Category: Zephaniah

Day of Judgment on Judah

1 The word of the Lordwhich came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son ofHezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah:

2 “I will completely consumeandsweep away allthings

From the face of the earth [in judgment],” says the Lord.

3 “I will consumeandsweep away man and beast;

I will consumeandsweep away the birds of the air

And the fish of the sea,

And thestumbling blocks (idols) along with the wicked;

And I will cut offanddestroy man from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.

4 “I will also stretch out My hand [in judgment] against Judah

And against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And I will cut offanddestroy the remnant ofBaal from this place,

And the namesandremembrance of the idolatrous priests along with the [false] priests,

5 And those who bow downandworship the host of heaven [the sun, the moon, and the stars]on their housetops

And those who bow down and swear [oaths] to [and pretend to worship] the Lordand [yet also] swear by [the pagan god called] Milcom [god of the Ammonites],

6 And those who have turned back from following the Lord,

And those who have not sought the Lord[as their most important need] or inquired of Him.”

7 [Hush!] Be silent before the Lord God[there is no acceptable excuse to offer]!

For the day [of the vengeance] of the Lordis near,

For the Lordhas prepared a sacrifice (Judah),

He has set apart [for His use] those who have accepted His invitation [the Chaldeans who rule Babylon].

8 “Then it will come about on the day of the Lord’ssacrifice

That I will punish the princes and the king’s sons

And all who are clothed in [lavish] foreign apparel [reflecting their paganism].

9 On that day I will also punish all those wholeap over thetemplethreshold,

Who fill their [pagan] lord’s temple with violence and deceit.

10 On that day,” declares the Lord,

“There will be the sound of crying from the Fish (Damascus) Gate [in the northern wall of Jerusalem where invaders enter]

And wailing from theSecond Quarter [of the city],

And a loud crash from the hills.

11 Wail [in anguish], you inhabitants of theMortar (Valley of Siloam),

For all the merchants of Canaan will be silencedanddestroyed;

All who weigh out silver will be cut off.

12 It will come about at that time

That I will search Jerusalem with lamps

And I will punish the men

Who [like old wine] are stagnant in spirit,

Who say in their hearts,

‘The Lordwill not do good, nor will He do evil.’

13 Furthermore, their wealth will become plunder

And their houses a desolation.

Yes, they will build houses but not live in them,

And plant vineyards but not drink their wine.”

14 The great [judgment] day of the Lordis near,

Near and coming very quickly.

Listen! The [voice of the] day of the Lord!

The warrior cries out bitterly [unable to fight or to flee].

15 That day is a day of [the outpouring of the] wrath [of God],

A day of trouble and distress,

A day of destruction and devastation,

A day of darkness and gloom,

A day of clouds and thick darkness,

16 A day of trumpet and the battle cry [of invaders]

Against the fortified cities

And against the high corner towers (battlements).

17 I will bring distress on men

So that they will walk like the blind [unable to find a way of escape],

Because they have sinned against the Lord;

Their blood will be poured out like dust [and trampled underfoot],

And their flesh like dung.

18 Neither their silver nor their gold

Will be able to rescue them

On the day of the Lord’sindignationandwrath.

And the whole earth will be consumed

In the fire of His jealouswrath,

For He shall make a fullandcomplete end,

Indeed a terrifying one,

Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Judgments on Judah’s Enemies

1 Gather yourselves together [in repentance], yes, gather [in submission],

O nation without shame,

2 Before the decree takes effect [and the time for repentance is lost]—

The day passes like the chaff [whirled by the wind]—

Before the burningandfierce anger of the Lordcomes upon you,

Before the day of the wrath of the Lordcomes upon you.

3 Seek the Lord[search diligently for Him and regard Him as the foremost necessity of your life],

All you humble of the land

Who have practiced His ordinancesandhave kept His commandments;

Seek righteousness, seek humility [regard them as vital].

Perhaps you will be hidden [and pardoned and rescued]

In the day of the Lord’sanger.

4 For [this is the fate of the Philistines:] Gaza will be abandoned

And Ashkelon a desolation;

[The people of] Ashdod will be driven out at noon [in broad daylight]

And Ekron will be uprootedanddestroyed.

5 Woe (judgment is coming) to the inhabitants of the seacoast,

The nation of the Cherethites [in Philistia]!

The word of the Lordis against you,

O Canaan, land of the Philistines;

I will destroy you

So that no inhabitant will be left.

6 So the [depopulated] seacoast shall be pastures,

With [deserted] meadows for shepherds and folds for flocks.

7 Theseacoast will belong

To the remnant of the house of Judah;

They will pasture [their flocks] on it.

In the [deserted] houses of Ashkelon [in Philistia] they [of Judah] will lie downandrest in the evening,

For the Lordtheir God will care for them;

And restore their fortune [permitting them to occupy the land].

8 “I have heard the taunting of Moab

And the revilings of the sons of Ammon,

With which they have taunted My people

And become arrogant against their territory [by violating Israel’s boundary and trying to seize its land].

