Judges 11:29-39 / Matthew 22:1-14
It is understood that when more is given, then more is expected.
This is often the thinking when a person is given power and authority.
That person has the responsibility of living up to the expectations of others.
In the 1st reading, the Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah, and he was given the power by the Lord to overcome the enemies.
Then Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, that if he is victorious over the enemies
He would offer the first person of his household to greet him when he comes home victorious as a holocaust.
As Jephthah returned victorious to his house, the first person in his family to come and meet him is his own daughter.
As much as it is heart-breaking for Jephthah, a vow is a vow, and it is made to the Lord.
He cannot undo what he had promised the Lord, although it must be said that the Lord did not ask for a vow to be made, or a life to be sacrificed.
Jephthah was given much by the Lord, but it must also be remembered that the Lord did not ask back for much.
The Lord does not ask for holocaust or a life to be sacrificed.
The Lord only asks for obedience and faithfulness.
Let us obey and be faithful to the Lord our God, and He will give us what we need.