Thus says Yahweh: "For three transgressions of Damascus, yes, for four, I will not turn away its punishment; Because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron;
 So much has been made of this phrase that it may be well to seek that it be cleared yet more. The very expression, "Shall there be evil in a city?" indicates that it is not in view of a man's heart or life. "Evil in a city" means plague, capture, or any other severe chastening falling on it. This is all that is referred to here.
