1 * Before the king of Egypt attacked the town of Gaza,* 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,*

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*

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?