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Zephaniah 1-3
English Standard Version
Zephaniah 1-3
English Standard Version
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, (A)in the days of (B)Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
The Coming Judgment on Judah
2 (C)“I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.
3 “I will sweep away (D)man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds of the heavens
and (E)the fish of the sea,
and (F)the rubble[a] with the wicked.
I will (G)cut off mankind
from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.
4 “I will stretch out my hand against Judah
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;
(H)and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal
and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,
5 (I)those who bow down on the roofs
to the host of the heavens,
(J)those who bow down and swear to the Lord
and yet swear by (K)Milcom,[b]
6 (L)those who have turned back from following the Lord,
(M)who do not seek the Lord or inquire of him.”
The Day of the Lord Is Near
7 (N)Be silent before the Lord God!
For (O)the day of the Lord is near;
(P)the Lord has prepared a sacrifice
and (Q)consecrated his guests.
8 And on the day of the Lord's sacrifice—
(R)“I will punish the officials and the king's sons
and (S)all who array themselves in foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish
everyone (T)who leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master's[c] house
with violence and fraud.
10 “On that day,” declares the Lord,
“a cry will be heard from (U)the Fish Gate,
(V)a wail from (W)the Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11 (X)Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders[d] are no more;
all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time (Y)I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men
(Z)who are complacent,[e]
(AA)those who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
nor will he do ill.’
13 Their goods shall be (AB)plundered,
and their houses laid waste.
(AC)Though they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
(AD)though they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them.”
14 (AE)The great day of the Lord is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
(AF)the mighty man cries aloud there.
15 (AG)A day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of (AH)ruin and devastation,
(AI)a day of darkness and gloom,
(AJ)a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 (AK)a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
(AL)against the fortified cities
and against the lofty battlements.
17 (AM)I will bring distress on mankind,
so that they shall walk (AN)like the blind,
because they have sinned against the Lord;
(AO)their blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh (AP)like dung.
18 (AQ)Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the Lord.
(AR)In the fire of his jealousy,
(AS)all the earth shall be consumed;
(AT)for a full and sudden end
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
Judgment on Judah's Enemies
2 Gather together, yes, gather,
O (AU)shameless nation,
2 (AV)before the decree takes effect[f]
—before the day passes away (AW)like chaff—
(AX)before there comes upon you
the burning anger of the Lord,
before there comes upon you
the day of the anger of the Lord.
3 (AY)Seek the Lord, (AZ)all you humble of the land,
who do his just commands;[g]
(BA)seek righteousness; seek humility;
(BB)perhaps (BC)you may be hidden
on the day of the anger of the Lord.
4 (BD)For Gaza shall be deserted,
and Ashkelon shall become a desolation;
Ashdod's people shall be driven out at noon,
and Ekron shall be uprooted.
5 Woe to (BE)you inhabitants of the seacoast,
you nation of (BF)the Cherethites!
(BG)The word of the Lord is against you,
(BH)O Canaan, land of the Philistines;
and I will destroy you (BI)until no inhabitant is left.
6 (BJ)And you, O seacoast, (BK)shall be pastures,
with meadows[h] for shepherds
and folds for flocks.
7 (BL)The seacoast shall become the possession
of (BM)the remnant of the house of Judah,
(BN)on which they shall graze,
and in the houses of Ashkelon
they shall lie down at evening.
For the Lord their God (BO)will be mindful of them
and (BP)restore their fortunes.
8 “I have heard (BQ)the taunts of Moab
and (BR)the revilings of the Ammonites,
how they have taunted my people
and made boasts (BS)against their territory.
9 Therefore, (BT)as I live,” declares the Lord of hosts,
the God of Israel,
“Moab shall become (BU)like Sodom,
and the Ammonites (BV)like Gomorrah,
a land possessed by nettles and salt pits,
and a waste forever.
The remnant of my people shall plunder them,
and the survivors of my nation shall possess them.”
10 This shall be their lot in return (BW)for their pride,
because they taunted and boasted
against the people of the Lord of hosts.
