Top of Page
Page Style
men of Ephraim gathered together, and they crossed over the Jordan to Zaphon to confront Jephthah. They said to him, “Why did you cross over to fight against the Ammonites without calling upon us to go with you? For that, we are going to burn down your house with you inside!”
2 Jephthah said to them, “I and my people were engaged in a great struggle with the Ammonites. Yet although I summoned you, you did not deliver me out of their hands. 3 When I saw that you would not rescue me, I took my life in my own hands, and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the Lord delivered them into my hands. Why then have you come to me this day to fight against me?”
4 Then Jephthah gathered together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because Ephraim had said, “You Gileadites are nothing but fugitives from Ephraim in the territories of Ephraim and Manasseh.” 5 The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim. Then whenever a fugitive from Ephraim would say, “Let me cross over,” the men of Gilead would ask him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he answered, “No,” 6 they would say to him, “All right, say, ‘Shibboleth’.” If he said, “Sibboleth,” because he could not pronounce the word correctly, they would seize him and kill him at the fords of the Jordan. At that time forty-two thousand Ephraimites were killed.
7 Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then Jephthah the Gileadite died, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.
8 After him, Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 9 He had thirty sons and thirty daughters. He married off his daughters to men outside his clan, and he brought in thirty wives for his sons from outside his clan. Ibzan judged Israel for seven years, 10 then he died, and was buried at Bethlehem.
11 After Ibzan, Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel for ten years. 12 Then Elon the Zebulunite died, and he was buried at Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
13 After him, Abdon son of Hillel, from Pirathon, judged Israel. 14 He had forty sons and thirty grandsons, who rode on seventy donkeys. He judged Israel for eight years. 15 Then Abdon son of Hillel died. He was buried at Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.