Judges Chapter 11 verse 1 Holy Bible
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
read chapter 11 in ASV
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a great man of war; he was the son of a loose woman, and Gilead was his father.
read chapter 11 in BBE
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son of a harlot. Gilead was the father of Jephthah.
read chapter 11 in DARBY
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of an harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
read chapter 11 in KJV
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a harlot: and Gilead begat Jephthah.
read chapter 11 in WBT
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a prostitute: and Gilead became the father of Jephthah.
read chapter 11 in WEB
And Jephthah the Gileadite hath been a mighty man of valour, and he `is' son of a woman, a harlot; and Gilead begetteth Jephthah,
read chapter 11 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 1. - Jephthah the Gileadite. Gilead has two meanings: it is the name of the country so called (Judges 10:8, note), and it is the name of the son or descendant of Machir the son of Manasseh (1 Chronicles 7:14, 17; Numbers 26:29, 30). Gileadite also may be explained in two ways: it may mean an inhabitant of Gilead (Judges 10:18), or it may mean a member of the family of the Gileadites, either an actual son or a more remote descendant of Gilead (Numbers 26:29) - two meanings which would usually coincide. Gilead begat Jephthah. Here Gilead must mean the person so called, i.e. the son or descendant of Machir, from whom the family, including Jephthah, were called Gileadites; but whether son or descendant cannot positively be affirmed. All that is certain is that he was that one of Maehir's descendants who was the head of that division of the Manassites who were called Gileadites. Again, when it is said Gilead begat Jephthah, we cannot be certain whether it is meant that Gilead was Jephthah's father, or merely his ancestor (see Judges 10:3, note).
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(1) The son of an harlot.--The words are so rendered in all the versions, and can hardly have any other meaning. If an inferior wife had been meant, the word used would not have been zonah, but pilgesh, as in Judges 8:31. The word may, however, be used in the harsh sense of the brethren of Jephthah, without being strictly accurate. (Comp. 1Chronicles 2:26.)Gilead begat Jephthah.--We are here met by the same questions as those which concern Tola and Jair. That Gilead is a proper name, not the name of the country mythically personified, may be regarded as certain. But is this Gilead the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, or some later Gilead? or does "begat" mean "was the ancestor of?" The answer to these questions depends mainly upon the insoluble problem of the chronology; but we may note (1) that since no other Gilead is mentioned, we should naturally infer that this is the grandson of Manasseh; and (2) that the fact referred to in the obscure genealogy of 1Chronicles 7:14-17 seems to show that the family of Manasseh had Syrian (Aramean) connections, and Jephthah's mother may have been an Aramitess from the district of Tob. The name Jephthah means "he opens" (the womb).