11 The Lord will be awesome against them;
(BX)for he will famish all the gods of the earth,
and (BY)to him shall bow down,
each in its place,
all (BZ)the lands of the nations.
12 (CA)You also, O Cushites,
shall be slain by my sword.
13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north
(CB)and destroy Assyria,
and he (CC)will make Nineveh a desolation,
a dry waste like the desert.
14 (CD)Herds shall lie down in her midst,
all kinds of beasts;[i]
(CE)even the owl and the hedgehog[j]
shall lodge in her capitals;
a voice shall hoot in the window;
devastation will be on the threshold;
for (CF)her cedar work will be laid bare.
15 This is the exultant city
(CG)that lived securely,
that said in her heart,
“I am, and there is no one else.”
What a desolation she has become,
(CH)a lair for wild beasts!
(CI)Everyone who passes by her
hisses and (CJ)shakes his fist.
Judgment on Jerusalem and the Nations
3 Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,
(CK)the oppressing city!
2 She listens to no voice;
(CL)she accepts no correction.
(CM)She does not trust in the Lord;
she does not draw near to her God.
3 (CN)Her officials within her
are roaring lions;
her judges are (CO)evening wolves
that leave nothing till the morning.
4 (CP)Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men;
(CQ)her priests (CR)profane what is holy;
they do violence to the law.
5 The Lord within her (CS)is righteous;
he does no injustice;
every morning he shows forth his justice;
each dawn he does not fail;
but (CT)the unjust knows no shame.
6 (CU)“I have cut off nations;
their battlements are in ruins;
I have laid waste their streets
(CV)so that no one walks in them;
their cities have been made desolate,
without a man, without an inhabitant.
7 (CW)I said, ‘Surely you will fear me;
(CX)you will accept correction.
Then your[k] dwelling would not be cut off
according to all that I have appointed against you.’[l]
But (CY)all the more they were eager
to make all their deeds corrupt.
8 “Therefore (CZ)wait for me,” declares the Lord,
“for the day when I rise up to seize the prey.
For my decision is (DA)to gather nations,
to assemble kingdoms,
to pour out upon them my indignation,
all my burning anger;
for in the fire of my jealousy
(DB)all the earth shall be consumed.
The Conversion of the Nations
9 “For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples
to (DC)a pure speech,
that all of them may call upon the name of the Lord
and serve him with one accord.
10 (DD)From beyond the rivers (DE)of Cush
my worshipers, the daughter of my dispersed ones,
shall bring my offering.
11 (DF)“On that day (DG)you shall not be put to shame
because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me;
for then (DH)I will remove from your midst
your proudly exultant ones,
and (DI)you shall no longer be haughty
in my holy mountain.
12 But I will leave in your midst
a people (DJ)humble and lowly.
(DK)They shall seek refuge in the name of the Lord,
13 (DL)those who are left in Israel;
they (DM)shall do no injustice
and speak no lies,
(DN)nor shall there be found in their mouth
a deceitful tongue.
(DO)For they shall graze and lie down,
and none shall make them afraid.”
Israel's Joy and Restoration
14 (DP)Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;
he has cleared away your enemies.
(DQ)The King of Israel, (DR)the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
16 (DS)On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Fear not, O Zion;
(DT)let not your hands grow weak.
17 (DU)The Lord your God is in your midst,
(DV)a mighty one who will save;
(DW)he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
18 I will gather those of you who mourn (DX)for the festival,
so that you will no longer suffer reproach.[m]
19 Behold, at that time (DY)I will deal
with all your oppressors.
And (DZ)I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change (EA)their shame into (EB)praise
and renown in all the earth.
