Bruce Waltke interprets the language of Judges 11 when he speaks of Jephthah’s only daughter “whom he murders (An Old Testament Theology, pg.607).” He argues later that Jephthah breaks the sixth commandment by sacrificing his daughter, which the Prophets condemn (Jeremiah 19:5). Waltke contends that “in a case of a vow dedicating a child to I AM, the Law calls for monetary payment instead (Lev. 27:1-8).” Indeed if Waltke is correct that Jephthah sacrificed his daughter, then God’s Law repudiates Jephthah’s abhorrent practice.
