Judges 12:1-15

12:1-6 | Ephraim’s complaint here echoes the tribe’s prideful words in Judges 8. Jephthah spurned Gideon’s diplomatic approach and instead fought and defeated the Ephraimites. His decision to seek revenge for the insult, combined with Israel’s rejection of God’s laws, only added to the trouble, causing the tribes to turn on each other rather than fighting their true enemies.

12:6 | Shibboleth is a word that can be translated as either “steam” or “ear of grain.” For whatever reason, the Ephraimites could not pronounce the word properly, making them easily identified.

12:7 | Despite his foolishness and his vengefulness, Jephthah is mentioned in the hall of faith in Hebrews, along with other flawed characters from Judges – Gideon, Barak, and Samson (Heb. 11:32). Trust is so important to God that He responds to it even in the lives of flawed people.

12:8-15 | The presence of three more “minor” judges in the storyline reminds readers that the book’s intent is not a detailed account of every judge in Israel but to tell the stories of certain judges to build an argument – namely, that God’s people deteriorate when they become like pagan cultures around them. These lesser-known judges with their large families and king-like wealth (e.g. the seventy donkeys on which Abdon’s sons and grandsons rode) also highlight the emptiness of their predecessor, Jephthah, and their successor, Samson (5:10; 10:4).