Then the LORD said to me, “Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as their possession.” ... But when you get close to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them, for I will not give you any of the land of the Ammonites. I have given it to the descendants of Lot as their possession.”
And again the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD. They served the Baals, the Ashtoreths, the gods of Aram, Sidon, and Moab, and the gods of the Ammonites and Philistines. Thus they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him. So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and Ammonites, who that very year harassed and oppressed the Israelites, and did so for eighteen years to all the Israelites on the other side of the Jordan in Gilead, the land of the Amorites. The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim, and Israel was in deep distress. Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, saying, “We have sinned against You, for we have indeed forsaken our God and served the Baals.” The LORD replied, “When the Egyptians, Amorites, Ammonites, Philistines, Sidonians, Amalekites, and Maonites oppressed you and you cried out to Me, did I not save you from their hands? But you have forsaken Me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you in your time of trouble.” “We have sinned,” the Israelites said to the LORD. “Deal with us as You see fit; but please deliver us today!” So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the LORD, and He could no longer bear the misery of Israel. Then the Ammonites were called to arms and camped in Gilead, and the Israelites assembled and camped at Mizpah. And the rulers of Gilead said to one another, “Whoever will launch the attack against the Ammonites will be the head of all who live in Gilead.”
Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father. And Gilead’s wife bore him sons who grew up, drove Jephthah out, and said to him, “You shall have no inheritance in our father’s house, because you are the son of another woman.” So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where worthless men gathered around him and traveled with him. Some time later, when the Ammonites fought against Israel and made war with them, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. “Come,” they said, “be our commander, so that we can fight against the Ammonites.” Jephthah replied to the elders of Gilead, “Did you not hate me and expel me from my father’s house? Why then have you come to me now, when you are in distress?” They answered Jephthah, “This is why we now turn to you, that you may go with us, fight the Ammonites, and become leader over all of us who live in Gilead.” But Jephthah asked them, “If you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the LORD gives them to me, will I really be your leader?” And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “The LORD is our witness if we do not do as you say.” So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their leader and commander. And Jephthah repeated all his terms in the presence of the LORD at Mizpah. Then Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, saying, “What do you have against me that you have come to fight against my land?” The king of the Ammonites answered Jephthah’s messengers, “When Israel came up out of Egypt, they seized my land, from the Arnon to the Jabbok and all the way to the Jordan. Now, therefore, restore it peaceably.” Jephthah again sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites to tell him, “This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take away the land of Moab or of the Ammonites. But when Israel came up out of Egypt, they traveled through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh. Then Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Please let us pass through your land,’ but the king of Edom would not listen. They also sent messengers to the king of Moab, but he would not consent. So Israel stayed in Kadesh. Then Israel traveled through the wilderness and bypassed the lands of Edom and Moab. They came to the east side of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon. But they did not enter the territory of Moab, since the Arnon was its border. And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon, and said to him, ‘Please let us pass through your land into our own place.’ But Sihon would not trust Israel to pass through his territory. So he gathered all his people, encamped in Jahaz, and fought with Israel. Then the LORD, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, who defeated them. So Israel took possession of all the land of the Amorites who inhabited that country, seizing all the land from the Arnon to the Jabbok and from the wilderness to the Jordan. Now since the LORD, the God of Israel, has driven out the Amorites from before His people Israel, should you now possess it? Do you not possess whatever your god Chemosh grants you? So also, we possess whatever the LORD our God has granted us. Are you now so much better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever contend with Israel or fight against them? For three hundred years Israel has lived in Heshbon, Aroer, and their villages, as well as all the cities along the banks of the Arnon. Why did you not take them back during that time? I have not sinned against you, but you have done me wrong by waging war against me. May the LORD, the Judge, decide today between the Israelites and the Ammonites.” But the king of the Ammonites paid no heed to the message Jephthah sent him. Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh, then through Mizpah of Gilead. And from there he advanced against the Ammonites. Jephthah made this vow to the LORD: “If indeed You will deliver the Ammonites into my hand, then whatever comes out the door of my house to greet me on my triumphant return from the Ammonites will belong to the LORD, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.” So Jephthah crossed over to the Ammonites to fight against them, and the LORD delivered them into his hand. With a great blow he devastated twenty cities from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel-keramim. So the Ammonites were subdued before the Israelites. And when Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, there was his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child; he had no son or daughter besides her. As 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.” “My father,” she replied, “you have given your word to the LORD. Do to me as you have said, for the LORD has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites.” She also said to her father, “Let me do this one thing: Let me wander for two months through the mountains with my friends and mourn my virginity.” “Go,” he said. And he sent her away for two months. So she left with her friends and mourned her virginity upon the mountains. After two months, she returned to her father, and he did to her as he had vowed. And she had never had relations with a man. So it has become a custom in Israel that each year the young women of Israel go out for four days to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite.
