Isaiah 14:29-31
Contemporary English Version
29 (A) Philistines, don't be happy
just because the rod
that punished you
is broken.
That rod will become
a poisonous snake, and then
a flying fiery dragon.
30 The poor and needy will find
pastures for their sheep
and will live in safety.
But I will starve some of you,
and others will be killed.
31 Cry and weep in the gates
of your towns,
you Philistines!
Smoke blows in from the north,[a]
and every soldier is ready.
Footnotes
- 14.31 north: The Assyrian and Babylonian attacks came from the north.
Jeremiah 47
Contemporary English Version
What the Lord Says about the Philistines
47 (A) Before the king of Egypt attacked the town of Gaza,[a] the Lord told me to say to the Philistines:
2 I, the Lord, tell you
that your land will be flooded
with an army from the north.
It will destroy your towns
and sweep you away,
moaning and screaming.
3 When you hear the thunder
of horses and chariots,
your courage will vanish,
and parents will even abandon
their own children.
4 You refugees from Crete,[b]
your time has now come,
and I will destroy you.
None of you will be left
to help the cities
of Tyre and Sidon.
5 The Anakim who survive[c]
in Gaza and Ashkelon
will mourn for you
by shaving their heads
and sitting in silence.
6 You ask how long will I continue
to attack you with my sword,
then you tell me to put it away
and leave you alone.
7 But how can my sword rest,
when I have commanded it
to attack Ashkelon
and the seacoast?
Footnotes
- 47.1 attacked the town of Gaza: One of the major Philistine towns; nothing is known about this attack.
- 47.4 Crete: Hebrew “Caphtor,” another name for Crete, the original homeland of the ancestors of the Philistines.
- 47.5 Anakim who survive: One ancient translation; Hebrew “people in the valley who survive.” The Anakim may have been a group of very large people that lived in Palestine before the Israelites (see Numbers 13.33; Deuteronomy 2.10,11, 20,21; and Joshua 11.21,22).
Ezekiel 25:15-17
Contemporary English Version
Judgment on Philistia
15 (A) The Lord God said, “The cruel Philistines have taken revenge on their enemies over and over and have tried to destroy them. 16 Now it's my turn to treat the Philistines as my enemies and to kill everyone[a] living in their towns along the seacoast. 17 In my fierce anger, I will take revenge on them. And when I punish them, they will know that I am the Lord.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 25.16 kill everyone: The Hebrew text also has the name “Cherethites,” which was a group of people that lived just southeast of Philistia, and was often identified with the Philistines.
Joel 3:4-8
Contemporary English Version
4 (A) You people of Tyre and Sidon[a] and you Philistines, why are you doing this? Are you trying to get even with me? I'll strike back before you know what's happened. 5 You've taken my prized possessions, including my silver and gold, and carried them off to your temples.[b] 6 You have dragged the people of Judah and Jerusalem from their land and sold them to the Greeks.
7 But I'll make the people of Judah determined to come home, and what happened to them will happen to you. 8 I'll hand over your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans,[c] who live far away. I, the Lord, have spoken!
Read full chapter
Amos 1:6-8
Contemporary English Version
Judgment on Philistia
6 (A) The Lord said:
I will punish Philistia[a]
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
They dragged off my people[b]
from town after town
to sell them as slaves
to the Edomites.
7 That's why I will burn down
the walls and fortresses
of the city of Gaza.
8 I will destroy the king[c] of Ashdod
and the ruler of Ashkelon.
I will strike down Ekron,[d]
and that will be the end
of the Philistines.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
Zephaniah 2:4-7
Contemporary English Version
Judgment on Philistia
4 (A) Gaza and Ashkelon
will be deserted
and left in ruins.
Ashdod will be emptied
in broad daylight,
and Ekron[a] uprooted.
5 To you people of Philistia[b]
who live along the coast,
the Lord has this to say:
“I am now your enemy,
and I'll wipe you out!”
6 Your seacoast will be changed
into pastureland
and sheep pens.[c]
7 The Lord God hasn't forgotten
those survivors in Judah,
and he will help them—
his people will take your land
to use for pasture.
And when evening comes,
they will rest
in houses at Ashkelon.[d]
Judgment on Moab and Ammon
*
Footnotes
- 2.4 Gaza … Ekron: Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath (not mentioned because it was already destroyed) were the five major Philistine towns.
- 2.5 people of Philistia: The Hebrew text also mentions “Canaan” and “Cherethites,” which are other ways of referring to the Philistines.
- 2.6 pens: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 6.
- 2.7 Ashkelon: A Philistine town; see the note at 2.4.
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