The story of Jephthah appears in Judges 11: Jephthah, "a mighty man of valour," was made "head and captain" of the Israelites in return for defending the Israelites from the Ammonites. On the eve of his battle with the Ammonites, Jephthah "vowed a vow unto the LORD," that if he were granted victory, "whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me . . . shall surely be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering." Jephthah was victorious, and when he returned to his house, "behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child." Jephthah, full of woe, tells his daughter of his vow, and she answers, "do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth." Jephthah's daughter only asks that for two months she may "go up and down the mountains, and bewail my virginity." Jephthah sends her away to fulfill her wish, and then she returns to him, "who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed." [All quotations are from the authorized King James Version.]
