In response to Thomas Römer’s assertion that the story of
Jephthah’s sacrifice is a Hellenistic insertion into the Deuteronomistic
History, this articleargues that the presence of the story is best explained as an
original part of the history. The portrayal of the sacrifice fits the pattern of
moral decline in the book of Judges, and it forms an integral and interconnected
part of thestory of Jephthah as a whole. Moreover, as part of this whole it reflects
animportant theme stressed elsewhere by the history: when Israel sacrificeslike
foreigners do, it will act like foreigners, as well. This is why the story of
Jephthah’s sacrifice is followed immediately by the story of the tribe of
Ephraim, which acts just like the Ammonites, the foreign nation in thisaccount, by
invading Gilead.
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