My mother does not know how to explain these verses from the Bible?

Question

What do they mean?

Jephthah Burns His Daughter

"At that time the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he went throughout the land of Gilead and Manasseh, including Mizpah in Gilead, and led an army against the Ammonites. And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD. He said, "If you give me victory over the Ammonites, I will give to the LORD the first thing coming out of my house to greet me when I return in triumph. I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering."

"So Jephthah led his army against the Ammonites, and the LORD gave him victory. He thoroughly defeated the Ammonites from Aroer to an area near Minnith – twenty towns – and as far away as Abel-keramim. Thus Israel subdued the Ammonites. When Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, his daughter – his only child – ran out to meet him, playing on a tambourine and dancing for joy. When he saw her, he tore his clothes in anguish. "My daughter!" he cried out. "My heart is breaking! What a tragedy that you came out to greet me. For I have made a vow to the LORD and cannot take it back." And she said, "Father, you have made a promise to the LORD. You must do to me what you have promised, for the LORD has given you a great victory over your enemies, the Ammonites. But first let me go up and roam in the hills and weep with my friends for two months, because I will die a virgin." "You may go," Jephthah said. And he let her go away for two months. She and her friends went into the hills and wept because she would never have children. When she returned home, her father kept his vow, and she died a virgin. So it has become a custom in Israel for young Israelite women to go away for four days each year to lament the fate of Jephthah's daughter." (Judges 11:29-40 NLT)

God Commands Burning Humans

[The Lord speaking] "The one who has stolen what was set apart for destruction will himself be burned with fire, along with everything he has, for he has broken the covenant of the LORD and has done a horrible thing in Israel." (Joshua 7:15 NLT)

Josiah and Human Sacrifice

At the LORD's command, a man of God from Judah went to Bethel, and he arrived there just as Jeroboam was approaching the altar to offer a sacrifice. Then at the LORD's command, he shouted, "O altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: A child named Josiah will be born into the dynasty of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests from the pagan shrines who come here to burn incense, and human bones will be burned on you." (1 Kings 13:1-2 NLT)

Answer 1

God talks about that money is important and without money you cannot afford to live in this wrold.

Answer 2

In the first story, it was not about sacrificing a human, it was about keeping a promise. God never told Jephthah to make such a risky promise to Him.

The second and third passage was about people who had done very terrible things that were worthy of a death penalty. This was not a human sacrifice. This was justice.

The only human sacrifice in the Bible was Jesus. He was the propitiation for the sins of the believers, so that God could look at His death, and declare the believers legally justified.

Answer 3

I hope they are lessons on what not to be doing to your children...

Answer 4

Jephthah made an oath to the Lord. That had to be honored. Let that be a lesson not to make hasty oaths!

The burning is a punishment, not a sacrifice.

Maybe you should try reading a Bible instead of quote mining what you got from an atheist's website.

Answer 5

That's the crazy "holy" bible for you!

Answer 6

The moral here is don't make stupid vows.  God did not want Jephthah to sacrifice his daughter.  God hates murder.  

Answer 7

Although is hard for us to comprehend why God had ordered such a thing to happen, If you think about it He did just that to His own Son Jesus. Jesus was sacrificed for us, this was to be. Most things that happened in the Old Testament were examples of what was to come. Didn't God order Abraham to do the same to his own son. The example there was to show Abraham that he had a deep faith in God by putting God first. And the worship then was sacrifice to God the Creator. He had all the power and still has all the power. God Bless you.

And KDanley is correct about the oaths we make to God. Don't make any oaths you cannot keep.

Answer 8

I agree with this poster:

"Maybe you should try reading a Bible instead of quoting and mining what you got from an atheist's website."

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