Zephaniah 3
Good News Translation
Jerusalem's Sin and Redemption
3 Jerusalem is doomed, that corrupt, rebellious city that oppresses its own people. 2 It has not listened to the Lord or accepted his discipline. It has not put its trust in the Lord or asked for his help. 3 Its officials are like roaring lions; its judges are like hungry wolves, too greedy to leave a bone until morning. 4 The prophets are irresponsible and treacherous; the priests defile what is sacred, and twist the law of God to their own advantage. 5 But the Lord is still in the city; he does what is right and never what is wrong. Every morning without fail, he brings justice to his people. And yet the unrighteous people there keep on doing wrong and are not ashamed.
6 The Lord says, “I have wiped out whole nations; I have destroyed their cities and left their walls and towers in ruins. The cities are deserted; the streets are empty—no one is left. 7 I thought that then my people would have reverence for me and accept my discipline, that they would never forget[a] the lesson I taught them. But soon they were behaving as badly as ever.
8 “Just wait,” the Lord says. “Wait for the day when I rise to accuse the nations. I have made up my mind to gather nations and kingdoms in order to let them feel the force of my anger. The whole earth will be destroyed by the fire of my fury.
9 “Then I will change the people of the nations, and they will pray to me alone and not to other gods. They will all obey me. 10 Even from distant Ethiopia[b] my scattered people will bring offerings to me. 11 At that time you, my people, will no longer need to be ashamed that you rebelled against me. I will remove everyone who is proud and arrogant, and you will never again rebel against me on my sacred hill.[c] 12 I will leave there a humble and lowly people, who will come to me for help. 13 (A)The people of Israel who survive will do no wrong to anyone, tell no lies, nor try to deceive. They will be prosperous and secure, afraid of no one.”
A Song of Joy
14 Sing and shout for joy, people of Israel!
Rejoice with all your heart, Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has stopped your punishment;
he has removed all your enemies.
The Lord, the king of Israel, is with you;
there is no reason now to be afraid.
16 The time is coming when they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not be afraid, city of Zion!
Do not let your hands hang limp!
17 The Lord your God is with you;
his power gives you victory.
The Lord will take delight in you,
and in his love he will give you new life.[d]
He will sing and be joyful over you,
18 as joyful as people at a festival.”
The Lord says,
“I have ended the threat of doom
and taken away your disgrace.[e]
19 The time is coming!
I will punish your oppressors;
I will rescue all the lame
and bring the exiles home.
I will turn their shame to honor,
and all the world will praise them.
20 The time is coming!
I will bring your scattered people home;
I will make you famous throughout the world
and make you prosperous once again.”
The Lord has spoken.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 3:7 Some ancient translations they would never forget; Hebrew their dwelling would not be cut off.
- Zephaniah 3:10 Hebrew Cush: Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
- Zephaniah 3:11 Mount Zion (see Zion in Word List).
- Zephaniah 3:17 Some ancient translations give you new life; Hebrew be silent.
- Zephaniah 3:18 Verse 18 in Hebrew is unclear.
Zephaniah 3
New King James Version
The Wickedness of Jerusalem
3 Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted,
To the oppressing city!
2 She has not obeyed His voice,
She has not received correction;
She has not trusted in the Lord,
She has not drawn near to her God.
3 (A)Her princes in her midst are roaring lions;
Her judges are (B)evening wolves
That leave not a bone till morning.
4 Her (C)prophets are insolent, treacherous people;
Her priests have [a]polluted the sanctuary,
They have done (D)violence to the law.
5 The Lord is righteous in her midst,
He will do no unrighteousness.
[b]Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He never fails,
But (E)the unjust knows no shame.
6 “I have cut off nations,
Their fortresses are devastated;
I have made their streets desolate,
With none passing by.
Their cities are destroyed;
There is no one, no inhabitant.
7 (F)I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me,
You will receive instruction’—
So that her dwelling would not be cut off,
Despite everything for which I punished her.
But [c]they rose early and (G)corrupted all their deeds.
A Faithful Remnant(H)
8 “Therefore (I)wait for Me,” says the Lord,
“Until the day I rise up [d]for plunder;
My determination is to (J)gather the nations
To My assembly of kingdoms,
To pour on them My indignation,
All My fierce anger;
All the earth (K)shall be devoured
With the fire of My jealousy.
9 “For then I will restore to the peoples (L)a pure [e]language,
That they all may call on the name of the Lord,
To serve Him with one accord.
10 (M)From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia
My worshipers,
The daughter of My dispersed ones,
Shall bring My offering.
