People will run to caves in the rocky cliffs and will dig holes and hide in the ground from the anger of the Lord and his great power, when he stands to shake the earth.
Anyone who tries to escape from the sound of terror will fall into a hole. Anyone who climbs out of the hole will be caught in a trap. The clouds in the sky will pour out rain, and the foundations of the earth will shake.
When the Lord punishes Assyria with a rod, he will beat them to the music of tambourines and harps; he will fight against them with his mighty weapons.
“I will soon send for many fishermen to come to this land,” says the Lord. “And they will catch the people of Judah. After that, I will send for many hunters to come to this land. And they will hunt the people of Judah on every mountain and hill and in the cracks of the rocks.
At the sound of the horsemen and the archers, all the people in the towns run away. They hide in the thick bushes and climb up into the rocks. All of the cities of Judah are empty; no one lives in them.
“Say to them: ‘This is what the Lord God says: As surely as I live, those who are among the city ruins in Israel will be killed in war. I will cause those who live in the country to be eaten by wild animals. People hiding in the strongholds and caves will die of disease.
The places of false worship will be destroyed, the places where Israel sins. Thorns and weeds will grow up and cover their altars. Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”
They will crawl in the dust like a snake, like insects crawling on the ground. They will come trembling from their holes to the Lord our God and will turn in fear before you.
In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city was destroyed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and those who did not die were very afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.
Then God’s temple in heaven was opened. The Ark that holds the agreement God gave to his people could be seen in his temple. Then there were flashes of lightning, noises, thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.
Then there were flashes of lightning, noises, thunder, and a big earthquake—the worst earthquake that has ever happened since people have been on earth.
When both Jonathan and his officer let the Philistines see them, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in!”