Judges 11:8-11
Summary for Judg 11:9-10: 11:9-10 a Jephthah made sure that the elders really were offering him the position of ruler, not just “commander.”11:11 b At the end of the negotiations, Jephthah was sworn in as both ruler and commander.
• This Mizpah (“watchtower”) was a shrine east of the Jordan in Gilead, which was Jephthah’s home (10:17 c; 11:29 d, 34 e); it should not be confused with Mizpah in Benjamin, the place near Bethel where the tribes later assembled and swore oaths for the final battle of Judges (20:1 f; 21:1 g).
• The ceremony at Mizpah in the presence of the Lord appears to have been the making of a suzerain-vassal covenant, in which a ruler (the suzerain) promises to protect and defend a vassal people in exchange for authority over them (see study note on Exod 20:1–23:33; see also Deuteronomy Book Introduction, “Literary Form”).
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