During my reading time today, I was reading Judges 11 and the story of Jephthah and his vow to the Lord (Judges 11:29-40). In a nutshell, here is what happened, Jephthah prayed to God and made a vow to God, that whatever comes out of the door of his house to greet him upon the return of his victory that the Lord would give, he would sacrifice to the Lord.
First off, kind of a dumb vow - I mean he had to at least think it would be one of his family members - no? That being said though, he still made the vow. He returns and his only daughter greets him. ummmph! Punch to the gut! He keeps his promise to the Lord and after she has a period of mourning and weeping - as a Virgin she is sacrified unto the Lord.
Now.., these kinds of stories do make me scratch my head. Could he have been wiser in choosing a better vow? Sure. Could he have pleaded with the Lord and said, oops my bad. Sure. So...., I'm left scratching my head and asking why allow this to be put into the scriptures? My only real answer is the fact that God takes a vow or a covenant with Him very, very serious. I find it interesting that both Jephthah and his daughter also have this understanding sealed in their hearts. Her reaction is astounding to me. Her reply is "My father, you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me as you have promised" - wow!
Have you made a vow with God at all? Have you kept your promise? Did it cost you? If not, do you think there have been consequences for not doing so? These are just some thoughts that run through my head? Ponder your vow or vows with God or vows you made to others using God's name, for example marriage? Have you kept your promise?
Funny thing for me is, when I was 12 years old I made a vow to God. I did not keep it; and in many ways..., my life at times was a living hell because I allowed myself to be deterred. So.., here I am 36 years later - fulfilling the vow God laid on my heart at the tender age of 12.
It is never too late to make good on a promise to God while you yet still have time! Peace!
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4 comments:
So here is the real question. Why ever make a vow to God? Are all vows foolish? Are vows God-honoring? I can vow to study the Bible and tell my friends about God but I'm already commanded to do that. When is a vow good?
Maybe the point of this story (are we really to find a point in it?? ....which is another issue) is the futility of vows. I like what Doug says here. In this story, we don't see God condoning or condeming the vow, so to me it is an example of the futility of us trying to "prove" and "promise" God anything as finite human beings.
Good question? Something to ponder? Is a vow different than a covenant? Was it different or have different meaning in their eyes in that culture and time?
My thoughts this morning were just me wrestling with this passage in general. Thanks for more wrestling material! LOL!
To clarify...there is a point in all of the Biblical narrative. What I question is our tendancy to try and make a principle out of every narrative. I don't see an easy one to one (ancient to current) application for this one. The ANE culture was steeped in god(s) appeasement. Maybe Jephthah thought he needed to appease his God in order to gain the victory. It's a tough story with a counter-narrative (i.e. how does this vow and it's result sit with the rest of the Biblical narrative of redemption and love) that makes us wrestle.
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