11 In that day you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds
In which you transgress against Me;
For then I will take away from your midst
Those who (N)rejoice in your pride,
And you shall no longer be haughty
In My holy mountain.
12 I will leave in your midst
(O)A meek and humble people,
And they shall trust in the name of the Lord.
13 (P)The remnant of Israel (Q)shall do no unrighteousness
(R)And speak no lies,
Nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth;
For (S)they shall feed their flocks and lie down,
And no one shall make them afraid.”
Joy in God’s Faithfulness
14 (T)Sing, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 The Lord has taken away your judgments,
He has cast out your enemy.
(U)The King of Israel, the Lord, (V)is in your midst;
You shall [f]see disaster no more.
16 In that day (W)it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not fear;
Zion, (X)let not your hands be weak.
17 The Lord your God (Y)in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
(Z)He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.”
18 “I will gather those who (AA)sorrow over the appointed assembly,
Who are among you,
To whom its reproach is a burden.
19 Behold, at that time
I will deal with all who afflict you;
I will save the (AB)lame,
And gather those who were driven out;
I will appoint them for praise and fame
In every land where they were put to shame.
20 At that time (AC)I will bring you back,
Even at the time I gather you;
For I will give you [g]fame and praise
Among all the peoples of the earth,
When I return your captives before your eyes,”
Says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 3:4 Or profaned
- Zephaniah 3:5 Lit. Morning by morning
- Zephaniah 3:7 They were eager
- Zephaniah 3:8 LXX, Syr. for witness; Tg. for the day of My revelation for judgment; Vg. for the day of My resurrection that is to come
- Zephaniah 3:9 Lit. lip
- Zephaniah 3:15 So with Heb. mss., LXX, Bg.; MT, Vg. fear
- Zephaniah 3:20 Lit. a name
Zephaniah 3
English Standard Version
Judgment on Jerusalem and the Nations
3 Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,
(A)the oppressing city!
2 She listens to no voice;
(B)she accepts no correction.
(C)She does not trust in the Lord;
she does not draw near to her God.
3 (D)Her officials within her
are roaring lions;
her judges are (E)evening wolves
that leave nothing till the morning.
4 (F)Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men;
(G)her priests (H)profane what is holy;
they do violence to the law.
5 The Lord within her (I)is righteous;
he does no injustice;
every morning he shows forth his justice;
each dawn he does not fail;
but (J)the unjust knows no shame.
6 (K)“I have cut off nations;
their battlements are in ruins;
I have laid waste their streets
(L)so that no one walks in them;
their cities have been made desolate,
without a man, without an inhabitant.
7 (M)I said, ‘Surely you will fear me;
(N)you will accept correction.
Then your[a] dwelling would not be cut off
according to all that I have appointed against you.’[b]
But (O)all the more they were eager
to make all their deeds corrupt.
8 “Therefore (P)wait for me,” declares the Lord,
“for the day when I rise up to seize the prey.
For my decision is (Q)to gather nations,
to assemble kingdoms,
to pour out upon them my indignation,
all my burning anger;
for in the fire of my jealousy
(R)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 (S)a pure speech,
that all of them may call upon the name of the Lord
and serve him with one accord.
10 (T)From beyond the rivers (U)of Cush
my worshipers, the daughter of my dispersed ones,
shall bring my offering.
11 (V)“On that day (W)you shall not be put to shame
because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me;
for then (X)I will remove from your midst
your proudly exultant ones,
and (Y)you shall no longer be haughty
in my holy mountain.
12 But I will leave in your midst
a people (Z)humble and lowly.
(AA)They shall seek refuge in the name of the Lord,
13 (AB)those who are left in Israel;
they (AC)shall do no injustice
and speak no lies,
(AD)nor shall there be found in their mouth
a deceitful tongue.
(AE)For they shall graze and lie down,
and none shall make them afraid.”
Israel's Joy and Restoration
14 (AF)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.
(AG)The King of Israel, (AH)the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
16 (AI)On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Fear not, O Zion;
(AJ)let not your hands grow weak.
17 (AK)The Lord your God is in your midst,
(AL)a mighty one who will save;
(AM)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 (AN)for the festival,
so that you will no longer suffer reproach.[c]
19 Behold, at that time (AO)I will deal
with all your oppressors.
And (AP)I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change (AQ)their shame into (AR)praise
and renown in all the earth.
20 (AS)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,
(AT)when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes,” says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 3:7 Hebrew her
- Zephaniah 3:7 Hebrew her
- Zephaniah 3:18 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
