Better to be slow to anger ¹  than to be a mighty warrior, and one who controls his temper ²  is better than ³  one who captures a city. ⁴ 

The wise person ¹  can scale ²  the city of the mighty and bring down the stronghold ³  in which they trust. ⁴ 

Wisdom gives a wise person more protection ¹  than ten rulers in a city.

The night watchmen found me – the ones who guard the city walls. ¹  “Have you seen my beloved?” ² 

The cities of Aroer are abandoned. ¹  They will be used for herds, which will lie down there in peace. ² 

How deserted will that once-famous city ¹  be, that city that was once filled with ²  joy! ³ 

You have killed many people in this city; you have filled its streets with corpses.’

A sword will flash in their cities, it will destroy the bars of their city gates, and will devour them in their fortresses.

I will destroy the cities of your land, and tear down all your fortresses.

The one who builds a city by bloodshed is as good as dead ¹  – he who starts ²  a town by unjust deeds.

And the streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing. ¹ 

“You must measure ¹  from outside the wall of the town on the east 1,000 yards, ²  and on the south side 1,000 yards, and on the west side 1,000 yards, and on the north side 1,000 yards, with the town in the middle. ³  This territory must belong to them as grazing land for the towns.

Now from these towns that you will give to the Levites you must select six towns of refuge to which a person who has killed someone may flee. ¹  And you must give them forty-two other towns.

He must remain ¹  in that city until his case is decided by the assembly ²  and the high priest dies. ³  Then the one who committed manslaughter may return home to the city from which he escaped.” ⁴ 

Abimelech fought against the city all that day. He captured the city and killed all the people in it. Then he leveled ¹  the city and spread salt over it. ² 

all the storage cities that belonged to him, ¹  and the cities where chariots and horses were kept. ²  He built whatever he wanted in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout his entire kingdom. ³ 

and built up Baalath, all the storage cities that belonged to him, ¹  and all the cities where chariots and horses were kept. ²  He built whatever he wanted in Jerusalem, ³  Lebanon, and throughout his entire kingdom. ⁴ 

As for the descendants of Aaron, the priests who lived in the outskirts of all their cities, ¹  men were assigned ²  to disburse portions to every male among the priests and to every Levite listed in the genealogical records.

Let our leaders take steps ¹  on behalf of all the assembly. Let all those in our towns who have married foreign women come at an appointed time, and with them the elders of each town and its judges, until the hot anger of our God is turned away from us in this matter.”

He did this while the army of the king of Babylon was attacking Jerusalem and the cities of Lachish and Azekah. He was attacking these cities because they were the only fortified cities of Judah which were still holding out. ¹