“And you, son of man, prophesy, and clap your hands together. Let the sword strike twice, even three times! It is a sword for slaughter, a sword for the great slaughter surrounding them.

while seeing false visions for you and reading lying omens for you ¹  – to place that sword ²  on the necks of the profane wicked, ³  whose day has come, the time of final punishment.

Those who lived in its shade, its allies ¹  among the nations, also went down with it to Sheol, to those killed by the sword.

The bravest of the warriors will speak to him from the midst of Sheol along with his allies, saying: ‘The uncircumcised have come down; they lie still, killed by the sword.’

“Then I kept on watching because of the arrogant words of the horn that was speaking. I was watching ¹  until the beast was killed and its body destroyed and thrown into ²  the flaming fire.

Therefore, I will certainly cut ¹  you into pieces at the hands of the prophets; ²  I will certainly kill you ³  in fulfillment of my oracles of judgment; ⁴  for ⁵  my judgment ⁶  will come forth like the light of the dawn. ⁷ 

Now ¹  when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been violently killed ²  because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had given.

Then you will know that I am the Lord – when their dead lie among their idols around their altars, on every high hill and all the mountaintops, under every green tree and every leafy oak, ¹  the places where they have offered fragrant incense to all their idols.

They were singing a new song: ¹  “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals because you were killed, ²  and at the cost of your own blood ³  you have purchased ⁴  for God persons ⁵  from every tribe, language, ⁶  people, and nation.

The name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi daughter of Zur. He was a leader ¹  over the people of a clan of Midian. ² 

Isn’t this David, of whom they sang as they danced, ¹  ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, but David his tens of thousands’?”

All the people of the land celebrated, for the city had rest now that they had killed Athaliah with the sword in the royal palace.

When he had secured control of the kingdom, ¹  he executed the servants who had assassinated his father. ² 

And whoever touches the body of someone killed with a sword in the open fields, ¹  or the body of someone who died of natural causes, ²  or a human bone, or a grave, will be unclean seven days. ³ 

When the people saw him, ¹  they praised their god, saying, “Our god has handed our enemy over to us, the one who ruined our land and killed so many of us!” ² 

These are the names of David’s warriors: Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was head of the officers. ¹  He killed eight hundred men with his spear in one battle. ² 

ד (Dalet) He prepared his bow ¹  like an enemy; his right hand was ready to shoot. ²  Like a foe he killed everyone, even our strong young men; ³  he has poured out his anger like fire on the tent ⁴  of Daughter Zion.

ר (Resh) Look, O Lord! Consider! ¹  Whom have you ever afflicted ²  like this? Should women eat their offspring, ³  their healthy infants? ⁴  Should priest and prophet be killed in the Lord’s ⁵  sanctuary?

“Edom is there with her kings and all her princes. Despite their might they are laid with those killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised and those who descend to the pit.

Saul accepted Jonathan’s advice ¹  and took an oath, “As surely as the Lord lives, he will not be put to death.”