20 (EC)At that time I will bring you in,
at the time when I gather you together;
for I will make you renowned and praised
among all the peoples of the earth,
(ED)when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes,” says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 1:3 Or stumbling blocks (that is, idols)
- Zephaniah 1:5 Or their king
- Zephaniah 1:9 Or their Lord's
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or all the people of Canaan
- Zephaniah 1:12 Hebrew are thickening on the dregs [of their wine]
- Zephaniah 2:2 Hebrew gives birth
- Zephaniah 2:3 Or who carry out his judgment
- Zephaniah 2:6 Or caves
- Zephaniah 2:14 Hebrew beasts of every nation
- Zephaniah 2:14 The identity of the animals rendered owl and hedgehog is uncertain
- Zephaniah 3:7 Hebrew her
- Zephaniah 3:7 Hebrew her
- Zephaniah 3:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
Zephaniah 1-3
New International Version
Zephaniah 1-3
New International Version
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 Josiah(A) son of Amon(B) 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 sky(E)
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 hand(H) 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 priests(J)—
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 following(M) the Lord
and neither seek(N) the Lord nor inquire(O) of him.”
7 Be silent(P) before the Sovereign Lord,
for the day of the Lord(Q) 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 punish(S) the officials
and the king’s sons(T)
and all those clad
in foreign clothes.
9 On that day I will punish
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)
wailing(Y) from the New Quarter,
and a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail,(Z) you who live in the market district[d];
all your merchants will be wiped out,
all who trade with[e] silver will be destroyed.(AA)
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps
and punish those who are complacent,(AB)
who are like wine left on its dregs,(AC)
who think, ‘The Lord will do nothing,(AD)
either good or bad.’(AE)
13 Their wealth will be plundered,(AF)
their houses demolished.
Though they build houses,
they will not live in them;
though they plant vineyards,
they will not drink the wine.”(AG)
14 The great day of the Lord(AH) is near(AI)—
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 darkness(AJ) and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness(AK)—
16 a day of trumpet and battle cry(AL)
against the fortified cities
and against the corner towers.(AM)
17 “I will bring such distress(AN) on all people
that they will grope about like those who are blind,(AO)
because they have sinned against the Lord.
Their blood will be poured out(AP) like dust
and their entrails like dung.(AQ)
18 Neither their silver nor their gold
will be able to save them
on the day of the Lord’s wrath.”(AR)
In the fire of his jealousy(AS)
the whole earth will be consumed,(AT)
for he will make a sudden end
of all who live on the earth.(AU)
Judah and Jerusalem Judged Along With the Nations
Judah Summoned to Repent
2 Gather together,(AV) gather yourselves together,
you shameful(AW) nation,
2 before the decree takes effect
and that day passes like windblown chaff,(AX)
before the Lord’s fierce anger(AY)
comes upon you,
before the day of the Lord’s wrath(AZ)
comes upon you.
3 Seek(BA) the Lord, all you humble of the land,
you who do what he commands.
Seek righteousness,(BB) seek humility;(BC)
perhaps you will be sheltered(BD)
on the day of the Lord’s anger.
Philistia
4 Gaza(BE) will be abandoned
and Ashkelon(BF) left in ruins.
At midday Ashdod will be emptied
and Ekron uprooted.
5 Woe to you who live by the sea,
you Kerethite(BG) people;
the word of the Lord is against you,(BH)
Canaan, land of the Philistines.
He says, “I will destroy you,
and none will be left.”(BI)
6 The land by the sea will become pastures
having wells for shepherds
and pens for flocks.(BJ)
7 That land will belong
to the remnant(BK) 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.[f](BL)
Moab and Ammon
8 “I have heard the insults(BM) of Moab(BN)
and the taunts of the Ammonites,(BO)
who insulted(BP) my people
and made threats against their land.(BQ)
9 Therefore, as surely as I live,”
declares the Lord Almighty,
the God of Israel,
“surely Moab(BR) will become like Sodom,(BS)
the Ammonites(BT) like Gomorrah—
a place of weeds and salt pits,
a wasteland forever.
The remnant of my people will plunder(BU) them;
the survivors(BV) of my nation will inherit their land.(BW)”
10 This is what they will get in return for their pride,(BX)
for insulting(BY) and mocking
the people of the Lord Almighty.(BZ)
11 The Lord will be awesome(CA) to them
when he destroys all the gods(CB) of the earth.(CC)
Distant nations will bow down to him,(CD)
all of them in their own lands.
