And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and expel me out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?
Jephthah said ... Did not ye hate me? He gave them at first a haughty and cold reception. It is probable that he saw some of his brothers among the deputies. Jephthah was now in circumstances to make his own terms. With his former experience, he would have shown little wisdom or prudence without binding them to a clear and specific engagement to invest him with unlimited authority, the more especially as he was about to imperil his life in their cause. Although ambition might to a certain degree have stimulated his ready compliance, it is impossible to overlook the piety of his language, which creates a favourable impression that his roving life, in a state of social manners so different from ours, was not incompatible with habits of personal religion.