Zephaniah 1-3

New American Standard Bible

Day of Judgment on Judah

1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of ^(A)Josiah son of ^(B)Amon, king of Judah:

²“I will completely ^(C)remove all things
From the face of the ^[a]earth,” declares the Lord.
³“I will remove ^(D)human and animal life;
I will remove the ^(E)birds of the sky
And the fish of the sea,
And the ^[b]^(F)ruins along with the wicked;
And I will eliminate mankind from the face of the ^[c]earth,” declares the Lord.
⁴“So I will ^(G)stretch out My hand against Judah
And against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
And I will ^(H)eliminate the remnant of Baal from this place,
And the names of the ^(I)idolatrous priests along with the other priests.
⁵And those who bow down on the ^(J)housetops to the heavenly ^[d]lights,
And those who bow down and ^(K)swear to the Lord, but also swear by ^[e]^(L)Milcom,
⁶And those who have ^(M)turned back from following the Lord,
And those who have ^(N)not sought the Lord nor inquired of Him.”

⁷^[f]^(O)Be silent before the Lord ^[g]God!
For the ^(P)day of the Lord is near,
Because the Lord has prepared a ^(Q)sacrifice,
He has ^(R)consecrated His guests.
⁸“Then it will come about on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice
That I will ^(S)punish the princes, the king’s sons,
And all who clothe themselves with ^(T)foreign garments.
⁹And on that day I will punish all who leap on the temple threshold,
Who fill the house of their ^[h]lord with ^(U)violence and deceit.
¹⁰And on that day,” declares the Lord,
“There will be the sound of a cry from the ^(V)Fish Gate,
Wailing from the ^[i]^(W)Second Quarter,
And a loud crash from the ^(X)hills.
¹¹Wail, you inhabitants of the ^[j]Mortar,
Because all the ^[k]people of ^(Y)Canaan will be destroyed;
All who weigh out ^(Z)silver will be eliminated.
¹²And it will come about at that time
That I will ^(AA)search Jerusalem with lamps,
And I will punish the people
Who are ^[l]^(AB)stagnant in spirit,
Who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will ^(AC)not do good nor harm!’
¹³Their wealth will become ^(AD)plunder,
And their houses desolate;
Yes, ^(AE)they will build houses but not inhabit them,
And plant vineyards but not drink their wine.”

¹⁴The ^(AF)great ^(AG)day of the Lord is near,
Near and coming very quickly;
Listen, the day of the Lord!
^[m]In it the warrior ^(AH)cries out bitterly.
¹⁵That day is a day of anger,
A day of ^(AI)trouble and distress,
A day of destruction and desolation,
A day of ^(AJ)darkness and gloom,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
¹⁶A day of ^(AK)trumpet and battle cry
Against the ^(AL)fortified cities
And the high corner towers.
¹⁷I will bring ^(AM)distress on mankind
So that they will walk ^(AN)like those who are blind,
Because they have sinned against the Lord;
And their ^(AO)blood will be poured out like dust,
And their ^(AP)flesh like dung.
¹⁸Neither their ^(AQ)silver nor their gold
Will be able to save them
On the day of the Lord’s anger;
And ^(AR)all the earth will be devoured
By the fire of His jealousy,
For He will ^(AS)make a complete end,
Indeed a horrifying one,
Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Judgments on Judah’s Enemies

2 Gather yourselves together, yes, ^(AT)join together,
You nation ^(AU)without ^[n]shame,
²Before the decree ^[o]takes effect—
The day passes ^(AV)like chaff—
Before the ^(AW)burning anger of the Lord comes upon you,
Before the ^(AX)day of the Lord’s anger comes upon you.
³^(AY)Seek the Lord,
All you ^(AZ)humble of the ^[p]earth
Who have practiced His ^[q]ordinances;
^(BA)Seek righteousness, seek humility.
Perhaps you will ^(BB)remain hidden
On the day of the Lord’s anger.

⁴For ^(BC)Gaza will be abandoned,
And Ashkelon will become a desolation;
The inhabitants of ^(BD)Ashdod will be driven out at noon,
And ^(BE)Ekron will be uprooted.
⁵Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast,
The nation of the ^[r]^(BF)Cherethites!
The word of the Lord is ^(BG)against you,
^(BH)Canaan, land of the Philistines;
And I will ^(BI)eliminate you
So that there will be ^(BJ)no inhabitant.
⁶So the seacoast will become ^(BK)grazing places,
With pastures for shepherds and folds for flocks.
⁷And the coast will be
For the ^(BL)remnant of the house of Judah,
They will ^(BM)drive sheep to pasture on it.
In the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down at evening;
For the Lord their God will ^(BN)care for them
And ^(BO)restore their fortunes.

