Men of Valor: Jephthah

by David Chadwick

The book of Judges is a story of the rise and fall of Israel. Over and over again, they would disobey God, worship false idols, then fall into the hands of a foreign, oppressive enemy. They would then cry out to God for help and he would raise up a judge to deliver them and establish order once again. People like Gideon, Samson and Deborah took their place in God’s story to recalibrate the nation after chaos, delivering God’s people from evil.

Judges 11 tells the story of Jephthah, another judge over Israel and our next man of valor. In this chapter, the Israelites were becoming overwhelmed by the Ammonites, a very strong nation. Jephthah is described in Judges 11:1 as “a mighty man of valor.” He became Israel’s leader and rallied the Israelites to fight against the Ammonites. Through his leadership, they ultimately became free!

My favorite part about Jephthah’s story is that he was the son of Gilead, but his mother was a prostitute, which should remind all of us that we serve a God who can take anyone’s background and turn things around.

The book of Deuteronomy talks about the impact that sin can have on generations to come. But Jephthah shows us that even if our parents made grave errors, we can reverse the curse. We do not have to live in their mistakes or under their bondage.

Our God is a chain-breaking, miracle-working God. He specializes in redeeming hopeless situations, restoring broken moments, and reestablishing order out of chaos.

Today, choose to be a Jephthah! Change what has been done to you and chart a different course for your life. Don’t be a victim. You don’t have to remain the same.

And, who knows? Maybe God has called you not just to be a mighty warrior within your personal story, but to change the lives of those around you!