Woe to Jerusalem and the Nations

Woe to her who is (A)rebellious and (B)defiled,
The (C)tyrannical city!
She (D)heeded no voice,
She (E)accepted no instruction.
She did not (F)trust in the Lord,
She did not (G)draw near to her God.
Her (H)princes within her are roaring lions,
Her judges are (I)wolves at evening;
They leave nothing for the morning.
Her prophets are (J)reckless, treacherous men;
Her (K)priests have profaned the sanctuary.
They have done violence to the law.
The Lord is (L)righteous (M)within her;
He will (N)do no injustice.
(O)Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He does not fail.
But the unjust (P)knows no shame.
“I have cut off nations;
Their corner towers are in ruins.
I have made their streets (Q)desolate,
With no one passing by;
Their (R)cities are laid waste,
Without a man, (S)without an inhabitant.
“I said, ‘Surely you will revere Me,
(T)Accept instruction.’
So her dwelling will (U)not be cut off
According to all that I have appointed concerning her.
But they were eager to (V)corrupt all their deeds.

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Jerusalem

Woe to the city of oppressors,(A)
    rebellious(B) and defiled!(C)
She obeys(D) no one,
    she accepts no correction.(E)
She does not trust(F) in the Lord,
    she does not draw near(G) to her God.
Her officials within her
    are roaring lions;(H)
her rulers are evening wolves,(I)
    who leave nothing for the morning.(J)
Her prophets are unprincipled;
    they are treacherous people.(K)
Her priests profane the sanctuary
    and do violence to the law.(L)
The Lord within her is righteous;(M)
    he does no wrong.(N)
Morning by morning(O) he dispenses his justice,
    and every new day he does not fail,(P)
    yet the unrighteous know no shame.(Q)

Jerusalem Remains Unrepentant

“I have destroyed nations;
    their strongholds are demolished.
I have left their streets deserted,
    with no one passing through.
Their cities are laid waste;(R)
    they are deserted and empty.
Of Jerusalem I thought,
    ‘Surely you will fear me
    and accept correction!’(S)
Then her place of refuge[a] would not be destroyed,
    nor all my punishments come upon[b] her.
But they were still eager
    to act corruptly(T) in all they did.

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Footnotes

  1. Zephaniah 3:7 Or her sanctuary
  2. Zephaniah 3:7 Or all those I appointed over