1 وكان يفتاح الجلعادي جبار بأس وهو ابن امرأة زانية. وجلعاد ولد يفتاح.2 ثم ولدت امرأة جلعاد له بنين. فلما كبر بنو المرأة طردوا يفتاح وقالوا له لا ترث في بيت ابينا لانك انت ابن امرأة اخرى.3 فهرب يفتاح من وجه اخوته واقام في ارض طوب. فاجتمع الى يفتاح رجال بطالون وكانوا يخرجون معه4 وكان بعد ايام ان بني عمون حاربوا اسرائيل.5 ولما حارب بنو عمون اسرائيل ذهب شيوخ جلعاد ليأتوا بيفتاح من ارض طوب.6 وقالوا ليفتاح تعال وكن لنا قائدا فنحارب بني عمون.7 فقال يفتاح لشيوخ جلعاد أما أبغضتموني انتم وطردتموني من بيت ابي. فلماذا اتيتم اليّ الآن اذ تضايقتم.8 فقال شيوخ جلعاد ليفتاح لذلك قد رجعنا الآن اليك لتذهب معنا وتحارب بني عمون وتكون لنا راسا لكل سكان جلعاد.9 فقال يفتاح لشيوخ جلعاد اذا ارجعتموني لمحاربة بني عمون ودفعهم الرب امامي فانا اكون لكم راسا.10 فقال شيوخ جلعاد ليفتاح الرب يكون سامعا بيننا ان كنا لا نفعل هكذا حسب كلامك.11 فذهب يفتاح مع شيوخ جلعاد. وجعله الشعب عليهم راسا وقائدا. فتكلم يفتاح بجميع كلامه امام الرب في المصفاة12 فارسل يفتاح رسلا الى ملك بني عمون يقول ما لي ولك انك اتيت اليّ للمحاربة في ارضي.13 فقال ملك بني عمون لرسل يفتاح. لان اسرائيل قد اخذ ارضي عند صعوده من مصر من ارنون الى اليبّوق والى الاردن. فالآن ردها بسلام.14 وعاد ايضا يفتاح وارسل رسلا الى ملك بني عمون.15 وقال له هكذا يقول يفتاح. لم ياخذ اسرائيل ارض موآب ولا ارض بني عمون.16 لانه عند صعود اسرائيل من مصر سار في القفر الى بحر سوف واتى الى قادش17 وارسل اسرائيل رسلا الى ملك ادوم قائلا دعني اعبر في ارضك. فلم يسمع ملك ادوم. فارسل ايضا الى ملك موآب فلم يرض. فاقام اسرائيل في قادش.18 وسار في القفر ودار بارض ادوم وارض موآب وأتى من مشرق الشمس الى ارض موآب ونزل في عبر ارنون ولم يأتوا الى تخم موآب لان ارنون تخم موآب.19 ثم ارسل اسرائيل رسلا الى سيحون ملك الاموريين ملك حشبون وقال له اسرائيل دعني اعبر في ارضك الى مكاني.20 ولم يأمن سيحون لاسرائيل ان يعبر في تخمه بل جمع سيحون كل شعبه ونزلوا في ياهص وحاربوا اسرائيل.21 فدفع الرب اله اسرائيل سيحون وكل شعبه ليد اسرائيل فضربوهم وامتلك اسرائيل كل ارض الاموريين سكان تلك الارض.22 فامتلكوا كل تخم الاموريين من ارنون الى اليبوق ومن القفر الى الاردن.23 والآن الرب اله اسرائيل قد طرد الاموريين من امام شعبه اسرائيل. أفانت تمتلكه.24 أليس ما يملّكك اياه كموش الهك تمتلك. وجميع الذين طردهم الرب الهنا من امامنا فاياهم نمتلك.25 والآن فهل انت خير من بالاق بن صفور ملك موآب فهل خاصم اسرائيل او حاربهم محاربة.26 حين اقام اسرائيل في حشبون وقراها وعروعير وقراها وكل المدن التي على جانب ارنون ثلاث مئة سنة فلماذا لم تستردها في تلك المدة.27 فانا لم اخطئ اليك واما انت فانك تفعل بي شرا بمحاربتي. ليقض الرب القاضي اليوم بين بني اسرائيل وبني عمون.28 فلم يسمع ملك بني عمون لكلام يفتاح الذي ارسل اليه29 فكان روح الرب على يفتاح فعبر جلعاد ومنسّى وعبر مصفاة جلعاد ومن مصفاة جلعاد عبر الى بني عمون.30 ونذر يفتاح نذرا للرب قائلا. ان دفعت بني عمون ليدي31 فالخارج الذي يخرج من ابواب بيتي للقائي عند رجوعي بالسلامة من عند بني عمون يكون للرب واصعده محرقة.32 ثم عبر يفتاح الى بني عمون لمحاربتهم. فدفعهم الرب ليده.33 فضربهم من عروعير الى مجيئك الى منّيت عشرين مدينة والى آبل الكروم ضربة عظيمة جدا. فذلّ بني عمون امام بني اسرائيل34 ثم أتى يفتاح الى المصفاة الى بيته. واذا بابنته خارجة للقائه بدفوف ورقص. وهي وحيدة. لم يكن له ابن ولا ابنة غيرها.35 وكان لما رأها انه مزّق ثيابه وقال آه يا بنتي قد احزنتني حزنا وصرت بين مكدّريّ لاني قد فتحت فمي الى الرب ولا يمكنني الرجوع.36 فقالت له. يا ابي هل فتحت فاك الى الرب فافعل بي كما خرج من فيك بما ان الرب قد انتقم لك من اعدائك بني عمون.37 ثم قالت لابيها فليفعل لي هذا الأمر. اتركني شهرين فاذهب وانزل على الجبال وابكي عذراويتي انا وصاحباتي.38 فقال اذهبي وارسلها الى شهرين فذهبت هي وصاحباتها وبكت عذراويتها على الجبال.39 وكان عند نهاية الشهرين انها رجعت الى ابيها ففعل بها نذره الذي نذر وهي لم تعرف رجلا. فصارت عادة في اسرائيل40 ان بنات اسرائيل يذهبن من سنة الى سنة لينحن على بنت يفتاح الجلعادي اربعة ايام في السنة

1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.2 And Gilead' wife bore him sons; and his wife' sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said to him, You shall not inherit in our father' house; for you are the son of a strange woman.3 Then Jephthah fled from his brothers, and dwelled in the land of Tob: and there were gathered vain men to Jephthah, and went out with him.4 And it came to pass in process of time, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.5 And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob:6 And they said to Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.7 And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, Did not you hate me, and expel me out of my father' house? and why are you come to me now when you are in