Don’t Be Stupid

TorahBytes

For the week of July 13, 2024/ 7 Tammuz 5784

Chukkat
Torah: B’midbar/Numbers 19:1 – 22:1
Haftarah: Shoftim/Judges 11:1-33
Updated message originally posted the week of June 23, 2007 / 7 Tammuz 5767
originally entitled, “You Don’t Have To Do Stupid Things”

And Yiftah (English: Jephthah) made a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the LORD‘s, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.” (Shoftim / Judges 11:30-31)

The biblical book of Shoftim (English: Judges) includes some “interesting” stories and characters. It underscores for us the interpretive principle of prescriptive vs. descriptive passages. Prescriptive passages provide general directives or life principles, such as “Honor your mother and your father” or “To give is better than to receive.” Descriptive passages are those that describe an incident or provide dialogue without necessarily encouraging the reader to follow suit. This isn’t always straightforward, allowing us to ponder these passages as we seek God to speak to us through them.

The Book of Shoftim (English: Judges), is especially challenging in this regard. Several of its characters the apparent heroes of the stories, engage in disturbing behaviors. Since these characters often appear to be divinely inspired to save the day, so to speak, the reader may be inclined to think that these behaviors are acceptable.

When this passage was chosen to be part of the annual cycle of readings, it was decided to stop at the point when the hero wins the day, leaving out the disturbing part. Maybe the conclusion was just too embarrassing or too difficult to handle. Yiftah promised God that if God would give him victory in battle, then, upon his return home, he would sacrifice whatever came out of the door of his house to meet him. That much we learn from this week’s passage. But what is not included is what it was that met him upon his return. I don’t know what Yiftah was thinking when he made his promise in the first place. Did he assume he would be met by one of his goats or sheep? As it turned out, it was his daughter! So what does he do? Does he say to himself, “Oy veh! Am I meshuge (English: crazy person)! Forgive me O Lord for making such a rash vow!”? No, instead he tells his daughter how bad he feels having to follow through with his promise.

I could see some spiritually-minded people attempting to justify Yiftah’s actions. After all, it was God to whom he made this promise. Of course his daughter’s death was tragic, but “God is God,” they might say, ignoring what God himself thinks about human sacrifice and murder. While we should keep our promises even when it is extremely difficult, it is never too late to stop ourselves from doing stupid things.

An important aspect about descriptive passages, even though they are not prescriptive, is that we can still to learn from them. The story of Yiftah and his daughter shows us how a person could be chosen and inspired by God to do great things, yet still say and do some of the most ridiculous and destructive things in the entire Bible.

What should we learn from this? Are we to learn that if we are really spiritual, then we can get away with murder, both literally and figuratively, or should we stop and realize that being spiritual doesn’t automatically prevent anyone from doing stupid things? I suggest that as soon as we realize that we have gone down a foolish road—no matter how we got there or how far down that road we might be—it is never too late to change course.

Scriptures taken from the English Standard Version