Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Daniel Walin <danserve4x AT yahoo.com>]

Well, the general consensus (from the list and some
off-list messages to me) seems to be that this Hebrew
word is probably not to be read as "or."

In that case, I can think of no logical way to argue
that Jephthah's daughter was not sacrificed as a burnt
offering.  Consider the evidence.

A)  Jephthah vows to make the first thing that comes
out of his house a burnt offering.  (Judges 11:31)

B)  Jephthah's daughter is the first thing to come out
of his house.  (Judges 11:34)

C)  Jepthah fulfulls his vow.  (Judges 11:39)

If each point is indeed true (and I can think of no
way to render any of the points false except to
suppose inaccurate translation) then Jephthah must
have sacrificed his daughter as a burnt offering.

The Bible doesn't morally support this act, after all;
it simply tells about it.  I see no reason to believe
that this is not an actual historical event recorded,
without a value judgement, in the text of the Bible. 

Daniel Walin

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