The Fiery Wrath of God

                                Judges 12:1 KJB

Jephthah was the son of a harlot and when his father's sons were grown, they cast Jephthah out of their family, and he became an outcast. He had no way to feed himself, and so he formed a band of outlaws that lived by force. Apparently, he gained a reputation as a good leader and a good fighter with a sword. Jephthah's father's name was Gilead, and apparently, that family had become so prominent in that region that the people of that land called themselves Gileadites. Judges 11:1-3 (KJB). 

The Gileadites heard that the Ammonites had formed an army to make war against Israel. The elders of Gilead realized that they needed a good leader and fighter to form an army to fight against Ammon. So, they went to Jephthah who lived in a land called Tob, and they asked him to come and be their leader and form an army to fight against Ammon. Jephthah asked them why they wanted him to be their leader since they had cast him out of their land. The elders replied that the needed him. So, Jephthah forgave his people, and he agreed to come to them, and be their leader in their fight with Ammon. Jephthah had every reason to hate his people and refuse to be their leader, and yet he forgave them and agreed to their request. Even though he had been an outcast and an outlaw, Jephthah forgave his people because he believed in God. God had control of Jephthah's heart. Judges 11:4-11 (KJB). 

Jephthah desired to make peace with Ammon. Ammon claimed that they wanted to take back the land that Israel had taken from them. Jephthah wrote letters to the king of Ammon, and he explained to him that while the Israelites had taken any land that God had told them to take, they had not taken any land from Ammon. Besides that, Jephthah wrote, the Israelites had lived in the land that Ammon claimed for 300 years which certainly would make it their land. The king of Ammon probably knew that Jephthah's history was correct, but he rejected Jephthah's peace proposal and went to war because of his greed for the land of Israel. God can use even outlaws if their heart is right with God. God caused Jephthah to be a peacemaker. Matthew 5:9; Judges 11:12-28 (KJB). The Spirit of God came upon Jephthah just before he went to battle with the Ammonites. That probably meant that God had saved Jephthah by His grace. Judges 11:29 (KJB). God gives His salvation by His grace to any person He chooses who has faith in Him. Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJB). 

Jephthah and the Gileadites gained a great victory over the Ammonites because God was with them. Judges 11:32-33 (KJB).

Apparently, the people of Gilead dwelt among the Ephraimites, and they came with an army and threatened to burn down Jephthah's house because they claimed he had not called them to the battle. Jephthah replied that he had called them to the battle, and they had ignored him. The real reason that the Ephraimites wanted to burn Jephthah's house and make war with the Gileadites was that the Gileadites were now a people with their own land, and the Ephraimites desired to take it back under their control. They were also jealous of the victory of the Gileadites over Ammon. The Gileadites then gained a great victory over the Ephraimites in battle. Judges 12:1-7 (KJB). 

This story proves that God uses people who have faith in Him to tell the truth and desire peace, but God will also use His fiery wrath in war against the fiery wrath of evil people who lie and use greed and jealousy to get what they want.