⁸“I have heard the ^(BP)taunting of Moab
And the ^(BQ)abusive speech of the sons of Ammon,
With which they have taunted My people
And ^(BR)boasted against their territory.
⁹Therefore, as I live,” declares the Lord of armies,
The God of Israel,
“^(BS)Moab will assuredly be like ^(BT)Sodom,
And the sons of ^(BU)Ammon like ^(BV)Gomorrah—
Ground overgrown with weeds and full of salt mines,
And a permanent desolation.
The remnant of My people will ^(BW)plunder them,
And the remainder of My nation will inherit them.”

¹⁰This they will have in return for their ^(BX)arrogance, because they have ^(BY)taunted and boasted against the people of the Lord of armies. ¹¹The Lord will be ^(BZ)terrifying to them, for He will ^[s]starve ^(CA)all the gods of the earth; and all the ^(CB)coastlands of the nations will ^(CC)bow down to Him, everyone from his own place.

¹²“You also, ^(CD)Ethiopians, will be slain by My sword.”
¹³And He will ^(CE)stretch out His hand against the north
And eliminate ^(CF)Assyria,
And He will make ^(CG)Nineveh a desolation,
Parched like the wilderness.
¹⁴Flocks will lie down in her midst,
^[t]All animals that range in herds;
Both the ^[u]^(CH)pelican and the hedgehog
Will spend their nights in ^[v]the tops of her pillars;
^[w]Birds will sing in the window,
Devastation will be on the threshold;
For He has uncovered the cedar work.
¹⁵This is the ^(CI)presumptuous city
That ^(CJ)dwells securely,
Who says in her heart,
“^(CK)I am, and there is no one besides me.”
How she has become a ^(CL)desolation,
A resting place for animals!
^(CM)Everyone who passes by her will ^[x]hiss
And wave his hand in contempt.

Woe to Jerusalem and the Nations

3 Woe to her who is ^(CN)rebellious and ^(CO)defiled,
The ^(CP)oppressive city!
²She ^(CQ)obeyed no voice,
She ^(CR)accepted no discipline.
She did not ^(CS)trust in the Lord,
She did not ^(CT)approach her God.
³Her ^(CU)leaders within her are roaring lions,
Her judges are ^(CV)wolves at evening;
They have no bones to gnaw in the morning.
⁴Her prophets are ^(CW)insolent, treacherous men;
Her ^(CX)priests have profaned the sanctuary.
They have done violence to the Law.
⁵The Lord is ^(CY)righteous ^(CZ)within her;
He will ^(DA)do no injustice.
^(DB)Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He ^[y]does not fail.
But the ^[z]criminal ^(DC)knows no shame.
⁶“I have eliminated nations;
Their corner towers are deserted.
I have ^(DD)laid waste their streets,
With no one passing by;
Their ^(DE)cities have been laid waste,
Without a person, ^(DF)without an inhabitant.
⁷I said, ‘You will certainly revere Me,
You will ^(DG)accept discipline.’
So her dwelling will ^(DH)not be eliminated
In accordance with everything that I have stipulated for her.
Instead, they were eager to ^(DI)corrupt all their deeds.

⁸“Therefore ^(DJ)wait for Me,” declares the Lord,
“For the day when I rise up as a witness.
Indeed, My decision is to ^(DK)gather nations,
To assemble kingdoms,
To pour out on them My indignation,
All My burning anger;
For ^(DL)all the earth will be devoured
By the fire of My zeal.
⁹For then I will ^[aa]restore to the peoples ^(DM)pure lips,
So that all of them may ^(DN)call on the name of the Lord,
To serve Him ^[ab]shoulder to shoulder.
¹⁰From beyond the rivers of ^(DO)Ethiopia
My worshipers, ^[ac]My dispersed ones,
Will ^(DP)bring My offerings.
¹¹On that day you will ^(DQ)feel no shame
Because of all your deeds
By which you have rebelled against Me;
For then I will remove from your midst
Your ^(DR)proud, arrogant ones,
And you will never again be haughty
On My ^(DS)holy mountain.

A Remnant of Israel

¹²But I will leave among you
A ^(DT)humble and lowly people,
And they will ^(DU)take refuge in the name of the Lord.
¹³The ^(DV)remnant of Israel will ^(DW)do no wrong
And ^(DX)tell no lies,
Nor will a deceitful tongue
Be found in their mouths;
For they will ^(DY)feed and lie down
With no one to frighten them.”