Cush
Assyria
13 He will stretch out his hand against the north
and destroy Assyria,(CG)
leaving Nineveh(CH) utterly desolate
and dry as the desert.(CI)
14 Flocks and herds(CJ) will lie down there,
creatures of every kind.
The desert owl(CK) and the screech owl(CL)
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 revelry(CM)
that lived in safety.(CN)
She said to herself,
“I am the one! And there is none besides me.”(CO)
What a ruin she has become,
a lair for wild beasts!(CP)
All who pass by her scoff(CQ)
and shake their fists.(CR)
Jerusalem
3 Woe to the city of oppressors,(CS)
rebellious(CT) and defiled!(CU)
2 She obeys(CV) no one,
she accepts no correction.(CW)
She does not trust(CX) in the Lord,
she does not draw near(CY) to her God.
3 Her officials within her
are roaring lions;(CZ)
her rulers are evening wolves,(DA)
who leave nothing for the morning.(DB)
4 Her prophets are unprincipled;
they are treacherous people.(DC)
Her priests profane the sanctuary
and do violence to the law.(DD)
5 The Lord within her is righteous;(DE)
he does no wrong.(DF)
Morning by morning(DG) he dispenses his justice,
and every new day he does not fail,(DH)
yet the unrighteous know no shame.(DI)
Jerusalem Remains Unrepentant
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;(DJ)
they are deserted and empty.
7 Of Jerusalem I thought,
‘Surely you will fear me
and accept correction!’(DK)
Then her place of refuge[h] would not be destroyed,
nor all my punishments come upon[i] her.
But they were still eager
to act corruptly(DL) in all they did.
8 Therefore wait(DM) for me,”
declares the Lord,
“for the day I will stand up to testify.[j]
I have decided to assemble(DN) the nations,(DO)
to gather the kingdoms
and to pour out my wrath(DP) on them—
all my fierce anger.(DQ)
The whole world will be consumed(DR)
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 call(DS) on the name of the Lord(DT)
and serve(DU) him shoulder to shoulder.
10 From beyond the rivers of Cush[k](DV)
my worshipers, my scattered people,
will bring me offerings.(DW)
11 On that day you, Jerusalem, will not be put to shame(DX)
for all the wrongs you have done to me,(DY)
because I will remove from you
your arrogant boasters.(DZ)
Never again will you be haughty
on my holy hill.(EA)
12 But I will leave within you
the meek(EB) and humble.
The remnant of Israel
will trust(EC) in the name of the Lord.
13 They(ED) will do no wrong;(EE)
they will tell no lies.(EF)
A deceitful tongue
will not be found in their mouths.(EG)
They will eat and lie down(EH)
and no one will make them afraid.(EI)”
14 Sing, Daughter Zion;(EJ)
shout aloud,(EK) Israel!
Be glad and rejoice(EL) 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;(EM)
never again will you fear(EN) any harm.(EO)
16 On that day
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.(EP)
17 The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.(EQ)
He will take great delight(ER) in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,(ES)
but will rejoice over you with singing.”(ET)
18 “I will remove from you
all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals,
which is a burden and reproach for you.
19 At that time I will deal
with all who oppressed(EU) you.
I will rescue the lame;
I will gather the exiles.(EV)
I will give them praise(EW) and honor
in every land where they have suffered shame.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bring(EX) you home.
I will give you honor(EY) and praise(EZ)
among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunes[l](FA)
before your very eyes,”
says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 1:3 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
- Zephaniah 1:5 Hebrew Malkam
- Zephaniah 1:9 See 1 Samuel 5:5.
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or the Mortar
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or in
- Zephaniah 2:7 Or will bring back their captives
- Zephaniah 2:12 That is, people from the upper Nile region
- Zephaniah 3:7 Or her sanctuary
- Zephaniah 3:7 Or all those I appointed over
- Zephaniah 3:8 Septuagint and Syriac; Hebrew will rise up to plunder
- Zephaniah 3:10 That is, the upper Nile region
- Zephaniah 3:20 Or I bring back your captives
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.