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And
she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me;
let me alone two months, that I may go to the mountains and
weep because of my virginity, I and my companions.” Then
he said, “Go.” So he sent her away for two months;
and she left with her companions, and wept on the mountains
because of her virginity. (NASB) Judges 11:37-38 |
She
cried because she was going to be a virgin the rest of her life. Third,
after she had cried for two months she returns to her father to complete
the vow.
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And
it came about at the end of two months that she returned to
her father, who did to her according to the vow which he had
made; and she had no relations with a man. Thus it became a
custom in Israel, that the daughters of Israel went yearly to
commemorate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days
in the year. (NASB) Judges 11:39 |
After the Holy Spirit tells us ". . . her father, who did to
her according to the vow which he had made," we are told "and
she had no relations with a man." The sacrifice was her perpetual
virginity. If she was sacrificed, why not say so? The best way to
understand this passage is that she was dedicated to the Lord. She
would not marry a man nor would she have children. She would remain
a virgin and devote her life to God's service.
Conclusion:The
Old Testament warns us to pay our vows rather than make vows we do
not fulfill.
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When
you make a vow to God, do not be late in paying it, for He takes
no delight in fools. Pay what you vow! It is better that you
should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. (NASB)
Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 |
This
is a truth we should all remember. If we promise to do something,
God says do it! But this does not apply to sinful promises. Yet many
good promises are not fulfilled because someone has changed "his
or her mind" because it will be an inconvenience or 'too troublesome."
God calls us to be men and women of integrity. God wants our yes to
be yes and our no to be no (Matt. 5:37)! |
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