¹⁴Shout for joy, daughter of Zion!
^(DZ)Shout in triumph, Israel!
Rejoice and triumph with all your heart,
Daughter of Jerusalem!
¹⁵The Lord has taken away ^(EA)His judgments against you,
He has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is ^(EB)in your midst;
You will no longer ^(EC)fear disaster.
¹⁶^(ED)On that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
“^(EE)Do not be afraid, Zion;
^(EF)Do not let your hands fall limp.
¹⁷The Lord your God is ^(EG)in your midst,
A ^[ad]^(EH)victorious warrior.
He will ^(EI)rejoice over you with joy,
He will ^[ae]be quiet in His love,
He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
¹⁸I will gather those who are ^(EJ)worried about the appointed feasts—
They ^[af]came from you, Zion;
The disgrace of exile is a burden on ^[ag]them.
¹⁹Behold, I am going to deal at that time
With all your ^(EK)oppressors;
I will save ^(EL)those who limp
And gather the scattered,
And I will turn their ^(EM)shame into ^(EN)praise and fame
In all the earth.
²⁰At that time I will ^(EO)bring you in,
Even at the time when I gather you together;
Indeed, I will make you ^(EP)famous and praiseworthy
Among all the peoples of the earth,
When I ^(EQ)restore your fortunes before your eyes,”
Says the Lord.

Footnotes

Zephaniah 1:2 Lit ground
Zephaniah 1:3 Or stumbling blocks
Zephaniah 1:3 Lit ground
Zephaniah 1:5 Lit host; i.e., sun, stars, etc.
Zephaniah 1:5 Or their king; MT Malcam, prob. a variant spelling of Milcom, the Ammonite god
Zephaniah 1:7 Lit Hush
Zephaniah 1:7 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
Zephaniah 1:9 Or Lord
Zephaniah 1:10 I.e., a district of Jerusalem
Zephaniah 1:11 I.e., a district of Jerusalem
Zephaniah 1:11 Or merchant people will
Zephaniah 1:12 Lit thickening on their dregs
Zephaniah 1:14 Lit There
Zephaniah 2:1 Or longing
Zephaniah 2:2 Lit gives birth
Zephaniah 2:3 Or land
Zephaniah 2:3 Or justice
Zephaniah 2:5 I.e., a segment of the Philistines with roots in Crete
Zephaniah 2:11 Lit allow to dwindle
Zephaniah 2:14 Or All kinds of beasts in crowds; lit Every kind of beast of a nation
Zephaniah 2:14 Or owl; or jackdaw
Zephaniah 2:14 Lit her capitals
Zephaniah 2:14 Lit A voice
Zephaniah 2:15 Or whistle
Zephaniah 3:5 Lit is not missing
Zephaniah 3:5 Or sinner
Zephaniah 3:9 Lit change
Zephaniah 3:9 Lit with one shoulder
Zephaniah 3:10 Lit the daughter of My dispersed ones
Zephaniah 3:17 Lit A warrior who saves
Zephaniah 3:17 Or with some ancient versions, renew you in
Zephaniah 3:18 Lit were
Zephaniah 3:18 Lit her

Psalm 74

New American Standard Bible

An Appeal against the Devastation of the Land by the Enemy.

A ^[a]Maskil of Asaph.

74 God, why have You ^(A)rejected us forever?
Why does Your anger ^(B)smoke against the ^(C)sheep of Your ^[b]pasture?
²Remember Your congregation, which You ^(D)purchased of old,
Which You have ^(E)redeemed to be the ^(F)tribe of Your inheritance;
And this Mount ^(G)Zion, where You have dwelt.
³^[c]Step toward the ^[d]^(H)irreparable ruins;
The enemy ^(I)has damaged everything in the sanctuary.
⁴Your adversaries have ^(J)roared in the midst of Your meeting place;
They have set up their ^(K)own signs as ^(L)signs.
⁵It ^[e]seems like one bringing up
His ^(M)axe into a ^[f]forest of trees.
⁶And now they break down ^[g]all its ^(N)carved work
With axe and hammers.
⁷They have ^[h]^(O)burned Your sanctuary ^[i]to the ground;
They have ^(P)defiled the dwelling place of Your name.
⁸They ^(Q)said in their heart, “Let’s ^[j]completely ^[k]subdue them.”
They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land.
⁹We do not see our ^(R)signs;
There is ^(S)no longer any prophet,
Nor is there anyone among us who knows ^(T)how long.
¹⁰How long, God, will the enemy ^(U)taunt You?
Shall the enemy ^(V)treat Your name disrespectfully forever?
¹¹Why ^(W)do You withdraw Your hand, even Your right hand?
Extend it from Your chest and ^(X)destroy them!

¹²Yet God is ^(Y)my King from long ago,
Who performs acts of salvation in the midst of the earth.
¹³^[l]You ^(Z)divided the sea by Your strength;
^[m]You ^(AA)broke the heads of the ^(AB)sea monsters ^[n]in the waters.
¹⁴^[o]You crushed the heads of ^[p]^(AC)Leviathan;
You gave him as food for the ^[q]creatures ^(AD)of the wilderness.
¹⁵^[r]You ^(AE)broke open springs and torrents;
^[s]You ^(AF)dried up ever-flowing streams.
¹⁶Yours is the day, Yours also is the night;
^[t]You have ^(AG)prepared the ^[u]light and the sun.
¹⁷^[v]You have ^(AH)established all the boundaries of the earth;
^[w]You have ^[x]created ^(AI)summer and winter.

