וַֽיִּקְרְאוּ֙ בְּק֣וֹל גָּד֔וֹל וַיִּתְגֹּֽדְדוּ֙ כְּמִשְׁפָּטָ֔ם בַּחֲרָב֖וֹת וּבָֽרְמָחִ֑ים עַד־שְׁפָךְ־דָּ֖ם עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃
Da riefen sie mit lauter Stimme und machten sich Schnitte nach ihrem Brauch mit Schwertern und mit Spießen, bis das Blut an ihnen herabrann.
Makkot
a Tanna who taught before Rabi Yochanan: [if one made an incision/gash] for the dead, whether it was by hand or by a tool, the person is culpable [for the punishment of lashes]. If the person did it for idolatry, by hand- the person is culpable, by a tool- the person is exempt (patoor) [from the punishment of lashes]. But isn't the opposite written (I Kings 18:28): "And they gashed themselves according to their practices, with knives and spears"? Rather, one should say: if it [the incision/gash] is done by hand, one is exempt [from the punishment] but if done with a tool one is culpable.