Add parallel Print Page Options

13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north,
    and he will destroy Assyria
and will make Nineveh a desolation,
    a dry wasteland like the desert.
14 Herds shall lie down in her midst,
    every wild animal of a nation;
even the desert owl and the screech owl
    shall lodge on her capitals.
A voice shall hoot in the window;
    rubble[a] on the threshold;
for the cedar is laid bare.
15 This is the city of rejoicing
    that lived securely;
the one saying in her heart,
    I am, and there is none besides me.”[b]
How she has become a desolation,
    a lair for wild animals!
Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Zephaniah 2:14 The traditional Hebrew text has “waste,” while LXX has “a raven,” reflecting a different word with one consonant changed
  2. Zephaniah 2:15 Literally “I am and none me”

13 And He will (A)stretch out His hand against the north
And eliminate (B)Assyria,
And He will make (C)Nineveh a desolation,
Parched like the wilderness.
14 Flocks will lie down in her midst,
[a]All animals that range in herds;
Both the [b](D)pelican and the hedgehog
Will spend their nights in [c]the tops of her pillars;
[d]Birds will sing in the window,
Devastation will be on the threshold;
For He has uncovered the cedar work.
15 This is the (E)presumptuous city
That (F)dwells securely,
Who says in her heart,
(G)I am, and there is no one besides me.”
How she has become a (H)desolation,
A resting place for animals!
(I)Everyone who passes by her will [e]hiss
And wave his hand in contempt.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Zephaniah 2:14 Or All kinds of beasts in crowds; lit Every kind of beast of a nation
  2. Zephaniah 2:14 Or owl; or jackdaw
  3. Zephaniah 2:14 Lit her capitals
  4. Zephaniah 2:14 Lit A voice
  5. Zephaniah 2:15 Or whistle