Zephaniah 3
1 Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled!
What disaster is coming to corrupted, rebellious Jerusalem, you who oppress people!
2 She heeded no voice; she accepted no correction. She does not trust in the LORD; she has not drawn near to her God.
You don't listen to anybody, you don't accept correction, you don't trust in the Lord, you don't ask for God's help.
3 Her princes are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves, leaving nothing for the morning.
Your leaders are as greedy as roaring lions; your judges are ravenous wolves that leave nothing behind by morning.
4 Her prophets are reckless, faithless men. Her priests profane the sanctuary; they do violence to the law.
Your prophets are arrogant, deceitful men who defile what is sacred and who openly break the law.
5 The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.
But the Lord who does right is still among you, he does no wrong. Every morning he gives his judgment, every day without fail. But those who act unjustly have no shame.
6 “I have cut off the nations; their corner towers are destroyed. I have made their streets deserted with no one to pass through. Their cities are laid waste, with no man, no inhabitant.
I have destroyed nations. Their fortresses are deserted; their streets are empty; their cities are destroyed—there are no survivors, not one.
7 I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me and accept correction.’ Then her dwelling place would not be cut off despite all for which I punished her. But they rose early to corrupt all their deeds.
I told myself, “Surely they will respect me now and accept my correction. Then their homes would not be destroyed to teach them a lesson.” But instead you're just as eager to go on doing evil.
8 Therefore wait for Me,” declares the LORD, “until the day I rise to testify. For My decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them My indignation— all My burning anger. For all the earth will be consumed by the fire of My jealousy.
You just wait, declares the Lord. The day is coming when I will rise to give evidence. For I have decided to gather together all the nations and kingdoms and to pour out on them my anger, my fury and my rage. The whole earth will be burned up by the fire of my jealous anger.
9 For then I will restore pure lips to the peoples, that all may call upon the name of the LORD and serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
For then I will give the nations pure speech so they can all pray and worship the Lord together.
10 From beyond the rivers of Cush My worshipers, My scattered people, will bring Me an offering.
From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my scattered people, my worshipers, will come to bring their offerings to me.
11 On that day you will not be put to shame for any of the deeds by which you have transgressed against Me. For then I will remove from among you those who rejoice in their pride, and you will never again be haughty on My holy mountain.
On that day you won't be ashamed because of what you did in rebelling against me, for I will remove from among you those who are proud and boastful. Never again will you be conceited on my holy mountain.
12 But I will leave within you a meek and humble people, and they will trust in the name of the LORD.
I will leave among you those who are meek and humble, those who trust in the name of the Lord.
13 The remnant of Israel will no longer do wrong or speak lies, nor will a deceitful tongue be found in their mouths. But they will feed and lie down, with no one to make them tremble.”
The people of Israel who remain will not act wickedly nor will they tell lies. They will not deceive one another. They will be able to eat in peace and sleep in safety for there will be nothing to frighten them.
14 Sing for joy, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem!
Sing out, Jerusalem! Shout aloud, Israel! Jerusalem, be happy and celebrate with all your heart!
15 The LORD has taken away your punishment; He has turned back your enemy. Israel’s King, the LORD, is among you; no longer will you fear any harm.
For the Lord has turned aside from punishing you, and he has turned back your enemies. The Lord, the king of Israel, is with you, and you will never again have to fear disaster.
16 On that day they will say to Jerusalem: “Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands fall limp.
On that day the message to the people of Jerusalem will be, “Don't be afraid; don't be discouraged!”
17 The LORD your God is among you; He is mighty to save. He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you with His love; He will rejoice over you with singing.”
The Lord your God is among you as a mighty warrior who saves. He will be so happy with you. He will renew his love for you. He will celebrate over you with loud singing.
18 “I will gather those among you who grieve over the appointed feasts, so that you will no longer suffer reproach.
I will gather those of you who mourn for the religious festivals—you will no longer have to bear the disgrace.
19 Behold, at that time, I will deal with all who afflict you. I will save the lame and gather the scattered; and I will appoint praise and fame for the disgraced throughout the earth.
Look at what I am going to do! At that time I am going to deal with all those who have oppressed you. I will save those who are helpless and bring back those who were scattered, and I will turn their shame into praise, and all the world will respect them.
20 At that time I will bring you in; yes, at that time I will gather you. For I will give you fame and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your captives before your very eyes,”
At that time I will bring you home, gathering you together. I will give you a good reputation, and you will be praised by all the peoples of the earth when I restore your status before your very eyes, says the Lord.