distress?8 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to you now, that you may go with us, and fight against the children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.9 And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, If you bring me home again to fight against the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, shall I be your head?10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, The LORD be witness between us, if we do not so according to your words.11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh.12 And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the children of Ammon, saying, What have you to do with me, that you are come against me to fight in my land?13 And the king of the children of Ammon answered to the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land, when they came up out of Egypt, from Arnon even to Jabbok, and to Jordan: now therefore restore those lands again peaceably.14 And Jephthah sent messengers again to the king of the children of Ammon:15 And said to him, Thus said Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon:16 But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the wilderness to the Red sea, and came to Kadesh;17 Then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray you, pass through your land: but the king of Edom would not listen thereto. And in like manner they sent to the king of Moab: but he would not consent: and Israel stayed in Kadesh.18 Then they went along through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and pitched on the other side of Arnon, but came not within the border of Moab: for Arnon was the border of Moab.19 And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said to him, Let us pass, we pray you, through your land into my place.20 But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Jahaz, and fought against Israel.21 And the LORD God of Israel delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them: so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country.22 And they possessed all the coasts of the Amorites, from Arnon even to Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to Jordan.23 So now the LORD God of Israel has dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and should you possess it?24 Will not you possess that which Chemosh your god gives you to possess? So whomsoever the LORD our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.25 And now are you any thing better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them,26 While Israel dwelled in Heshbon and her towns, and in Aroer and her towns, and in all the cities that be along by the coasts of Arnon, three hundred years? why therefore did you not recover them within that time?27 Why I have not sinned against you, but you do me wrong to war against me: the LORD the Judge be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.28 However, the king of the children of Ammon listened not to the words of Jephthah which he sent him.29 Then the Spirit of the LORD came on Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over to the children of Ammon.30 And Jephthah vowed a vow to the LORD, and said, If you shall without fail deliver the children of Ammon into my hands,31 Then it shall be, that whatever comes forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD', and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.32 So Jephthah passed over to the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hands.33 And he smote them from Aroer, even till you come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and to the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.34 And Jephthah came to Mizpeh to his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very low, and you are one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot go back.36 And she said to him, My father, if you have opened your mouth to the LORD, do to me according to that which has proceeded out of your mouth; for as much as the LORD has taken vengeance for you of your enemies, even of the children of Ammon.37 And she said to her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down on the mountains, and mourn my virginity, I and my fellows.38 And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity on the mountains.39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel,40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.