Judges 12:1-7
1 Now the men of Ephraim were summoned, and they crossed to Zaphon; and they said to Jephthah, “Why did you cross over to fight against the sons of Ammon without calling us to go with you? We will burn your house down on you!”
2 So Jephthah said to them, “I and my people were in a major dispute with the sons of Ammon; and I did call you, but you did not save me from their hand.
3 When I saw that you were no deliverer, I took my life in my hands and crossed over against the sons of Ammon, and the Lord handed them over to me. Why then have you come up to me this day to fight against me?”
4 Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought Ephraim; and the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, because they said, “You are survivors of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and in the midst of Manasseh.”
5 And the Gileadites took control of the crossing places of the Jordan opposite Ephraim. And it happened whenever any of the survivors of Ephraim said, “Let me cross over,” that the men of Gilead would say to him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he said, “No,”
6 then they would say to him, “Just say, ‘Shibboleth.’ ” But he said, “Sibboleth,” for he was not prepared to pronounce it correctly. Then they seized him and slaughtered him at the crossing places of the Jordan. So at that time forty-two thousand from Ephraim fell.
7 Jephthah judged Israel for six years. Then Jephthah the Gileadite died and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.
Civil Conflict with Ephraim
Pride
In Proverbs, it is written, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling” (16:18). Pridefulness leads to disputes with neighbors and eventually leads to one’s destruction. Have you witnessed the fall of the proud? In today’s passage, Ephraim’s pride is the focus. The tribe of Ephraim is a branch of the tribe of Joseph, along with the tribe of Manasseh. They have carried a sense of superiority ever since the time of the Exodus, and this pride has often surfaced as arrogance. (1) Upon the division of the land during the time of Joshua, Ephraim expressed dissatisfaction with the outcome (Josh. 17:14-16). (2) In the time of Gideon, they voiced discontent as well (Judg. 8:1). Gideon pacified them and sought peaceful resolution. (3) Now, for the third time, they complained to Jephthah. Jephthah responded with a firm stance.
Destruction
(1) The reason for Ephraim’s discontent was that lies they were not consulted when Jephthah was preparing to fight the Ammonites. They threatened to burn Jephthah along with his house. (2) In response, Jephthah recounted the time Ephraim did not respond when they were asked of assistance during the previous battle against the Ammonites. And therefore, he argued that their threat was unjustifiable. (3) In turn, the Ephraimites insulted the Gileadites who lived in the east of the Jordan River, saying they are “fugitives of Ephraim and Manasseh.” This insult stroked Jephthah’s nerves, as he himself had been driven out by his half-brothers and experienced a life as a fugitive. Finally, an unfortunate intertribal conflict erupted. The Gileadites controled the crossings of the Jordan River and, using the dialect as a marker, identified and killed anyone trying to cross who they suspected to be an Ephraimite. In this feud, 42,000 Ephraimites lost their lives. Ultimately, it was the pride of the Ephraim tribe that led to this tragedy. What can you learn from this tragedy? Let us revisit the meaning of humility once again.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father of Jesus Christ, please remove the pride and arrogance from my heart. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.