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Judges 12 Devotional

When Brothers Become Enemies

The victory over Ammon is barely won when Ephraim crosses the Jordan threatening to burn Jephthah's house down with him inside (12:1). They are offended at being left out, the same complaint they once brought to Gideon (8:1). Gideon calmed them with a humble answer. Jephthah answers with an army. The Gileadites seize the fords and test every fugitive with a single word, Shibboleth, and forty-two thousand Ephraimites die (12:4-6).

The war begins with offense and insult (12:1, 4) and ends with Israelites slaughtering Israelites at a river crossing. God's name appears only once, when Jephthah says the LORD gave him victory over Ammon (12:3). Then come three brief judges, two noted for their large families, each recorded and buried (12:8-15). The book is growing quieter about God and louder about rivalry. Proverbs observes that soft words calm anger while harsh ones stir it up (Proverbs 15:1), as Gideon's reply had shown. Because God has been patient with you, you can meet a fellow believer's offense with patience rather than escalation.

To think about: Is there a conflict with a fellow believer where you could choose a gentle answer instead of a sharp one?

About Judges 12: Ephraim’s Quarrel and the Shibboleth Test

Ephraim threatens Jephthah for fighting Ammon without them, and a civil war follows in which Gilead holds the Jordan crossings and uses the word Shibboleth to expose fleeing Ephraimites. Jephthah dies after six years, and the short judgeships of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon are recorded.

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