Don’t tell the news in Gath. Don’t announce the victory in the streets of Ashkelon, or the daughters of the Philistines will be glad, and the daughters of godless men will celebrate.
Wear sackcloth, and roll around in ashes, my people. Mourn as if you have lost your only child, and cry bitterly. The destroyer will suddenly attack us.
If a relative or a mortician comes to take the dead bodies out of the house and asks someone who is inside the house, “Is there anyone else with you?” that person will answer, “No.” “Hush,” he will add. “We shouldn’t mention the name of the Lord!”