Then he looked behind him and saw them. And he cursed them in the name of Yahweh. Then two female bears came out of the woods and tore up forty-two lads of their number.
Therefore, thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, “Because you have spoken this word, Behold, I am making My words in your mouth fire And this people wood, and it will devour them.
Now it happened as I prophesied, that Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell on my face and cried out with a loud voice and said, “Alas, Lord Yahweh! Will You bring the remnant of Israel to complete destruction?”
Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what Yahweh spoke, saying, ‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be glorified.’ ” So Aaron kept silent.
Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and not see the sun for a time.” And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking those who would lead him by the hand.
For this reason I am writing these things while absent, so that when present I need not use severity, in accordance with the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.
I have previously said when present the second time, and though now absent I say in advance to those who have sinned in the past and to all the rest as well, that if I come again I will not spare anyone,
For behold what earnestness this very thing—this godly sorrow—has brought about in you: what vindication of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what avenging of wrong! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be innocent in the matter.
Did not Achan the son of Zerah act unfaithfully in the things devoted to destruction, and indignation fall on all the congregation of Israel? But he was not the only man to breathe his last in his iniquity.’ ”
And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
And if anyone wishes to harm them, fire comes out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wishes to harm them, he must be killed in this way.