Zephaniah 1:1–3:20
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during the reign of Josiaha son of Amonb king of Judah:
Judgment on the Whole Earth in the Day of the Lord
2 “I will sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,”c
declares the Lord.
3 “I will sweep away both man and beast;d
I will sweep away the birds in the skye
and the fish in the sea—
and the idols that cause the wicked to stumble.”a
“When I destroy all mankind
on the face of the earth,”f
declares the Lord,g
4 “I will stretch out my handh against Judah
and against all who live in Jerusalem.
I will destroy every remnant of Baal worship in this place,i
the very names of the idolatrous priestsj—
5 those who bow down on the roofs
to worship the starry host,k
those who bow down and swear by the Lord
and who also swear by Molek,b l
6 those who turn back from followingm the Lord
and neither seekn the Lord nor inquireo of him.”
7 Be silentp before the Sovereign Lord,
for the day of the Lordq is near.
The Lord has prepared a sacrifice;r
he has consecrated those he has invited.
8 “On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice
I will punishs the officials
and the king’s sonst
and all those clad
in foreign clothes.
all who avoid stepping on the threshold,c u
who fill the temple of their gods
with violence and deceit.v
10 “On that day,w”
declares the Lord,
“a cry will go up from the Fish Gate,x
wailingy from the New Quarter,
and a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail,z you who live in the market districtd;
all your merchants will be wiped out,
all who trade withe silver will be destroyed.a
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps
and punish those who are complacent,b
who are like wine left on its dregs,c
who think, ‘The Lord will do nothing,d
either good or bad.’e
13 Their wealth will be plundered,f
their houses demolished.
Though they build houses,
they will not live in them;
though they plant vineyards,
they will not drink the wine.”g
14 The great day of the Lordh is neari—
near and coming quickly.
The cry on the day of the Lord is bitter;
the Mighty Warrior shouts his battle cry.
15 That day will be a day of wrath—
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of trouble and ruin,
a day of darknessj and gloom,
a day of clouds and blacknessk—
16 a day of trumpet and battle cryl
against the fortified cities
and against the corner towers.m
17 “I will bring such distressn on all people
that they will grope about like those who are blind,o
because they have sinned against the Lord.
Their blood will be poured outp like dust
and their entrails like dung.q
18 Neither their silver nor their gold
will be able to save them
on the day of the Lord’s wrath.”r
In the fire of his jealousys
the whole earth will be consumed,t
for he will make a sudden end
of all who live on the earth.u
Judah and Jerusalem Judged Along With the Nations
Judah Summoned to Repent
2 Gather together,v gather yourselves together,
you shamefulw nation,
2 before the decree takes effect
and that day passes like windblown chaff,x
before the Lord’s fierce angery
comes upon you,
before the day of the Lord’s wrathz
comes upon you.
3 Seeka the Lord, all you humble of the land,
you who do what he commands.
Seek righteousness,b seek humility;c
perhaps you will be shelteredd
on the day of the Lord’s anger.
4 Gazae will be abandoned
and Ashkelonf left in ruins.
At midday Ashdod will be emptied
and Ekron uprooted.
5 Woe to you who live by the sea,
you Kerethiteg people;
the word of the Lord is against you,h
Canaan, land of the Philistines.
He says, “I will destroy you,
and none will be left.”i
6 The land by the sea will become pastures
having wells for shepherds
and pens for flocks.j
to the remnantk of the people of Judah;
there they will find pasture.
In the evening they will lie down
in the houses of Ashkelon.
The Lord their God will care for them;
he will restore their fortunes.a l
8 “I have heard the insultsm of Moabn
and the taunts of the Ammonites,o
who insultedp my people
and made threats against their land.q
9 Therefore, as surely as I live,”
declares the Lord Almighty,
the God of Israel,
“surely Moabr will become like Sodom,s
the Ammonitest like Gomorrah—
a place of weeds and salt pits,
a wasteland forever.
The remnant of my people will plunderu them;
the survivorsv of my nation will inherit their land.w”
10 This is what they will get in return for their pride,x
for insultingy and mocking
the people of the Lord Almighty.z
11 The Lord will be awesomea to them
when he destroys all the godsb of the earth.c
Distant nations will bow down to him,d
all of them in their own lands.
will be slain by my sword.f”
13 He will stretch out his hand against the north
and destroy Assyria,g
leaving Ninevehh utterly desolate
and dry as the desert.i
14 Flocks and herdsj will lie down there,
creatures of every kind.
The desert owlk and the screech owll
will roost on her columns.
Their hooting will echo through the windows,
rubble will fill the doorways,
the beams of cedar will be exposed.
15 This is the city of revelrym
that lived in safety.n
She said to herself,
“I am the one! And there is none besides me.”o
What a ruin she has become,
a lair for wild beasts!p
All who pass by her scoffq
and shake their fists.r
3 Woe to the city of oppressors,s
2 She obeysv no one,
she accepts no correction.w
She does not trustx in the Lord,
she does not draw neary to her God.
are roaring lions;z
her rulers are evening wolves,a
who leave nothing for the morning.b
4 Her prophets are unprincipled;
they are treacherous people.c
Her priests profane the sanctuary
and do violence to the law.d
5 The Lord within her is righteous;e
he does no wrong.f
Morning by morningg he dispenses his justice,
and every new day he does not fail,h
yet the unrighteous know no shame.i
6 “I have destroyed nations;
their strongholds are demolished.
I have left their streets deserted,
with no one passing through.
Their cities are laid waste;j
they are deserted and empty.
‘Surely you will fear me
and accept correction!’k
Then her place of refugea would not be destroyed,
nor all my punishments come uponb her.
But they were still eager
to act corruptlyl in all they did.
8 Therefore waitm for me,”
declares the Lord,
“for the day I will stand up to testify.c
I have decided to assemblen the nations,o
to gather the kingdoms
and to pour out my wrathp on them—
all my fierce anger.q
The whole world will be consumedr
by the fire of my jealous anger.
Restoration of Israel’s Remnant
9 “Then I will purify the lips of the peoples,
that all of them may calls on the name of the Lordt
and serveu him shoulder to shoulder.
10 From beyond the rivers of Cushd v
my worshipers, my scattered people,
will bring me offerings.w
11 On that day you, Jerusalem, will not be put to shamex
for all the wrongs you have done to me,y
because I will remove from you
your arrogant boasters.z
Never again will you be haughty
on my holy hill.a
12 But I will leave within you
the meekb and humble.
The remnant of Israel
will trustc in the name of the Lord.
they will tell no lies.f
A deceitful tongue
will not be found in their mouths.g
They will eat and lie downh
and no one will make them afraid.i”
14 Sing, Daughter Zion;j
shout aloud,k Israel!
Be glad and rejoicel with all your heart,
Daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away your punishment,
he has turned back your enemy.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;m
never again will you fearn any harm.o
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.p
17 The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.q
He will take great delightr in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,s
but will rejoice over you with singing.”t
all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals,
which is a burden and reproach for you.
with all who oppressedu you.
I will rescue the lame;
I will gather the exiles.v
I will give them praisew and honor
in every land where they have suffered shame.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bringx you home.
I will give you honory and praisez
among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunese a
before your very eyes,”
says the Lord.