¹⁹ No blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel,^(A) because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise, the Hebrews will make swords or spears.”

Mordecai Appeals to Esther

4 When Mordecai learned all that had occurred,^(A) he tore his clothes,^(B) put on sackcloth and ashes,^(C) went into the middle of the city, and cried loudly and bitterly.^(D)

³ There was great mourning among the Jewish people in every province where the king’s command and edict^(A) came. They fasted, wept, and lamented, and many lay on sackcloth and ashes.^(B)