the book of Judges. Did the Bible Story book say anything about Jephthah being the son of a prostitute who got kicked out by his father's legitimate sons? I don't remember reading that, but it has been a while. He then became a marauder, leader of a gang of disreputable men. It really helps to read the whole story, the real point of which appears to be justifying the territorial claims of one primitive tribal group over another with the backing of the territorial tribal god Yahweh.
Dave
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sir82
If I recal rightly there is a scripture that states how the daughters maids would visit her once a year.
That's what the WT wants you to believe, because the idea of human sacrifice doesn't fit in with their notion of who Jehovah is.
It's based on the New World Translation's translation interpretation of Judges 11:40, which reads:
From year to year the daughters of Israel would go to give commendation to the daughter of Jepthah the Gileadite, four days in the year.
Now compare that to how most other Bibles render the verse:
Judges 11:40 (New International Version)
40 that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
Judges 11:40 (King James Version)
40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.
And so on.
The NWT rendering gives the idea that the Watchtower writers dreamed up - that the daughter wasn't killed, just "sent away" as if to a convent, and each year received visitors. But most other Bibles render the verse that the "young women of Israel" had a 4-day commemoration of her, mourning her death on the anniversary that it occurred, year after year.
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DJK
You can write a book around the answer to one question, and call the entire book "non-fiction".
The author for the book of Jugdes, and possibly other books, asked a question. Everything written answered the question. When you find the question, you'll see the story of Jeph´thah is the fictional portion.