[:en]Jephthah’s father was Gilead and his mother was a prostitute. Gilead’s wife also bore sons and when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. Jephthah fled with a group of adventurers and settled in the land of Tob (vs. 1-3). Sometime later when the Ammonites made war with Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah to be their commander to fight against the Ammonites. The elders of Gilead promised to set him as their leader after they won the war.
*Do not permit circumstances surrounding your birth to burden you. Accept it and trust God to work on His purpose in His own time.
When Jephthah advanced against the Ammonites, he made a vow to the Lord: “If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering” (v. 30). The Israelites were able to subdue Ammon. When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, his only daughter came to meet him. She requested to grant her 2 months to roam the hills and weep with friends before she will be sacrificed.
*Think thrice before giving any vow to the Lord*[:]