Judges 11 · Verse 35

Judges 11:35

And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.
Judges 11:35, King James Version

Judges 11:35 in other translations

BSBAs soon as Jephthah saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “No! Not my daughter! You have brought me to my knees! You have brought great misery upon me, for I have given my word to the LORD and cannot take it back.”
WEBWhen he saw her, he tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are one of those who trouble me; for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I can’t go back.”
ASVAnd it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me; for I have opened my mouth unto Jehovah, and I cannot go back.
YLTAnd it cometh to pass, when he seeth her, that he rendeth his garments, and saith, ‘Alas, my daughter, thou hast caused me greatly to bend, and thou hast been among those troubling me; and I--I have opened my mouth unto Jehovah, and I am not able to turn back.'
DARBYAnd it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his garments, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me; for I have opened my mouth to Jehovah, and I cannot go back.
BBEAnd when he saw her he was overcome with grief, and said, Ah! my daughter! I am crushed with sorrow, and it is you who are the chief cause of my trouble; for I have made an oath to the Lord and I may not take it back.
WebsterAnd it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot go back.

What does Judges 11:35 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Judges 11:34-40

34-40. Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances--The return of the victors was hailed, as usual, by the joyous acclaim of a female band (1Sa 18:6), the leader of whom was Jephthah's daughter. The vow was full in his mind, and it is evident that it had not been communicated to anyone, otherwise precautions would doubtless have been taken to…

Read the full comment on Judges 11:34-40 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 35 Thou hast brought me very low - He was greatly distressed to think that his daughter, who was his only child, should be, in consequence of his vow, prevented from continuing his family in Israel; for it is evident that he had not any other child, for besides her, says the text, he had neither son nor daughter, Jdg 11:34. He might, therefore, well be grieved that thus his family was to become extinct in Israel.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Judges 11:29-40

Several important lessons are to be learned from Jephthah's vow. 1. There may be remainders of distrust and doubting, even in the hearts of true and great believers. 2. Our vows to God should not be as a purchase of the favour we desire, but to express gratitude to him. 3. We need to be very well-advised in making vows, lest we entangle ourselves. 4. What we have solemnly vowed to God, we must perform, if it be…

Read the full comment on Judges 11:29-40 →

Judges 11:35 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיְהִי֩vay.Hiand it wasH1961
כִרְאוֹת֨וֹkhir.'o.Towhen saw heH7200
אוֹתָ֜הּ'o.Tah<obj.> herH853
וַיִּקְרַ֣עvai.yik.Ra'and he toreH7167
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
בְּגָדָ֗יוbe.ga.Davclothes hisH899
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙vai.Yo.merand he saidH559
אֲהָ֤הּ'a.Hahalas!H162
בִּתִּי֙bi.TiO daughter myH1323
הַכְרֵ֣עַhakh.Re.a'certainly <to bring low>H3766
הִכְרַעְתִּ֔נִיhikh.ra'.Ti.niyou have brought low meH3766
וְאַ֖תְּve.'Atand youH859
הָיִ֣יתְha.Yityou areH1961
בְּעֹֽכְרָ֑יbe.'o.khe.Raiamong [those who] trouble meH5916
וְאָנֹכִ֗יve.'a.no.Khiand IH595
פָּצִ֤יתִי\־pa.Tzi.ti-I have openedH6475
פִי֙fimouth myH6310
אֶל\־'el-toH413
יְהוָ֔הYah.wehYahwehH3068
וְלֹ֥אve.Lo'and notH3808
אוּכַ֖ל'u.KhalI am ableH3201
לָשֽׁוּב\׃la.Shuvto turn backH7725

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Judges 11:35

  • Matthew 14:7-9

    Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask. And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist’s head in a charger. And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath’s sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her.

  • Genesis 42:36-38

    And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me. And Reuben spake unto his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again. And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.

  • 2 Samuel 13:30-31

    And it came to pass, while they were in the way, that tidings came to David, saying, Absalom hath slain all the king’s sons, and there is not one of them left. Then the king arose, and tare his garments, and lay on the earth; and all his servants stood by with their clothes rent.

  • 1 Samuel 14:44-45

    And Saul answered, God do so and more also: for thou shalt surely die, Jonathan. And the people said unto Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel? God forbid: as the Lord liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he hath wrought with God this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he died not.

  • Genesis 37:34-35

    And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him.

  • Job 1:20

    Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,

  • Psalms 15:4

    In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.

  • Genesis 37:29-30

    And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?

  • Numbers 30:2-5

    If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth. If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father’s house in her youth; And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand. But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the Lord shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her.

  • Ecclesiastes 5:2-6

    Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few. For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words. When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. …

  • 2 Samuel 18:33

    And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!

  • Judges 21:1-7

    Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpeh, saying, There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife. And the people came to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore; And said, O Lord God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel? And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
rent his clothes.
Ge 37:29,30,34,35; 42:36-38; 2Sa 13:30,31; 18:33; Job 1:20
have opened.
Le 27:28,29; Nu 30:2-5; Ps 15:4; Ec 5:2-6
I cannot.
21:1-7; 1Sa 14:44,45; Mt 14:7-9; Ac 23:14

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Judges 11:34

    And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.

  • Judges 11:35

    And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the Lord, and I cannot go back.

  • Judges 11:36

    And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the Lord hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.

Read all of Judges 11

Judges 11:35 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y como él la vió, rompió sus vestidos diciendo: ¡Ay, hija mía! de verdad me has abatido, y tú eres de los que me afligen: porque yo he abierto mi boca á Jehová, y no podré retractarme.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et il arriva, quand il la vit, qu’il déchira ses vêtements, et dit: Ah, ma fille! tu m’as accablé, et tu es de ceux qui me troublent! car j’ai ouvert ma bouche à l’ Éternel, et ne puis revenir en arrière.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und es geschah, als er sie sah, da zerriß er seine Kleider und sprach: Ach, meine Tochter! tief beugst du mich nieder; und du, du bist unter denen, die mich in Trübsal bringen! denn ich habe meinen Mund gegen Jehova aufgetan und kann nicht zurücktreten!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Qua visa, scidit vestimenta sua, et ait: Heu me, filia mea! decepisti me, et ipsa decepta es: aperui enim os meum ad Dominum, et aliud facere non potero.