Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his mother was a prostitute. Gilead’s wife also bore him sons, and when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. “You are not going to get any inheritance in our family,” they said, “because you are the son of another woman.” – Judges 11:1-2

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 11, 2019): Judges 11

We are the sum of our experiences. But it is not just our experiences, but the way that we react to our experiences, that shapes who we are. I know that some seem to believe that our reactions to environmental stimuli is universal. The argument is that every stimulus we experience produces the same response. When pain is inflicted on us, we cry. There simply cannot be any other proper response to pain. When we are happy, we laugh. A friend recently tried to convince me of this idea. We all react the same to external stimuli, and because of that, we can diagnose the inner condition of the person by watching the external response. In other words, if you don’t cry, you’re not in pain. Yet, I know that that is not true. I know people who are in great pain who never let their tears show, at least not publically. For these people, tears are a private reaction, and one that they will never show to the public; it is simply none of our business.

In the opening to the story of Jephthah the Gileadite, we learn four things about him. First, his mother was a prostitute. He was born outside of the traditional marriage relationship. Second, and maybe surprising to our contemporary ears, Jephthah did not grow up in a single parent family with his mother, but rather he grew up as the son of his father. The third thing that we learn about Jephthah is that he was rejected, and the cause of his rejection was his parentage, specifically the identity of his mother. And lastly, we know that Jephthah was a mighty warrior. And Jephthah was not just a mighty warrior in times of crisis. This is not the story of Gideon, who the angel sarcastically greeted as a mighty warrior at a time when Gilead was really just a scared farmer trying to protect his harvest from the invaders who wanted to take it from him. Jephthah was known as a mighty warrior independent of the crisis. He was sought after by a nation because of his reputation as a soldier.

So the question that we need to consider is this; does 1) illegitimate son, plus 2) a member of Dad’s family, plus 3) rejection, necessarily equal 4) a mighty warrior? And the answer is no. Jephthah could have been beaten down and have been defined by the opinions of those around him, especially his brothers. Jephthah could have faded into the background and picked up odd jobs to survive. This was what his brothers wanted him to do, and this could have been Jephthah’s truth. But Jephthah refused to allow that to be his truth. Instead, he decided to allow the negative situations in his life to make him stronger. And as a result, Jephthah, the rejected became Jephthah, the mighty warrior.

At times, we all feel rejected. We know Jephthah’s pain. Which means, in each one us, is lurking a mighty warrior. Why not find that inner warrior inside of you today?     

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Judges 12