His priests fell by the sword, but their widows could not lament.
Parallel translations
- WEB Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows couldn’t weep.
- KJV Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.
- NKJV Their priests fell by the sword, And their widows made no lamentation.
- NASB His priests fell by the sword, And His widows could not weep.
- NLT Their priests were slaughtered, and their widows could not mourn their deaths.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The priests fell by the sword and their widows could not even mourn. Calamity overwhelmed even grief itself.
Overview
The deaths of the priests recall the fall of Eli's sons (1 Samuel 4), and the widows 'couldn't weep,' overcome by catastrophe. The judgment reached the very leaders of worship. This bleak scene sets the stage for God's surprising mercy as He rises to act for His people's good.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 1 Sam 4:17The messenger answered, “Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people. Your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are both dead, and the ark of God has been captured.”
- Job 27:15His survivors will be buried by the plague, and their widows will not weep for them.
- 1 Sam 22:18–19So the king ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests!” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests himself. On that day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.
- Ezek 24:23Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan among yourselves.
- 1 Sam 4:11The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.
- 1 Sam 2:33–34And every one of you that I do not cut off from My altar, your eyes will fail and your heart will grieve. All your descendants will die by the sword of men.
- 1 Sam 4:19–20Now Eli’s daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and about to give birth. When she heard the news of the capture of God’s ark and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband, she collapsed and gave birth, for her labor pains overtook her.
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 78:64 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.