I'm going to confiscate anything I can put my hands on. I'll attack the restored ruins and the people who have been gathered together from the nations, who are acquiring livestock and other goods, and who live at the center of the world's attention."

By this time, the earth had become ruined in God's opinion and filled with violence.

The LORD did this, and dense swarms of insects came into the house of Pharaoh and into the houses of his servants. The land was ruined throughout Egypt because of the swarms of insects.

(Now the flax and the barley were ruined because the barley was in ear and the flax was in bud.

The wheat and the wild grainwere not ruined because they were late crops.)

"The enemy said, "I'll pursue them, I'll overtake them, I'll divide the spoil. I'll satisfy my anger on them, I'll draw my sword, and my hand will bring them to ruin.'

Gather whatever you've taken as spoils at the public square of the town, then burn the town, along with whatever you've taken, as an offering to the LORD your God. It will remain a permanent mound of ruins, never to be rebuilt again.

Joshua burned Ai, turning it into a permanent mound of ruins, and it remains so to this day.

However, Israel did not burn any of the cities that had been built on mounds of ruins, except for Hazor only, which Joshua burned.

"This Temple will become a pile of ruins. Everyone who passes by it will be so astounded that they will ask, "Why did the LORD do this to this land and to this Temple?'

Then you are to attack every fortified city and every significant city. Cut down every significant tree, fill in all of the water springs, and ruin every prime piece of land with stones."

They destroyed their cities, and all of them threw stones onto every piece of farm land, ruining the fields. Then they filled in all the water wells and chopped down all of the useful trees. Stone walls remained surrounding Kir-hareseth only, until the archers surrounded and attacked that city.

"Didn't you hear? I determined it years ago! I planned this from ancient times, and now I've brought it to pass, to turn fortified cities into piles of ruins

In the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, Simeon, and as far as Naphtali and their surrounding ruins,

"I'll scatter you among the nations and draw the sword after you so that your land becomes desolate and your towns become ruins.

along with kings and counselors of the earth, who used to build for themselves what are now only ruins,