Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Dave Washburn" <dwashbur AT nyx.net>]

> 
> Solomon Landes wrote:
> A good "rant," Ian. Additionally, the Law repeatedly provided substitution 
> for human life, as foreshadowed by the pesach. 
> There were a number of ways a vow could be fulfilled that made subsitution 
> for human life. 
> 
> Which are unknown to Jephthah and/or the author of the narrative, and which 
> Saul either didn't 
> know, or was too stupid to think if, until his soldiers suggested it to him.

And how exactly do you know these are unknown to Jephthah?  The 
text says nothing either way, and as has been pointed out 
repeatedly on this list, absence of evidence is not evidence of 
absence.  The text is pretty clear that Jephthah did not expect a 
human to come out of his house first, and when he saw his daughter 
he realized how rash and foolish his vow had been.
Dave Washburn
http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur
This time, like all times, is a very good one if we but know what to do 
with it.
                  -Emerson