¹ Now as Saul watched David going out to fight the Philistine, he asked Abner, the general in command of the army, “Whose son is this young man, Abner?” Abner replied, “As surely as you live, O king, I don’t know.”

God sent an angel ¹  to ravage ²  Jerusalem. As he was doing so, ³  the Lord watched ⁴  and relented from ⁵  his judgment. ⁶  He told the angel who was destroying, “That’s enough! ⁷  Stop now!” ⁸  Now the Lord’s angel was standing near the threshing floor of Ornan ⁹  the Jebusite.

If you see the extortion ¹  of the poor, or the perversion ²  of justice and fairness in the government, ³  do not be astonished by the matter. For the high official is watched by a higher official, ⁴  and there are higher ones over them! ⁵ 

The cherubim spread ¹  their wings, and they rose up from the earth ²  while I watched (when they went the wheels went alongside them). They stopped at the entrance to the east gate of the Lord’s temple as the glory of the God of Israel hovered above them.

So I did just as I was commanded. I carried out my belongings packed for exile during the day, and at evening I dug myself a hole through the wall with my hands. I went out in the darkness, carrying my baggage ¹  on my shoulder while they watched.

“‘Then I passed by you and watched you, noticing ¹  that you had reached the age for love. ²  I spread my cloak ³  over you and covered your nakedness. I swore a solemn oath to you and entered into a marriage covenant with you, declares the sovereign Lord, and you became mine.

“The first one was like a lion with eagles’ wings. As I watched, its wings were pulled off and it was lifted up from the ground. It was made to stand on two feet like a human being, and a human mind ¹  was given to it. ²