1The men of Ephraim were gathered together, and passed northward; and they said to Jephthah, "Why did you pass over to fight against the people of Ammon, and did not call us to go with you? We will burn your house on you with fire." 2And Jephthah said to them, "I and my people had a dispute, and the people of Ammon were oppressing me greatly; and when I called you, you did not save me out of their hand. 3When I saw that you did not save me, I put my life in my own hands, and passed over against the people of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand. Why then have you come up to me this day, to fight against me?" 4Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim, and in the midst of Manasseh." 5The Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites. It was so, that when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said, "Let me go over," the men of Gilead said to him, "Are you an Ephraimite?" If he said, "No"; 6then they said to him, "Now say 'Shibboleth;'" and he said "Sibboleth"; for he couldn't manage to pronounce it right: then they seized him, and killed him at the fords of the Jordan. There fell at that time of Ephraim forty-two thousand.

7Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then Jephthah the Gileadite died, and was buried in his city in Gilead.

8After him Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. 9He had thirty sons; and thirty daughters he sent abroad, and thirty daughters he brought in from abroad for his sons. He judged Israel seven years. 10Ibzan died, and was buried at Bethlehem.

11After him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years. 12Elon the Zebulunite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

13After him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel. 14He had forty sons and thirty grandsons who rode on seventy donkey colts. And he judged Israel eight years. 15Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.