Judges 12:1
And the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and went
a northward, and said unto Jephthah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the children of Ammon, and didst not call
b us to go with thee? we will burn thine house upon thee with fire.
(a) After they had passed Jordan.
(b) Thus ambition envies Gods work in others as they did against Gideon, ( Judges 8:1 ).
Judges 12:3
And when I saw that ye delivered [me] not,
c I put my life in my hands, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand: wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me?
(c) That is, I ventured my life, and when mans help failed, I put my trust only in God.
Judges 12:4
Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim: and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said, Ye Gileadites [are] fugitives of Ephraim
d among the Ephraimites, [and] among the Manassites.
(d) You ran from us, and chose Gilead, and now in respect to us you are nothing.
Judges 12:6
Then said they unto him, Say now
e Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce [it] right. Then they took him, and slew him at the passages of Jordan: and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand.
(e) Which signifies the fall of waters, or an ear of corn.
Judges 12:8
And after him
f Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel.
(f) Some think that this was Boaz the husband of Ruth.
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