Chronological

1 ¶ The word of the LORD which went unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.

² I will utterly destroy all things from off the face of the earth, saith the LORD.

³ I will destroy the men and the beasts; I will destroy the fowls of the heaven and the fishes of the sea, and the wicked shall stumble; and I will cut off men from upon the face of the earth, saith the LORD.

⁴ And I will extend my hand over Judah and over all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place and the name of their religious persons with their priests

⁵ and those that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops and those that worship swearing by the LORD and by their king

⁶ and those that have turned back from following the LORD and those that did not seek the LORD, nor enquired about him.

⁷ ¶ Be silent before the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD has prepared a sacrifice, he has bid his guests.

⁸ And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD’s sacrifice that I will make a visitation upon the princes and upon the king’s sons and upon all such as are clothed with strange apparel.

⁹ In the same day I will also make a visitation upon all those that leap over the door, who fill their masters’ houses with robbery and deceit.

¹⁰ And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate and a howling from the school and a great destruction from the hills.

¹¹ Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all those that brought ye silver are cut off.

¹² And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with lamps and make a visitation upon the men that are settled on their lees, that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.

¹³ Therefore their goods shall become a spoil, and their houses a desolation: they shall build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.

¹⁴ ¶ The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hastens greatly, the bitter voice of the day of the LORD; the mighty man shall cry there.

¹⁵ That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

¹⁶ A day of the shofar and alarm upon the strong cities, and upon the high towers.

¹⁷ And I will bring distress upon men that they shall walk like blind men because they have sinned against the LORD, and their blood shall be poured out as dust and their flesh as the dung.

¹⁸ Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD’s wrath, but the whole earth shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all those that dwell in the earth.

2 ¶ Search yourselves and one another, O unfriendly people;

² before the decree is executed, before the day passes as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD comes upon you, before the day of the LORD’s anger comes upon you.

³ Seek ye the LORD, all ye humble of the earth, who have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek humility: it may be ye shall be kept in the day of the LORD’s anger.

⁴ ¶ For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall spoil Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.

⁵ Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea coast, the people of the Cherethites! the word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the Palestinians, I will cause thee to be destroyed until there shall be no inhabitant left.

⁶ And the sea coast shall be for dwellings and cottages for pastors, and sheepfolds.

⁷ And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon they shall sleep for the night; for the LORD their God shall visit them and return their captives.

⁸ ¶ I have heard the reproaches of Moab, and the revilings of the sons of Ammon, by which they have dishonoured my people and magnified themselves over their border.

⁹ Therefore as I live, said the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom and the sons of Ammon as Gomorrah, even a field of nettles and saltpits and a perpetual desolation; the remnant of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my Gentiles shall inherit them.

¹⁰ This shall come upon them for their pride because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of the LORD of the hosts.

¹¹ The LORD shall be terrible against them for he will weaken all the gods of the earth; and each one from his place shall worship him, even all the isles of the Gentiles.

¹² ¶ Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword.

¹³ And he will stretch out his hand over the north wind and destroy Assyria and will make Nineveh a desolation and dry like a wilderness.

¹⁴ And flocks shall lie down in the midst of her, all the beasts of the Gentiles; both the cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in her thresholds; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the gates: for her cedar work shall be uncovered.

¹⁵ This is the rejoicing city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none beside me: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! anyone that passes by her shall hiss and wag his hand.

3 ¶ Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!

² She did not obey the voice; she did not receive correction; she did not trust in the LORD; she did not draw near to her God.

³ Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they do not leave a bone for tomorrow.

⁴ Her prophets are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary; they have falsified the law.

⁵ The just LORD is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: each morning he shall bring his judgment to light; he never fails; but the unjust know no shame.

⁶ I have caused the Gentiles to be cut off: their castles are desolate; I made their streets waste until no one passes by; their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man left, there is no inhabitant.

⁷ Saying, Surely now thou wilt fear me; thou wilt receive chastisement; so thy dwelling shall not be thrown down, all of which I visited upon her; but they rose early, and corrupted all their doings.

⁸ ¶ Therefore wait for me, said the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey; for my judgment is to gather the Gentiles, that I may assemble the kingdoms to pour upon them my indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.

⁹ For then I will restore to the peoples the pure language that they may all call upon the name of the LORD to serve him with one consent.

¹⁰ From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring me an offering.

¹¹ In that day thou shalt not be ashamed for any of thy doings, in which thou hast rebelled against me, for then I will take away out of the midst of thee those that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no longer be haughty because of the mountain of my holiness.

¹² I will also leave in the midst of thee a poor and humble people, and they shall wait in the name of the LORD.

¹³ The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they shall be fed and lie down, and no one shall make them afraid.

¹⁴ ¶ Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout with joy O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all thy heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.

¹⁵ The LORD has taken away thy judgments; he has cast out thine enemy; the LORD is king of Israel in the midst of thee; thou shalt not see evil any more.

¹⁶ In that time it shall be said to Jerusalem, Do not fear; and to Zion, Do not let thine hands be slack.

¹⁷ The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save; he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love; he will joy over thee with singing.

¹⁸ I will gather those that are weary because of the long time, who are thine, unto whom her confusion was a burden.

¹⁹ Behold, at that time I will undo all that afflict thee; and I will save her that is lame and gather her that was driven out; and I will make them a praise and of good reputation in every land where they have been put to shame.

²⁰ At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you; for I will give you as fame and as praise among all peoples of the earth, when I shall return your captives before your eyes, saith the LORD.