Why Did God Do That? Discovering God’s Goodness in the Hard Passages of ScriptureSample

As we have seen, many stories in the Bible describe the immoral actions of people without implying we should live like them. But one story can be read in a way that appears to praise a very immoral action. In Judges 11, we find God partnering with another flawed character, Jephthah (commonly pronounced Jep-thaw). Verses 30-31 tell us that this warrior made a vow to God, saying, “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.”

God gave Jephthah his victory. Upon Jephthah's arrival home, his daughter comes out to meet him, dancing in joy with a tambourine. Jephthah’s response is heart-wrenching. Judges 11:35 tells us, “When he saw her, he tore his clothes in anguish. ‘Oh, my daughter!’ he cried out. ‘You have completely destroyed me! You’ve brought disaster on me! For I have made a vow to the LORD, and I cannot take it back.’” True to his word, Jephthah does soon after sacrifice her.

If we are not careful with this text, we might think the Bible is actually endorsing Jephthah’s pious commitment to his vow. But just because an event is recorded in Scripture does not mean God endorses it. Often, the Bible simply relays information about what happened, leaving us to consider the ethical implications for ourselves.

Jephthah’s story is meant to take us deeper. We reflect on his story by asking, "Is it really a greater sin to break a vow than to sacrifice your own daughter?" In the Old Testament, God’s law included provisions for when people made rash vows that would not be appropriate to keep. Jephthah’s understanding of God smells like the religion of his pagan neighbors, not the true manner of worship prescribed to the Israelite people. This becomes all too obvious when we consider the theology of Judges as a whole: Bad things happen when you mix God with false religion.

Some Bible interpreters consider it unlikely that Jephthah actually put his daughter to death, as he would have done if an animal had met him on his return from victory. Rather, they suggest Jephthah bound his daughter to lifelong virginity as a figurative sacrifice. But whether Jephthah’s sacrifice of his daughter meant her death or her lifelong celibacy, it does not change the essential immorality of Jephthah’s rash vow and his determination to keep it at his daughter’s expense.

The incident reminds us yet again that God can find a place for even the most flawed individuals to accomplish his purposes. Let that give you comfort!