Judges 11:27

(27) The Lord the Judge be judge this day.—An appeal to the arbitrament of Jehovah to decide on the justice of an appeal to arms. (Comp. Genesis 16:5; Genesis 31:53; Genesis 18:25; 1 Samuel 24:15.)

These verses contain a deeply interesting specimen of what may be called ancient diplomacy, and very powerful and straightforward it is—at once honest, conciliatory, and firm. Jephthah maintains the rights of Israel on three grounds, viz., (1) Right of direct conquest, not from Ammon but from the Amorites (15-20); (2) The decision of God (Judges 11:21-23), which he supports by an argumentum ad hominem—namely, the acquiescence in this decision of the Moabite god Chemosh (Judges 11:24); (3) Undisputed possession from the first (Judges 11:25-26). He ends by an appeal to God to approve the justice of his cause.