Zephaniah 1
World English Bible
1 Yahweh’s[a] word which came to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah. 2 I will utterly sweep away everything from the surface of the earth, says Yahweh. 3 I will sweep away man and animal. I will sweep away the birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and the heaps of rubble with the wicked. I will cut off man from the surface of the earth, says Yahweh. 4 I will stretch out my hand against Judah, and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place: the name of the idolatrous and pagan priests, 5 those who worship the army of the sky on the housetops, those who worship and swear by Yahweh and also swear by Malcam, 6 those who have turned back from following Yahweh, and those who haven’t sought Yahweh nor inquired after him. 7 Be silent at the presence of the Lord[b] Yahweh, for the day of Yahweh is at hand. For Yahweh has prepared a sacrifice. He has consecrated his guests. 8 It will happen in the day of Yahweh’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, the king’s sons, and all those who are clothed with foreign clothing. 9 In that day, I will punish all those who leap over the threshold, who fill their master’s house with violence and deceit. 10 In that day, says Yahweh, there will be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, a wailing from the second quarter, and a great crashing from the hills. 11 Wail, you inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the people of Canaan are undone! All those who were loaded with silver are cut off. 12 It will happen at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and I will punish the men who are settled on their dregs, who say in their heart, “Yahweh will not do good, neither will he do evil.” 13 Their wealth will become a plunder, and their houses a desolation. Yes, they will build houses, but won’t inhabit them. They will plant vineyards, but won’t drink their wine. 14 The great day of Yahweh is near. It is near, and hurries greatly, the voice of the day of Yahweh. The mighty man cries there bitterly. 15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness, 16 a day of the trumpet and alarm, against the fortified cities, and against the high battlements. 17 I will bring distress on men, that they will walk like blind men, because they have sinned against Yahweh, and their blood will be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung. 18 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Yahweh’s wrath, but the whole land will be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he will make an end, yes, a terrible end, of all those who dwell in the land.
Zephaniah 1
Modern English Version
1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
The Great Day of the Lord
2 I will utterly consume all things
on the face of the earth,
says the Lord;
3 I will consume man and beast;
I will consume the birds of the heavens
and the fish of the sea,
and the stumbling blocks with the wicked.
I will cut off man from the face of the land,
says the Lord.
4 I will stretch out my hand against Judah,
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal,
and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,
5 and those who bow down on the roofs
to the host of heaven;
those who worship and swear oaths by the Lord
and yet swear by Milcom;
6 those who have turned back from following the Lord,
who have not sought the Lord nor inquired of Him.
7 Be silent before the Lord God!
For the day of the Lord is at hand;
the Lord has prepared the sacrifice;
He has consecrated His guests.
8 On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice,
I will punish the officials
and the king’s sons,
and all who clothe themselves
with foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish
all who step over the threshold,
who fill their masters’ houses
with violence and deceit.
10 On that day, says the Lord,
a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate,
a wail from the Second Quarter,
and a loud crash from the hills.
11 Wail, you inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the merchants are cut down;
all those who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men
who are settled on their lees,
who say in their heart,
“The Lord will not do good, nor will He do evil.”
13 Their goods will be plundered,
and their houses laid waste.
Though they build houses,
they will not inhabit them;
though they plant vineyards,
they will not drink from their wine.
The Great Day of the Lord
14 The great day of the Lord is near,
near and hastening quickly.
The sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
the mighty man shall cry out there.
15 That day is a day of wrath,
a day of trouble and distress,
a day of ruin and desolation,
a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness,
16 a day of trumpet and alarms
against the fortified cities
and against the high towers.
17 I will bring distress on men,
so that they will walk like blind men.
Because they have sinned against the Lord,
their blood will be poured out like dust,
and their flesh like dung.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold
will be able to deliver them
on the day of the Lord’s wrath.
But the whole earth will be consumed
by the fire of His jealousy,
for He will make a sudden end
of all those who dwell on the earth.
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The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.