1
And Yiftach the Giladi was a mighty ish of strength, and he was the son of an ishah, a prostitute. And Gilad fathered Yiftach.
2
And the ishah of Gilad bore him sons. And when the sons of the ishah grew up, they drove Yiftach out and said to him, “You shall not inherit in the house of our father, for you are the son of another ishah.”
3
And Yiftach fled from before his brothers and dwelt in the land of Tov. And empty men gathered themselves to Yiftach and went out with him.
4
And it came to pass after days that the sons of Ammon fought against Yisra’el.
5
And it came to pass, when the sons of Ammon fought against Yisra’el, that the elders of Gilad went to bring Yiftach from the land of Tov.
6
And they said to Yiftach, “Come, and be for us a commander, and let us fight against the sons of Ammon.”
7
And Yiftach said to the elders of Gilad, “Did you not hate me and drive me out from the house of my father? And why have you come to me now when you are in distress?”
8
And the elders of Gilad said to Yiftach, “Therefore now we have returned to you, that you may go with us and fight against the sons of Ammon, and you shall become head over us, over all the inhabitants of Gilad.”
9
And Yiftach said to the elders of Gilad, “If you bring me back to fight against the sons of Ammon, and Yahuah gives them before my face, shall I become your head?”
10
And the elders of Gilad said to Yiftach, “Yahuah shall be witness between us if we do not do according to your word.”
11
And Yiftach went with the elders of Gilad, and the people placed him over them as head and commander. And Yiftach spoke all his words before Yahuah at Mitzpah.
12
And Yiftach sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, saying, “What is there between me and you, that you have come to me to fight against my land?”
13
And the king of the sons of Ammon said to the messengers of Yiftach, “Because Yisra’el took my land when he came up from Mitzrayim, from Arnon even to Yabboq and as far as the Yarden. And now return them in shalom.”
14
And Yiftach again sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon,
15
and said to him, “Thus says Yiftach: Yisra’el did not take the land of Moav nor the land of the sons of Ammon.
16
For when they came up from Mitzrayim, Yisra’el walked through the wilderness as far as the Sea of Reeds and came to Qadesh.
17
And Yisra’el sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Please let me pass through your land.’ But the king of Edom did not listen. And he also sent to the king of Moav, but he was not willing. And Yisra’el remained at Qadesh.
18
And he walked through the wilderness and went around the land of Edom and the land of Moav, and came from the sunrise side of the land of Moav, and encamped beyond Arnon. And they did not enter the border of Moav, for Arnon was the border of Moav.
19
And Yisra’el sent messengers to Sichon king of the Emori, king of Cheshbon. And Yisra’el said to him, ‘Please let us pass through your land as far as my place.’
20
But Sichon did not trust Yisra’el to pass through his border. And Sichon gathered all his people together and encamped at Yahatz and fought against Yisra’el.
21
And Yahuah, Elohim of Yisra’el, gave Sichon and all his people into the hand of Yisra’el, and they struck them. And Yisra’el possessed all the land of the Emori, the inhabitants of that land.
22
And they possessed all the border of the Emori, from Arnon as far as Yabboq, and from the wilderness as far as the Yarden.
23
And now Yahuah, Elohim of Yisra’el, has dispossessed the Emori from before His people Yisra’el, and would you possess it?
24
Will you not possess what Kemosh your elohim gives you to possess? And whatever Yahuah our Elohim dispossesses from before our face, that we shall possess.
25
And now, are you truly better than Balaq son of Tzippor, king of Moav? Contending, did he ever contend with Yisra’el? Fighting, did he ever fight against them?
26
While Yisra’el dwelt in Cheshbon and its daughter towns, and in Aroer and its daughter towns, and in all the cities that are along the sides of Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not deliver them during that time?
27
And I have not sinned against you, but you are doing evil with me by fighting against me. Yahuah, the Judge, shall judge this day between the sons of Yisra’el and the sons of Ammon.”
28
But the king of the sons of Ammon did not listen to the words of Yiftach that he sent to him.
29
And the Ruach of Yahuah came upon Yiftach, and he passed through Gilad and Menasheh, and passed through Mitzpeh of Gilad, and from Mitzpeh of Gilad he passed over to the sons of Ammon.
30
And Yiftach vowed a vow to Yahuah and said, “If giving, You will surely give the sons of Ammon into my hand,
31
then it shall be that whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in shalom from the sons of Ammon shall be Yahuah’s, and I will cause it to go up as an ascending offering.”
32
And Yiftach crossed over to the sons of Ammon to fight against them, and Yahuah gave them into his hand.
33
And he struck them from Aroer as far as the entrance of Minnit, twenty cities, and as far as Avel-Keramim, with an exceedingly great slaughter. And the sons of Ammon were subdued before the sons of Yisra’el.
34
And Yiftach came to Mitzpah, to his house, and see, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances. And she was his only child; besides her he had neither son nor daughter.
35
And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he tore his garments and said, “Ah, my daughter! Bowing, you have brought me low, and you have become among those who trouble me. For I have opened my mouth to Yahuah, and I am not able to turn back.”
36
And she said to him, “My father, you have opened your mouth to Yahuah. Do to me according to what has gone out from your mouth, since Yahuah has made vengeance for you upon your enemies, upon the sons of Ammon.”
37
And she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me: leave me alone two months, and I will go and descend upon the mountains, and I will weep over my virginity, I and my companions.”
38
And he said, “Go.” And he sent her away for two months. And she went, she and her companions, and wept over her virginity upon the mountains.
39
And it came to pass at the end of two months that she returned to her father, and he did to her according to his vow that he had vowed. And she had not known an ish. And it became a statute in Yisra’el:
40
from days to days the daughters of Yisra’el would go to recount the daughter of Yiftach the Giladi, four days in the year.