Font Size
Zephaniah 1-3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Zephaniah 1-3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah(A) son of Amon, king of Judah.
The Great Day of the Lord
2 I will completely sweep away everything
from the face of the earth(B)—
this is the Lord’s declaration.
3 I will sweep away man and animal;(C)
I will sweep away the birds of the sky
and the fish of the sea,
and the ruins[a] along with the wicked.(D)
I will cut off mankind
from the face of the earth.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
4 I will stretch out My hand(E) against Judah
and against all the residents of Jerusalem.
I will cut off every vestige of Baal(F)
from this place,
the names of the pagan priests(G)
along with the priests;
5 those who bow in worship on the rooftops(H)
to the heavenly host;
those who bow and pledge loyalty to the Lord(I)
but also pledge loyalty to Milcom;[b](J)
6 and those who turn back from following the Lord,
who do not seek the Lord or inquire of Him.
7 Be silent in the presence of the Lord God,(K)
for the Day of the Lord is near.(L)
Indeed, the Lord has prepared a sacrifice;(M)
He has consecrated His guests.(N)
8 On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice
I will punish the officials, the king’s sons,
and all who are dressed in foreign clothing.
9 On that day(O) I will punish
all who skip over the threshold,[c](P)
who fill their master’s house
with violence and deceit.
10 On that day—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
there will be an outcry from the Fish Gate,(Q)
a wailing from the Second District,(R)
and a loud crashing from the hills.
11 Wail, you residents of the Hollow,[d]
for all the merchants[e] will be silenced;
all those loaded with silver will be cut off.
12 And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps
and punish the men who settle down comfortably,[f](S)
who say to themselves:
The Lord will not do good or evil.
13 Their wealth will become plunder
and their houses a ruin.
They will build houses but never live in them,
plant vineyards but never drink their wine.(T)
14 The great Day of the Lord is near,(U)
near and rapidly approaching.
Listen, the Day of the Lord—
then the warrior’s cry is bitter.
15 That day is a day of wrath,
a day of trouble and distress,
a day of destruction and desolation,
a day of darkness(V) and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness,(W)
16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
against the fortified cities,
and against the high corner towers.
17 I will bring distress on mankind,
and they will walk like the blind(X)
because they have sinned against the Lord.
Their blood will be poured out like dust
and their flesh like dung.
18 Their silver and their gold
will not be able to rescue them
on the day of the Lord’s wrath.(Y)
The whole earth will be consumed
by the fire of His jealousy.(Z)
For He will make a complete,
yes, a horrifying end
of all the inhabitants of the earth.
A Call to Repentance
2 Gather yourselves together;
gather together, undesirable[g] nation,
2 before the decree(AA) takes effect
and the day passes like chaff,
before the burning of the Lord’s anger overtakes you,
before the day of the Lord’s anger overtakes you.
3 Seek the Lord,(AB) all you humble(AC) of the earth,
who carry out what He commands.
Seek righteousness, seek humility;
perhaps you will be concealed(AD)
on the day of the Lord’s anger.
Judgment against the Nations
4 For Gaza will be abandoned,
and Ashkelon will become a ruin.
Ashdod will be driven out at noon,
and Ekron will be uprooted.(AE)
5 Woe, inhabitants of the seacoast,
nation of the Cherethites
The word of the Lord is against you,
Canaan, land of the Philistines:
I will destroy you until there is no one left.
6 The seacoast will become pasturelands
with caves for shepherds and folds for sheep.
7 The coastland will belong
to the remnant of the house of Judah;
they will find pasture there.
They will lie down in the evening
among the houses of Ashkelon,
for the Lord their God will return to them
and restore their fortunes.
8 I have heard the taunting of Moab
and the insults of the Ammonites,(AG)
who have taunted My people
and threatened their territory.
9 Therefore, as I live—
this is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts,
the God of Israel—
Moab will be like Sodom
and the Ammonites like Gomorrah(AH)—
a place overgrown with weeds,
a salt pit, and a perpetual wasteland.
The remnant of My people will plunder them;
the remainder of My nation will dispossess them.
10 This is what they get for their pride,
because they have taunted and acted arrogantly(AI)
against the people of the Lord of Hosts.
11 The Lord will be terrifying to them
when He starves all the gods of the earth.
Then all the distant coastlands of the nations
will bow in worship to Him,
each in its own place.
12 You Cushites will also be slain by My sword.(AJ)
13 He will also stretch out His hand against the north
and destroy Assyria;
He will make Nineveh a desolate ruin,(AK)
dry as the desert.
14 Herds will lie down in the middle of it,
every kind of wild animal.[i]
Both the desert owl[j] and the screech owl[k]
will roost in the capitals of its pillars.
Their calls will sound[l] from the window,
but devastation[m] will be on the threshold,
for He will expose the cedar work.[n]
15 This is the self-assured(AL) city
that lives in security,
that thinks to herself:
I exist, and there is no one else.
