Before Israel had kings and before Israel requested a king (which God provided so grudgingly with King Saul), Israel was lead by Judges. There were a number of Judges. One of the Judges was Jephthah, who promised God if God will grant him the victory in battle, he would sacrifice the first thing he sees on the way back home from battle, which ending up being his daughter. God gave him the victory, and he begrudgingly sacrificed his young virgin daughter. This is because a solemn promise / oath was made to God. Jesus says in the Gospels that our communication should be “yes” or “no” and we should not promise or swear / make an oath by anything that was made by God or is God’s throne. Be careful making promises and oaths which can affect you in the future if you are unsure of the outcome.
Another Judge of Israel was Samson. He was known for his mighty strength. His wife betrayed him to the Philistines, as he married not an Israelite, but a Philistine woman. Even though he was chosen and set apart of God to be a Judge, his weakness was women. When he thought that God had left Him after his wife betrayed him, and when he was at his most vulnerable state, God never left him, and got victory in his death by killing thousands of Philistines when they mocked him by collapsing the temple with his strength the Philistines were in. God, when he makes a promise, it is for good and can be relied upon, and it is written in the Word, that He will never leave you nor forsake you.
Another Judge was Deborah, a fiery woman who was an Israelite prophetess, and the only female Judge. Deborah, being a prophetess, told Israelite general Barak to go against Canaan (Sisera being the commander and Jabin the king).