In Judges 12:2, Jephthah says, literally, I was a man of contention,
that is, I was a contentious man.
This places Jephthah in the same class as Gideon (whose name Jerubbaal,
Let Baal contend,
reflected something of his contentious character1) and the Ephraimites (Judges 8:1b). Jephthah’s life was one of conflict, and the narrative bears that out in four stages:
Contention with his own family
Contention with his own tribe
Contention with a foreign enemy
Contention with another Israelite tribe (Ephraim)2
6 Les enfants d'Israël firent encore ce qui déplaît à l'Eternel; ils servirent les Baals et les Astartés, les dieux de Syrie, les dieux de Sidon, les dieux de Moab, les dieux des fils d'Ammon, et les dieux des Philistins, et ils abandonnèrent l'Eternel et ne le servirent plus.