Jephthah's Daughter is Sacrificed
The story of Jephthah's daughter can be found in Judges 11:1-11 and 29-40. It is a shocking story.Jephthah's Daughter Tells Her Story
I was overjoyed that he was home safe. My father had been away fighting the Ammonites and now he was home. I ran out to greet him and he began yelling at me. He was tearing his clothes asking me why I had brought this terrible disaster on him. "You have brought me very low. You are the cause of great trouble for me!" he wailed. He was blaming me for a vow he had made. A vow I knew nothing about. There is no escaping the sacrifice. I begged for two more months but I must return to the home of my father to be killed at his hands. Oh, daughters of Israel remember my sacrifice.
Observations on the Sacrifice of Jephthah's Daughter
Sister Mariam Theresa Winter has written a beautiful psalm for Jephthah's daughter. It can be found in her book Woman Witness. I include it here with gratitude for all she has taught me.
His daughter ran to greet him, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. She slid into the arms of death, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. The abused little girl goes home at night, like an innocent lamb to the the slaughter. The runaway runs in search of herself, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. There is no balm in Gilead. There is no comfort in Eden or Oz. For we have lost a daughter. The daughters of Eve went out from her, like innocent lambs to the slaughter. Our daughters step out to face the world, like innocent lambs to the slaughter. The women went to Buchenwald, like innocent lambs to the slaughter. African women were dragged into ships, like innocent lambs to the slaughter. There is no balm in Gilead. There is no comfort in Eden or Oz. For we have lost a daughter. The baby girl comes out of the womb, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. The little girl hidden within us comes out, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. Woe to the one who leads the child, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. Woe to us when we lead ourselves, like an innocent lamb to the slaughter. There is no balm in Gilead. There is no comfort in Eden or Oz. For we have lost a daughter.
Where is the grace, the inspiration, the hand of God in the story of the sacrifice of Jephthan's voiceless daughter?
Sister Mariam Theresa Winter's hymn is, indeed, beautiful!
ReplyDeletePrior to having read your post, I had heard neither of Jephthah nor his daughter. Upon reading her story in Judges for the first time, I was wondering if there were others which could have possibly come out of Jephthah's house to meet him. Maybe Jephthah's statement - "You have brought me very low; you have become the cause of great trouble to me." - means that he was devastated and conflicted about his vow, now that it involved his daughter. As mentioned in a previous post, I am somewhat insecure about interpreting the Bible... Needless to say, Jephthah's vow of human sacrifice is objectionable!
It's interesting to me that Jephthah's daughter has a voice, speaking to her father. Although I am shocked by her story and appalled that she had to die, as a consequence of her father's vow, I can't help but also be in awe of the graceful way, in which she dealt with the situation. My personal belief is that we are all given a set of life circumstances; it's the way, in which we relate to them, that is significant!