What a desolation she has become,
a place for wild animals to lie down!
Everyone who passes by her
jeers[o] and shakes his fist.
Woe to Oppressive Jerusalem
3 Woe to the city that is rebellious[p](AM) and defiled,(AN)
the oppressive city!
2 She has not obeyed;(AO)
she has not accepted discipline.(AP)
She has not trusted(AQ) in Yahweh;
she has not drawn near to her God.
3 The[q] princes within her are roaring lions;(AR)
her judges are wolves of the night,(AS)
which leave nothing for[r] the morning.
4 Her prophets are reckless(AT)—
treacherous men.
Her priests profane the sanctuary;
they do violence to instruction.(AU)
5 The righteous Lord is in her;(AV)
He does no wrong.(AW)
He applies His justice morning by morning;
He does not fail at dawn,
yet the one who does wrong knows no shame.(AX)
6 I have cut off nations;
their corner towers(AY) are destroyed.
I have laid waste their streets,
with no one to pass through.
Their cities lie devastated,
without a person, without an inhabitant.(AZ)
7 I thought: You will certainly fear Me
and accept correction.
Then her dwelling place[s]
would not be cut off
based on all that I had allocated to her.
However, they became more corrupt
in all their actions.
8 Therefore, wait for Me(BA)—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
until the day I rise up for plunder.[t]
For My decision is to gather nations,
to assemble kingdoms,
in order to pour out My indignation(BB) on them,
all My burning anger;
for the whole earth will be consumed
by the fire of My jealousy.(BC)
Final Restoration Promised
9 For I will then restore
pure(BD) speech to the peoples
so that all of them may call
on the name of Yahweh
and serve Him with a single purpose.[u]
10 From beyond the rivers of Cush(BE)
My supplicants, My dispersed people,
will bring an offering to Me.
11 On that day you[v] will not be put to shame(BF)
because of everything you have done
in rebelling(BG) against Me.
For then I will remove
your proud,(BH) arrogant people from among you,
and you will never again be haughty
on My holy mountain.(BI)
12 I will leave
a meek and humble people(BJ) among you,
and they will take refuge in the name of Yahweh.
13 The remnant(BK) of Israel will no longer
do wrong or tell lies;
a deceitful tongue will not be found
in their mouths.
But they will pasture and lie down,
with nothing to make them afraid.(BL)
14 Sing for joy, Daughter Zion;
shout loudly, Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
Daughter Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has removed your punishment;
He has turned back your enemy.
The King of Israel, Yahweh, is among you;
you need no longer fear harm.
16 On that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not fear;
Zion, do not let your hands grow weak.(BM)
17 Yahweh your God is among you,
a warrior(BN) who saves.
He will rejoice over you(BO) with gladness.
He will bring you quietness[w] with His love.
He will delight in you with shouts of joy.”(BP)
18 I will gather those who have been driven(BQ)
from the appointed festivals;
they will be a tribute from you[x]
and a reproach on her.[y]
19 Yes, at that time
I will deal with all who afflict you.
I will save the lame(BR) and gather the scattered;(BS)
I will make those who were disgraced
throughout the earth
receive praise and fame.
20 At that time I will bring you[z] back,
yes, at the time I will gather you.
I will give you fame and praise
among all the peoples of the earth,
when I restore your fortunes(BT) before your eyes.
Yahweh has spoken.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 1:3 Perhaps objects connected with idolatry
- Zephaniah 1:5 Some LXX mss, Syr, Vg; MT, other LXX mss read their king
- Zephaniah 1:9 Hb obscure
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or the market district
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or Canaanites
- Zephaniah 1:12 Lit who thicken on their dregs
- Zephaniah 2:1 Or shameless
- Zephaniah 2:5 = Sea Peoples
- Zephaniah 2:14 Lit every wild animal of a nation
- Zephaniah 2:14 Or the pelican
- Zephaniah 2:14 Or the hedgehog
- Zephaniah 2:14 Lit sing
- Zephaniah 2:14 LXX, Vg read ravens
- Zephaniah 2:14 Hb obscure
- Zephaniah 2:15 Or hisses
- Zephaniah 3:1 Or filthy
- Zephaniah 3:3 Lit Her
- Zephaniah 3:3 Or that had nothing to gnaw in
- Zephaniah 3:7 LXX, Syr read her eyes
- Zephaniah 3:8 LXX, Syr read for a witness; Vg reads up forever
- Zephaniah 3:9 Lit with one shoulder
- Zephaniah 3:11 = Israel
- Zephaniah 3:17 LXX, Syr read He will renew you
- Zephaniah 3:18 = Jerusalem
- Zephaniah 3:18 Hb obscure
- Zephaniah 3:20 = people of Israel
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
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
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.