¹⁸Remember this, ^[y]Lord, that the enemy has ^(AJ)taunted You,
And a ^(AK)foolish people has treated Your name disrespectfully.
¹⁹Do not give the soul of Your ^(AL)turtledove to the wild animal;
^(AM)Do not forget the life of Your afflicted forever.
²⁰Consider the ^(AN)covenant;
For the ^(AO)dark places of the land are full of the places of violence.
²¹May the ^(AP)oppressed person not return dishonored;
May the ^(AQ)afflicted and the needy praise Your name.

²²Arise, God, and ^(AR)plead Your own cause;
Remember ^[z]how the ^(AS)foolish person taunts You all day long.
²³Do not forget the voice of Your ^(AT)adversaries,
The ^(AU)uproar of those who rise against You, which ascends continually.

Footnotes

Psalm 74 Title Possibly, Contemplative; or Didactic; or Skillful Psalm
Psalm 74:1 Or pasturing
Psalm 74:3 Lit Lift Your footsteps
Psalm 74:3 Lit ruins ruined for all time
Psalm 74:5 Lit is known as
Psalm 74:5 Lit thicket
Psalm 74:6 Lit altogether
Psalm 74:7 Lit set on fire
Psalm 74:7 Or To the ground they...
Psalm 74:8 Lit altogether
Psalm 74:8 Or oppress
Psalm 74:13 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:13 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:13 Lit on
Psalm 74:14 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:14 Or sea monster
Psalm 74:14 Lit people
Psalm 74:15 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:15 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:16 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:16 Or luminary
Psalm 74:17 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:17 Or You Yourself
Psalm 74:17 Or formed
Psalm 74:18 Or that the enemy has taunted the Lord
Psalm 74:22 Lit Your reproach from the foolish man

2 Corinthians 8

New American Standard Bible

Great Generosity

8 Now, brothers and sisters, we make known to you the grace of God which has been ^(A)given in the churches of ^(B)Macedonia, ²that in a ^[a]great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the ^(C)wealth of their liberality. ³For I testify that ^(D)according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave voluntarily, ⁴begging us with much urging for the ^(E)favor ^[b]of participation in the ^[c]^(F)support of the ^[d]saints, ⁵and this, not as we had ^[e]expected, but they first ^(G)gave themselves to the Lord and to us by ^(H)the will of God. ⁶So we ^(I)urged ^(J)Titus that as he had previously ^(K)made a beginning, so he would also complete in you ^(L)this gracious work as well.

⁷But just as you ^(M)excel ^(N)in everything, in faith, speaking, knowledge, and in all earnestness and in the ^[f]love we inspired in you, see that you also ^(O)excel in this gracious work. ⁸I ^(P)am not saying this as a command, but as proving, through the earnestness of others, the sincerity of your love as well. ⁹For you know ^(Q)the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ^(R)though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. ¹⁰I ^(S)give my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin ^(T)a year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it. ¹¹But now finish ^[g]doing it also, so that just as there was the ^(U)willingness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability. ¹²For if the willingness is present, it is acceptable ^(V)according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. ¹³For this is not for the relief of others and for your hardship, but by way of equality— ¹⁴at this present time your abundance will serve as assistance for ^(W)their need, so that their abundance also may ^[h]serve as assistance for ^(X)your need, so that there may be equality; ¹⁵as it is written: “^(Y)The one who had gathered much did not have too much, and the one who had gathered little did not have too little.”

¹⁶But ^(Z)thanks be to God who ^(AA)puts the same earnestness in your behalf in the heart of ^(AB)Titus. ¹⁷For he not only accepted our ^(AC)appeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord. ¹⁸We have sent along with him ^(AD)the brother whose fame in the things of the ^(AE)gospel has spread through ^(AF)all the churches; ¹⁹^(AG)and not only that, but he has also been ^(AH)appointed by the churches to travel with us in ^(AI)this gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our ^(AJ)readiness, ²⁰^[i]taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift; ²¹for we ^(AK)have regard for what is honorable, not only in ^(AL)the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of other people. ²²We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you. ²³As for ^(AM)Titus, he is my ^(AN)partner and fellow worker ^[j]among you; as for our ^(AO)brothers, they are ^[k]^(AP)messengers of the churches, ^(AQ)a glory to Christ. ²⁴Therefore, ^[l]openly before the churches, ^[m]show them the proof of your love and of our ^(AR)reason for boasting about you.