9 Therefore, as I live,” declares the Lordof hosts,

The God of Israel,

“Moab will in fact become like Sodom

And thesons of Ammon like Gomorrah,

A land possessed by nettles and salt pits,

And a perpetual desolation.

The remnant of My people will plunder them

And what is left of My nation will inherit them [as their own].”

10 This they shall have in return for their pride, because they have taunted and become arrogant against the people of the Lordof hosts.

11 The Lordwill be terrifyingandawesome to them, for He will starve all the gods of the earth; and all the coastlands of the nations will bow downandworship Him, everyone from his own place.

12 “You also, O Ethiopians, will be slain by My sword.”

13 And the Lordwill stretch out His hand against the north

And destroy Assyria,

And He will make Nineveh a desolation [a wasteland],

Parched as the desert.

14 Flocks will lie down in her midst,

All the animals which range in herds;

Both the pelican and the short-eared owl

Will roost on the top of Nineveh’s pillars.

Birds will sing in the window,

Desolation will be on the threshold;

For He has uncovered the cedar paneling.

15 This is the joyous city

Which dwells carelessly [feeling so secure],

Who says in her heart,

“I am, and there is no one besides me.”

What a desolation she has become,

A lair for [wild] animals!

Everyone who passes by her will hiss [in scorn]

And wave his handin contempt.

Woe to Jerusalem and the Nations

1 Woe (judgment is coming) to her who is rebellious and defiled,

The tyrannical city [Jerusalem]!

2 She did not listenandheed the voice [of God];

She accepted no correction.

She did not trust in the Lord[but trusted her own power];

She did not draw near to her God [but to the pagan gods of Baal or Molech].

3 Her officials within her are roaring lions;

Her judges are [as hungry as] the wolves at evening,

They leave nothing for the morning.

4 Her prophets are reckless and treacherous men;

Her priests have profaned the sanctuary;

They have done violence to the law [by pretending their word is God’s word].

5 The Lordis righteous within her;

He will do no injustice.

Every morning He brings His justice to light;

He does not fail.

But the unjust person knows no shame.

6 “I [the Lord] have cut offanddestroyed nations [as a warning to Judah];

Their corner towers (battlements) are in ruins.

I have made their streets desolate

So that no one passes by;

Their cities are destroyed

So that there is no man, there is no inhabitant.

7 I said, ‘Most certainly you will [reverently] fear Me;

Accept correction.’

So Jerusalem’s dwelling will not be cut off

In accordance withall that I have appointed concerning her [punishment],

But they were eager [even rising early] to make all their deeds corrupt.

8 “Therefore [you of the godly remnant of Judah, patiently] wait for Me,” declares the Lord,

“[Wait] for the day when I rise up as a witness [against the nations].

For it is My decisionandMy right to gather the nations,

To assemble kingdoms,

To pour out on them My indignation,

All [the heat of] My burning anger;

For [in that day] all the earth shall be consumed

By the fire of My zeal.

9 Then I will give to the peoples [clear and pure speech from] purified lips [which reflect their purified hearts],

That all of them may call on the name of the Lord,

To serve Him shoulder to shoulder (united).

10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia

My worshipers, [the descendants of] My dispersed ones,

Will bring My offerings.

11 On that day you [Israel] will feel no shame

Because of all your acts

By which you have rebelledandsinned against Me;

Then I will remove from among you

Your rejoicing ones who delight in their pride;

And you will never again behave arrogantly

On My holy mountain [Mount Zion].

A Remnant of Israel

12 But I will leave among you

A humble and lowly people,

And they will take refugeandtrust confidently in the name of the Lord.

13 The remnant of Israel will do no wrong

Nor speak lies,

Nor will a deceitful tongue

Be found in their mouths;

For they will eat and lie down

With no one to make them trembleandfeel afraid.”

14 Shout for joy, O Daughter of Zion!

Shoutin triumph,O Israel!

Rejoice, be in high spiritsandglory with all your heart,

O Daughter of Jerusalem [in that day]!

15 The Lordhas taken away the judgments against you;

He has cleared away your enemies.

The King of Israel, even the Lord[Himself], is in your midst;

You will no longer fear disaster.

16 In that day it will be said to Jerusalem:

“Do not be afraid, O Zion;

Do not let your hands fall limp.

17 The Lordyour God is in your midst,

A Warrior who saves.

He will rejoice over you with joy;

He will be quiet in His love [making no mention of your past sins],

He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.

18 I will gather those [Israelites in captivity] who grieve about the appointed feasts—

They came from you, [O Zion];

On whom the reproach [of exile] is a burden.

19 Behold, at that time I am going to deal

With all your oppressors;

I will save the lame

And gather the scattered,

And I will turn their shame into praise and renown

In every land [where they have suffered].

20 At that time I will bring you in,

Yes, at the time I gather you together;

For I will make you a name and a praise

Among all the peoples of the earth

When I restore your fortunes [and freedom] before your eyes,”

Says the Lord.