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Judges 11:1

in Judges 11

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.

KJV

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.

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This verse in Judges 11

Commentary

4 notes on this verse
The history of Jephthah appears to be an independent history inserted by the compiler of the Book of Judges. Jdg 11:4-5 introduce the Ammonite war without any apparent reference to Jdg 10:17-18. A genealogy of Manasseh 1Ch 7:14-17 gives the families which sprang from Gilead, and among them mention is made of an “Aramitess” concubine as the mother of one family.

This site's exposition

a mighty man of valor

on Judges 11:1-3

Gilead names both the father and the country, and the brothers expel Jephthah over inheritance, since where a wife had sons "the son of another woman" had no claim on the estate. The "worthless men" who gather to him in Tob bear the word used of Abimelech's hirelings at 9:4, the following David draws at Adullam in 1 Samuel 22:2. The next deliverer runs a band outside the land.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Now Jephthah - was the son of a harlot - I think the word זונה zonah, which we here render harlot, should be translated, as is contended for on Jos 2:1 (note), viz. a hostess, keeper of an inn or tavern for the accommodation of travelers; and thus it is understood by the Targum of Jonathan on this place: והוא בר אתתא פונדקיתא vehu bar ittetha pundekitha, “and he was the son of a woman, a tavern keeper.” She was very probably a Canaanite, as she is called, Jdg 11:2, a strange woman, אשה אחרת ishshah achereth, a woman of another race; and on this account his brethren drove him from the family, as he could not have a full right to the inheritance, his mother not being an Israelite.

The words behind it

13 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וְיִפְתָּ֣חand Jephthah

    veyiftachH3316 →30 times

  • הַגִּלְעָדִ֗יthe Gileadite

    hagiladiH1569 →11 times

  • הָיָה֙he was

    hayahH1961 →3559 times

  • גִּבּ֣וֹרa mighty [man] of

    giborH1368 →158 times

  • חַ֔יִלstrength

    chayilH2428 →246 times

  • וְה֖וּאand he

    vehu'H1931 →1879 times

  • בֶּן־[was] [the] son of

    ben-H1121 →4930 times

  • אִשָּׁ֣הa woman

    ʾishahH802 →781 times

  • זוֹנָ֑הa prostitute

    zonahH2181 →94 times

  • וַיּ֥וֹלֶדand he fathered

    vaiyoledH3205 →496 times

  • גִּלְעָ֖דGilead

    giladH1568 →134 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • יִפְתָּֽח׃Jephthah

    yiftachH3316 →30 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

4 in all, six open

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    2 Kings 5:1

    Now Naaman, the commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man in his master’s sight and highly regarded, for through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. And…

    it leads to

    • Luke 4:27

      And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet. Yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”

    • Romans 15:18

      I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed,

  • Through

    Judges 6:12

    And the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon and said, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.”

    it leads to

    • Joshua 1:5

      No one shall stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so will I be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.

    • Luke 1:28

      The angel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

    • Judges 2:18

      Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for the Israelites, He was with that judge and saved them from the hands of their enemies while the judge was still alive; for the LORD was…

    • Joshua 1:9

      Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

    • Judges 13:3

      The angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “It is true that you are barren and have no children; but you will conceive and give birth to a son.

  • Through

    Hebrews 11:32

    And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets,

    it leads to

    • 1 Samuel 1:20

      So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the LORD.”

About Judges

Jephthah's Daughter Comes to Meet Her Father — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Jephthah's Daughter Comes to Meet Her Father — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Judges: the study guide →Read Judges 11 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth.

Read on in Judges 11 →