Zephaniah
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[1]
The word of the LORD which came 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 consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.
[3]
I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven,
and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked;
and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.
[4]
I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the
inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from
this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;
[5]
And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them
that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by
Malcham;
[6] And them that are turned back from the LORD;
and those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired for him.
[7]
Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the
LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid
his guests.
[8] And it shall come to pass in the day of the
LORD's sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's
children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.
[9]
In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the
threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence 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 an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the
hills.
[11] Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the
merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut
off.
[12] And it shall come to pass at that time, that I
will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish 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 booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also
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 hasteth greatly, even the voice of the
day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.
[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 trumpet and
alarm against the fenced cities, and against 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 land shall be devoured by
the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of
all them that dwell in the land.
[1]
Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not
desired;
[2] Before the decree bring forth, before the day
pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you,
before the day of the LORD's anger come upon you.
[3] Seek
ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his
judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be
hid in the day of the LORD's anger.
[4] For Gaza shall be
forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out Ashdod at
the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up.
[5] Woe unto
the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! the
word of the LORD is against you; O Canaan, the land of the
Philistines, I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no
inhabitant.
[6] And the sea coast shall be dwellings and
cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.
[7] And the
coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed
thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the
evening: for the LORD their God shall visit them, and turn away their
captivity.
[8] I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the
revilings of the children of Ammon, whereby they have reproached my
people, and magnified themselves against their border.
[9]
Therefore as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah,
even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual
desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the
remnant of my people shall possess them.
[10] This shall
they have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified
themselves against the people of the LORD of hosts.
[11]
The LORD will be terrible unto them: for he will famish all the gods
of the earth; and men shall worship him, every one from his place,
even all the isles of the heathen.
[12] Ye Ethiopians also,
ye shall be slain by my sword.
[13] And he will stretch out
his hand against the north, 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
nations: both the cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in the upper
lintels of it; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation
shall be in the thresholds: for he shall uncover the cedar work.
[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! every one that passeth
by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.
[1]
Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city!
[2]
She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted
not in the LORD; she drew not near to her God.
[3] Her
princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves;
they gnaw not the bones till the morrow.
[4] Her prophets
are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the
sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.
[5] The just
LORD is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning
doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not; but the unjust
knoweth no shame.
[6] I have cut off the nations: their
towers are desolate; I made their streets waste, that none passeth
by: their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there
is none inhabitant.
[7] I said, Surely thou wilt fear me,
thou wilt receive instruction; so their dwelling should not be cut
off, howsoever I punished them: but they rose early, and corrupted
all their doings.
[8] Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the
LORD, 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
upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the
earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.
[9]
For then will I turn to the people a 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 mine offering.
[11] In that
day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast
transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst
of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be
haughty because of my holy mountain.
[12] I will also leave
in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall
trust 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 feed and lie down, and
none shall make them afraid.
[14] Sing, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with all the heart, O daughter
of Jerusalem.
[15] The LORD hath taken away thy judgments,
he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the LORD, is
in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more.
[16]
In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: and to
Zion, Let not 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 them that are sorrowful for the
solemn assembly, who are of thee, to whom the reproach of it was a
burden.
[19] Behold, at that time I will undo all that
afflict thee: and I will save her that halteth, and gather her that
was driven out; and I will get them praise and fame 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 make
you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn
back your captivity before your eyes, saith the LORD.