and any winged thing on the ground are impure to you – they may not be eaten. ¹ 

A destructive army ¹  will come marching over the hilltops in the desert. For the Lord will use them as his destructive weapon ²  against ³  everyone from one end of the land to the other. No one will be safe. ⁴ 

Increase ¹  your merchants more than the stars of heaven! They are like ²  the young locust which sheds ³  its skin and flies away.

“Raise up battle flags throughout the lands. Sound the trumpets calling the nations to do battle. Prepare the nations to do battle against Babylonia. ¹  Call for these kingdoms to attack her: Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. ²  Appoint a commander to lead the attack. ³  Send horses ⁴  against her like a swarm of locusts. ⁵ 

For they flee from the swords – from the drawn sword and from the battle-ready bow and from the severity of the battle.

Egypt is like a beautiful young cow. But northern armies will attack her like swarms of stinging flies. ¹ 

¹ The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Extend your staff and strike the dust of the ground, and it will become ²  gnats ³  throughout all the land of Egypt.’”

However, this you may eat from all the winged swarming things that walk on all fours, which have jointed legs ¹  to hop with on the land.

When they invaded ¹  with their cattle and tents, they were as thick ²  as locusts. Neither they nor their camels could be counted. ³  They came to devour ⁴  the land.

The Lord attacked ¹  the residents of Ashdod severely, bringing devastation on them. He struck the people of ²  both Ashdod and the surrounding area with sores. ³ 

At that time ¹  the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ² 

The population of Egypt is like a vast, impenetrable forest. But I, the Lord, affirm ¹  that the enemy will cut them down. For those who chop them down will be more numerous than locusts. They will be too numerous to count. ² 

Jerusalem, ¹  Idumea, beyond the Jordan River, ²  and around Tyre ³  and Sidon ⁴  a great multitude came to him when they heard about the things he had done.

Early in the morning he came to the temple courts again. All the people came to him, and he sat down and began to teach ¹  them.

They ¹  went up ²  on the broad plain of the earth ³  and encircled ⁴  the camp ⁵  of the saints and the beloved city, but ⁶  fire came down from heaven and devoured them completely. ⁷ 

Bring out with you all the living creatures that are with you. Bring out ¹  every living thing, including the birds, animals, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Let them increase ²  and be fruitful and multiply on the earth!” ³ 

The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand over the land of Egypt for ¹  the locusts, that they may come up over the land of Egypt and eat everything that grows ²  in the ground, everything that the hail has left.”

I will certainly gather all of you, O Jacob, I will certainly assemble those Israelites who remain. ¹  I will bring them together like sheep in a fold, ²  like a flock in the middle of a pasture; ³  they will be so numerous that they will make a lot of noise. ⁴ 

Then Daniel (whose name is also Belteshazzar) was upset for a brief time; ¹  his thoughts were alarming him. The king said, “Belteshazzar, don’t let the dream and its interpretation alarm you.” But Belteshazzar replied, “Sir, ²  if only the dream were for your enemies and its interpretation applied to your adversaries!