Soon Nahash the Ammonite came up and laid siege to Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.” But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make a treaty with you on one condition, that I may put out everyone’s right eye and bring reproach upon all Israel.” “Hold off for seven days,” replied the elders of Jabesh, “and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.” When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and relayed these words in the hearing of the people, they all wept aloud. Just then Saul was returning from the field, behind his oxen. “What troubles the people?” asked Saul. “Why are they weeping?” And they relayed to him the words of the men from Jabesh. When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he burned with great anger. He took a pair of oxen, cut them into pieces, and sent them by messengers throughout the land of Israel, proclaiming, “This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not march behind Saul and Samuel.” Then the terror of the LORD fell upon the people, and they turned out as one man. And when Saul numbered them at Bezek, there were 300,000 Israelites and 30,000 men of Judah. So they said to the messengers who had come, “Tell the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Deliverance will be yours tomorrow by the time the sun is hot.’” And when the messengers relayed this to the men of Jabesh, they rejoiced. Then the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Tomorrow we will come out, and you can do with us whatever seems good to you.” The next day Saul organized the troops into three divisions, and during the morning watch they invaded the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them, until the hottest part of the day. And the survivors were so scattered that no two of them were left together. Then the people said to Samuel, “Who said that Saul should not reign over us? Bring those men here so we can kill them!” But Saul ordered, “No one shall be put to death this day, for today the LORD has worked salvation in Israel.” Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and renew the kingship there.” So all the people went to Gilgal and confirmed Saul as king in the presence of the LORD. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the LORD, and Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.
Some time later, the king of the Ammonites died and was succeeded by his son Hanun. And David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent some of his servants to console Hanun concerning his father. But when they arrived in the land of the Ammonites, the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, “Just because David has sent you comforters, do you really believe he is showing respect for your father? Has not David instead sent his servants to explore the city, spy it out, and overthrow it?” So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their garments at the hips, and sent them away. When this was reported to David, he sent messengers to meet the men, since they had been thoroughly humiliated. The king told them, “Stay in Jericho until your beards have grown back, and then return.” When the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench to David, they hired twenty thousand Aramean foot soldiers from Beth-rehob and Zoba, as well as a thousand men from the king of Maacah and twelve thousand men from Tob. On hearing this, David sent Joab and the entire army of mighty men. The Ammonites marched out and arrayed themselves for battle at the entrance of the city gate, while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country. When Joab saw the battle lines before him and behind him, he selected some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Arameans. And he placed the rest of the forces under the command of his brother Abishai, who arrayed them against the Ammonites. “If the Arameans are too strong for me,” said Joab, “then you will come to my rescue. And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come to your rescue. Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and for the cities of our God. May the LORD do what is good in His sight.” So Joab and his troops advanced to fight the Arameans, who fled before him. When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans had fled, they too fled before Abishai, and they entered the city. So Joab returned from fighting against the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem. When the Arameans saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they regrouped. Hadadezer sent messengers to bring more Arameans from beyond the Euphrates, and they came to Helam with Shobach the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them. When this was reported to David, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan, and went to Helam. Then the Arameans arrayed themselves against David and fought against him. But the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, who died there. When all the kings who were subject to Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the Ammonites anymore.
At that time the Book of Moses was read aloud in the hearing of the people, and in it they found the passage stating that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, because they had not met the Israelites with food and water, but had hired Balaam to call down a curse against them (although our God had turned the curse into a blessing). As soon as the people heard this law, they excluded from Israel all of foreign descent. ... In those days I also saw Jews who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or of the other peoples, but could not speak the language of Judah. I rebuked them and called down curses on them. I beat some of these men and pulled out their hair. Then I made them take an oath before God and said, “You must not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters as wives for your sons or for yourselves! Did not King Solomon of Israel sin in matters like this? There was not a king like him among many nations, and he was loved by his God, who made him king over all Israel—yet foreign women drew him into sin. Must we now hear that you too are doing all this terrible evil and acting unfaithfully against our God by marrying foreign women?” Even one of the sons of Jehoiada son of Eliashib the high priest had become a son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite. Therefore I drove him away from me.
saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation; may the name of Israel be remembered no more.” For with one mind they plot together, they form an alliance against You— the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, of Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek, of Philistia with the people of Tyre. Even Assyria has joined them, lending strength to the sons of Lot. Selah
They will swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines to the west; together they will plunder the sons of the east. They will lay their hands on Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them.
Therefore, as surely as I live,” declares the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, “surely Moab will be like Sodom and the Ammonites like Gomorrah—a place of weeds and salt pits, a perpetual wasteland. The remnant of My people will plunder them; the remainder of My nation will dispossess them.”