And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.
Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house. The return of the victors was hailed, as usual, by the joyous acclaim of a female band (1 Samuel 18:6), the leader of whom Was Jephthah's daughter. The vow was full in his mind; and it is evident that it had not been communicated to any one, otherwise precautions would doubtless have been taken to place another object at his door. The shriek, and other accompaniments of irrepressible grief, seem, in the opinion of many, to indicate that her life was to be forfeited as a sacrifice; that the nature of the sacrifice (which was abhorrent to the character of God), and distance from the tabernacle, does not suffice to overturn this view, which the language and whole strain of the narrative plainly support; and that although the lapse of two months might be supposed to have afforded time for reflection, and a better sense of his duty, there is but too much reason to conclude that he was impelled to the fulfillment by the dictates of a pious but unenlightened conscience. On the other hand, there are strong reasons for the adoption of another view of the mode in which this vow was carried into effect-namely, by the daughter being devoted to perpetual virginity.
The words, Judges 11:35, "thou hast brought me very low," or thou hast greatly crushed me, are quite, susceptible of a meaning which implies Jephthah's being reduced from his high position to deep obscurity-nay, of having his name and family extinguished, through want of posterity. Then again, the statement, "thou art one of them that trouble me," is very singular to be made at the time when her presence and her purpose were intended to do honour to her father. х `aakar (H5916) means to disturb, to put in confusion, or bring evil, upon one (cf. Joshua 6:18; Joshua 7:25; 1 Samuel 14:29); and the daughter cannot be conceived to have produced such an effect upon Jephthah, but by her presence suddenly calling up the remembrance of his rash vow.]