Judges 12:1-7

Jephthah’s battle with the Ephraimites 12:1-7

The writer’s emphasis now shifts from Jephthah’s foolishness to Ephraim’s arrogance. Like Gideon, Jephthah had to deal with disgruntled Ephraimites, but in Jephthah’s case the result was a costly civil war.

The Ephraimites were the Gileadites’ neighbors to the west. They resented the fact that Jephthah had not requested their assistance in the war with the Ammonites. We noted earlier that the Ephraimites considered themselves superior to their brethren in some respects (cf. Judges 8:1). They foolishly threatened to punish Jephthah for this affront (Judges 12:1).

"Why should the Ephraimites complain about a victory accomplished through God’s intervention for the benefit of all the tribes? It was a strange jealousy that spurred on Ephraim." [Note: Wolf, p. 458.]

Jephthah opened his mouth wisely again and replied that he had indeed requested their help, but they had not responded (Judges 12:2). This did not satisfy the Ephraimites, however, who mobilized a large fighting force to teach the Gileadites a lesson. These proud Israelites wanted to dominate, to control, and to receive recognition among their brethren. They evidently regarded the Gileadites as "fugitives" (Judges 12:4) because they had settled east of the Jordan River.

"As is so often the case, internal disputes broke out after the common enemy was subdued. The main issue appears to be Jephthah’s unilateral action in Transjordan. However, a much more serious issue is apparent, a developing independence among the tribes east of the Jordan. The conflict between the Ephraimites and the Gileadites is a sad commentary on the lack of Israelite unity in this period." [Note: Monson, p. 187.]

When the Ephraimites had confronted Gideon, he responded with psychology (Judges 8:1-3). Jephthah was a different kind of person from Gideon, however. He responded with a sword. Jephthah was a nobody, and nobodies are often unimpressed with people who think they are somebodies, as the Ephraimites did.

In the battle that followed east of the Jordan, 42,000 Ephraimites (or 42 military units) suffered defeat, a high price for jealousy. The Gileadites stopped those who tried to flee back home at the fords of the Jordan. The Ephraimites’ accent did not permit them to say shibboleth (meaning "ear of corn" or "flowing stream") normally. Similarly during World War II, the Nazis identified Russian Jews by the way they pronounced "kookoorooza," the Russian word for corn. [Note: Wolf, p. 458.] In this way the Gileadite soldiers identified the fleeing Ephraimites.

"Here is graphic evidence that language distinctions had begun to mark the rapidly widening division of the nation." [Note: Merrill, Kingdom of . . ., pp. 172-73. Cf. Daniel I. Block, "The Role of Language in Ancient Israelite Perceptions of National Identity," Journal of Biblical Literature 103:3 (September 1984):339, n. 75.]

Unfortunately Jephthah treated his own brethren, the Ephraimites, as he had dealt with Israel’s enemy, the Ammonites. He unleashed his zeal and took vengeance far out of proportion to what might have been legitimate.

Jephthah served as a judge in Israel probably just over the transjordanian tribes. He did so for only six years after his victory over the Ammonites and his appointment by the elders of Gilead, and he apparently failed to achieve any rest for the land.

"Gideon was a weak man who was transformed into a fearless warrior. Jephthah was a valiant warrior. Because of his tragic family life, he had to become strong to survive. The story of his life is of God taking a strong man, and, by His Spirit, turning him into a usable man. Whatever our strengths and weaknesses, the secret of our usefulness is our availability to our God." [Note: Inrig, p. 189.]

Earlier we saw that Gideon’s failure had bad consequences for his nation (ch. 8) and for him personally (ch. 9). Likewise Jephthah’s failure had bad consequences for him personally (ch. 11) and for his nation (ch. 12). We shall see that Samson’s failure also had bad consequences for his nation and himself (ch. 16). The bad personal consequences Gideon experienced involved the premature death of his 70 sons. Jephthah’s personal tragedy involved the premature death of his only daughter. [Note: See Michael J. Smith, "The Failure of the Family in Judges, Part 1: Jephthah," Bibliotheca Sacra 162:647 (July-September 2005):279-98.] Samson himself died prematurely (cf. Romans 6:23).

Gideon’s failure was compromise with idolatry. The appeal of the world-Gideon’s cultural environment-brought him down. Jephthah’s failure was ignorance of, or inattention to, God’s Word. In the record of Satan’s temptations in Scripture, he sought to get people to doubt, deny, disobey, or disregard what God had said (cf. Genesis 3; Matthew 4). Jephthah fell before Satanic attack. Samson’s failure was indulging his fleshly appetites. These three major judges all experienced success, but they also failed. One of the three major sources of temptation was responsible for the failure of each of them. All three judges failed to follow God fully. Each one turned aside to self-will. All three represent Israel in the period of the judges, and all three are typical of all believers. They experienced a measure of spiritual success, but they also failed for the same reasons we fail.