Zephaniah 3
World English Bible
3 Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, the oppressing city! 2 She didn’t obey the voice. She didn’t receive correction. She didn’t trust in Yahweh. She didn’t draw near to her God.
3 Her princes within her are roaring lions. Her judges are evening wolves. They leave nothing until the next day. 4 Her prophets are arrogant and treacherous people. Her priests have profaned the sanctuary. They have done violence to the law. 5 Yahweh, within her, is righteous. He will do no wrong. Every morning he brings his justice to light. He doesn’t fail, but the unjust know no shame.
6 I have cut off nations. Their battlements are desolate. I have made their streets waste, so that no one passes by. Their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant. 7 I said, “Just fear me. Receive correction,” so that her dwelling won’t be cut off, according to all that I have appointed concerning her. But they rose early and corrupted all their doings.
8 “Therefore wait for me”, says Yahweh, “until the day that I rise up to the prey, for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms to pour on them my indignation, even all my fierce anger, for all the earth will be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.
9 For then I will purify the lips of the peoples, that they may all call on Yahweh’s name, to serve him shoulder to shoulder. 10 From beyond the rivers of Cush, my worshipers, even the daughter of my dispersed people, will bring my offering. 11 In that day you will not be disappointed for all your doings in which you have transgressed against me; for then I will take away out from among you your proudly exulting ones, and you will no more be arrogant in my holy mountain. 12 But I will leave among you an afflicted and poor people, and they will take refuge in Yahweh’s name. 13 The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity nor speak lies, neither will a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they will feed and lie down, and no one will make them afraid.”
14 Sing, daughter of Zion! Shout, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem. 15 Yahweh has taken away your judgments. He has thrown out your enemy. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is among you. You will not be afraid of evil any more. 16 In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem, “Don’t be afraid, Zion. Don’t let your hands be weak.” 17 Yahweh, your God, is among you, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with joy. He will calm you in his love. He will rejoice over you with singing. 18 I will remove those who grieve about the appointed feasts from you. They are a burden and a reproach to you. 19 Behold,[a] at that time I will deal with all those who afflict you; and I will save those who are lame and gather those who were driven away. I will give them praise and honor, whose shame has been in all the earth. 20 At that time I will bring you in, and at that time I will gather you; for I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says Yahweh.
Footnotes
- 3:19 “Behold”, from “הִנֵּה”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection.
Zephaniah 3
Easy-to-Read Version
The Future of Jerusalem
3 Jerusalem, your people fought against God. They hurt other people, and you have been stained with sin. 2 They didn’t listen to me or accept my teachings. Jerusalem didn’t trust the Lord. Jerusalem didn’t go to her God. 3 Jerusalem’s leaders are like roaring lions. Her judges are like hungry wolves that come in the evening to attack the sheep—and in the morning nothing is left. 4 Her prophets are always making secret plans to get more and more. Her priests have treated holy things as if they were not holy. They have done bad things to God’s teachings. 5 But the Lord is still in that city, and he continues to be good. He does not do anything wrong. He continues to help his people. Morning after morning he makes good decisions for them. Not a day passes without his justice. He never gives a decision that is crooked or is something to be ashamed of.
6 The Lord says, “I have destroyed whole nations and their defense towers. I destroyed their streets and now no one goes there anymore. Their cities are empty—no one lives there anymore. 7 I tell you this so that you will learn a lesson. I want you to fear and respect me. If you do this, your home will not be destroyed, and I will not have to punish you the way I planned.” But those evil people only wanted to do more of the same evil things they had already done!
8 The Lord said, “So just wait! Wait for me to stand and judge you. I have the right to bring people from many nations and use them to punish you. I will use them to show my anger against you. I will use them to show how upset I am—and the whole country will be destroyed. 9 Then I will change people from other nations so that they can speak the language clearly and call out the name of the Lord. They will all worship me together, shoulder to shoulder, as one people. 10 People will come all the way from the other side of the river in Ethiopia. My scattered people will come to me. My worshipers will come and bring their gifts to me.
11 “Then, Jerusalem, you will no longer be ashamed of the wrong things your people do against me. That is because I will remove all the bad people from Jerusalem. I will take away all the proud people. There will not be any of them on my holy mountain.[a] 12 I will let only meek and humble people stay in my city, and they will trust the Lord’s name. 13 The survivors of Israel will not do bad things or tell lies. They will not try to trick people with lies. They will be like sheep that eat and lie down in peace—and no one will bother them.”
A Happy Song
14 Jerusalem, sing and be happy!
Israel, shout for joy!
Jerusalem, be happy and have fun!
15 The Lord stopped your punishment.
He destroyed your enemies’ strong towers.
King of Israel, the Lord is with you.
You don’t need to worry about anything bad happening.
16 At that time Jerusalem will be told,
“Be strong, don’t be afraid!
17 The Lord your God is with you.
He is like a powerful soldier.
He will save you.
He will show how much he loves you
and how happy he is with you.
He will laugh and be happy about you,
18 like people at a party.
I will take away your shame.
I will make them stop hurting you.[b]
19 At that time I will punish those who hurt you.
I will save my hurt people
and bring back those who were forced to leave.
I will give them praise and honor everywhere,
even in places where they suffered shame.
20 At that time I will lead you back home.
I will bring your people back together.
I will cause people everywhere to honor and praise you.
You will see me bring back all the blessings you once had.”
This is what the Lord said.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 3:11 holy mountain Mount Zion, one of the mountains Jerusalem was built on.
- Zephaniah 3:18 The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
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