1. Now Jephthah of Gilead was a great warrior. He was the son of Gilead, but his mother was a prostitute.
2. Gilead’s wife also had several sons, and when these half brothers grew up, they chased Jephthah off the land. “You will not get any of our father’s inheritance,” they said, “for you are the son of a prostitute.”
3. So Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob. Soon he had a band of worthless rebels following him.
4. At about this time, the Ammonites began their war against Israel.
5. When the Ammonites attacked, the elders of Gilead sent for Jephthah in the land of Tob.
6. The elders said, “Come and be our commander! Help us fight the Ammonites!”
7. But Jephthah said to them, “Aren’t you the ones who hated me and drove me from my father’s house? Why do you come to me now when you’re in trouble?”
8. “Because we need you,” the elders replied. “If you lead us in battle against the Ammonites, we will make you ruler over all the people of Gilead.”