2 Samuel 11:25

11:25 David said to the messenger, “Tell Joab, ‘Don’t let this thing upset you. ¹  There is no way to anticipate whom the sword will cut down. ²  Press the battle against the city and conquer ³  it.’ Encourage him with these words.” ⁴ 

Isaiah 1:20

1:20 But if you refuse and rebel,

you will be devoured ⁵  by the sword.”

Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. ⁶ 

Jeremiah 2:30

2:30 “It did no good for me to punish your people.

They did not respond to such correction.

You slaughtered your prophets

like a voracious lion.” ⁷ 

Jeremiah 12:12

12:12 A destructive army ⁸  will come marching

over the hilltops in the desert.

For the Lord will use them as his destructive weapon ⁹ 

against ¹⁰  everyone from one end of the land to the other.

No one will be safe. ¹¹ 

Jeremiah 46:10

46:10 But that day belongs to the Lord God who rules over all. ¹² 

It is the day when he will pay back his enemies. ¹³ 

His sword will devour them until its appetite is satisfied!

It will drink their blood until it is full! ¹⁴ 

For the Lord God who rules over all ¹⁵  will offer them up as a sacrifice

in the land of the north by the Euphrates River.

Jeremiah 46:14

46:14 “Make an announcement throughout Egypt.

Proclaim it in Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes. ¹⁶ 

‘Take your positions and prepare to do battle.

For the enemy army is destroying all the nations around you.’ ¹⁷ 

Hosea 11:6

11:6 A sword will flash in their cities,

it will destroy the bars of their city gates,

and will devour them in their fortresses.

[11:25]  ¹ tn Heb “let not this matter be evil in your eyes.”

[11:25]  ² tn Heb “according to this and according to this the sword devours.”

[11:25]  ³ tn Heb “overthrow.”

[11:25]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text does not have “with these words.” They are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

[1:20]  ⁵ sn The wordplay in the Hebrew draws attention to the options. The people can obey, in which case they will “eat” v. 19 (תֹּאכֵלוּ [to’khelu], Qal active participle of אָכַל) God’s blessing, or they can disobey, in which case they will be devoured (Heb “eaten,” תְּאֻכְּלוּ, [tÿ’ukkÿlu], Qal passive/Pual of אָכַל) by God’s judgment.

[1:20]  ⁶ tn Heb “for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” The introductory כִּי (ki) may be asseverative (as reflected in the translation) or causal/explanatory, explaining why the option chosen by the people will become reality (it is guaranteed by the divine word).

[2:30]  ⁷ tn Heb “Your sword devoured your prophets like a destroying lion.” However, the reference to the sword in this and many similar idioms is merely idiomatic for death by violent means.

[12:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “destroyers.”

[12:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “It is the Lord’s consuming sword.”

[12:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “For a sword of the Lord will devour.” The sword is often symbolic for destructive forces of all kinds. Here and in Isa 34:6; Jer 47:6 it is symbolic of the enemy armies that the Lord uses to carry out destructive punishment against his enemies, hence the translation “his destructive weapon.” A similar figure is use in Isa 10:5 where the figure is more clearly identified; Assyria is the rod/club that the Lord will use to discipline unfaithful Israel.

[12:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “There is no peace to all flesh.”

[46:10]  ¹² tn Heb “the Lord Yahweh of armies.” See the study note at 2:19 for the translation and significance of this title for God.

[46:10]  ¹³ sn Most commentators think that this is a reference to the Lord exacting vengeance on Pharaoh Necho for killing Josiah, carrying Jehoahaz off into captivity, and exacting heavy tribute on Judah in 609 b.c. (2 Kgs 23:29, 33-35).

[46:10]  ¹⁴ tn Or more paraphrastically, “he will kill them/ until he has exacted full vengeance”; Heb “The sword will eat and be sated; it will drink its fill of their blood.”

[46:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the Lord Yahweh of armies.” See the study note at 2:19 for the translation and significance of this title for God.

[46:14]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “Declare in Egypt and announce in Migdol and announce in Noph [= Memphis] and in Tahpanhes.” The sentence has been restructured to reflect the fact that the first command is a general one, followed by announcements in specific (representative?) cities.

[46:14]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “For the sword devours those who surround you.” The “sword” is again figurative of destructive forces. Here it is a reference to the forces of Nebuchadnezzar which have already destroyed the Egyptian forces at Carchemish and have made victorious forays into the Philistine plain.