The story of Yiftah's Daughter is one of the more famous and tragic events in Shoftim, Judges, which is already full of tragic and dreadful events. On the surface it appears to be the tragedy of a man making a foolish vow. There appears to be no larger context to it. But to understand the meaning of the story, we need to go back to the beginning. Yiftah (Jeptah) is called back to lead the fight against the Ammonite invaders and he writes a letter to the King of Ammon, which is one of the first examples of diplomacy. While Yiftah's background might make you think that he would like a fight, he tries to talk things out with the Ammonite king. After relating the story of how the disputed territory came into Israel's possession, he tries to turn all that history into something the King of Ammon can relate to. "Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the LORD our God hath dispossessed from before us, them will we posses...