Zephaniah 2

1 Come together, make everyone come together, O nation without shame;

Bend yourselves, indeed, bend, O nation not desired,

2 Before the Lord sends you violently away in flight like the waste from the grain; before the burning wrath of the Lord comes on you, before the day of the Lord's wrath comes on you.

Before the bringing forth of a statute, The day has passed on as chaff, While the heat of the anger of YHWH has not yet come in on you, While [the] Day of the anger of YHWH has not yet come in on you,

3 Make search for the Lord, all you quiet ones of the earth, who have done what is right in his eyes; make search for righteousness and a quiet heart: it may be that you will be safely covered in the day of the Lord's wrath.

Seek YHWH, all you humble of the land, Who have done His judgment, Seek righteousness, seek humility, It may be you are hidden in the Day of the anger of YHWH.

4 For Gaza will be given up and Ashkelon will become waste: they will send Ashdod out in the middle of the day, and Ekron will be uprooted.

For Gaza is forsaken, And Ashkelon [is] for a desolation, Ashdod! At noon they cast her forth, And Ekron is rooted up.

5 Sorrow to the people living by the sea, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; I will send destruction on you till there is no one living in you.

Behold! O inhabitants of the seacoast, Nation of the Cherethites, A word of YHWH [is] against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines, “And I have destroyed you without an inhabitant.”

6 And the land by the sea will be grass-land, with houses for keepers of sheep and walled places for flocks.

And the seacoast has been habitations, Cottages [for] shepherds, and folds [for] a flock.

7 The land by the sea will be for the rest of the children of Judah; by the sea they will give their flocks food: in the houses of Ashkelon they will take their rest in the evening; for the Lord their God will take them in hand and their fate will be changed.

And the coast has been for the remnant of the house of Judah, By them they have pleasure, In houses of Ashkelon they lie down at evening, For their God YHWH inspects them, And He has turned back [to] their captivity.

8 My ears have been open to the bitter words of Moab and the words of shame of the children of Ammon, which they have said against my people, lifting themselves up against the limit of their land.

“I have heard the reproach of Moab, And the revilings of the sons of Ammon, With which they reproached My people, And magnify [themselves] against their border.

9 For this cause, by my life, says the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, truly Moab will become like Sodom and the children of Ammon like Gomorrah, given up to waste plants and salt pools and unpeopled for ever: the rest of my people will take their property, the overflow of my nation will take their heritage.

Therefore, [as] I live,” A declaration of YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel, “Surely Moab is as Sodom, And the sons of Ammon as Gomorrah, An overrunning of nettles and salt-pits, And a desolation for all time. A remnant of My people seizes them, And a remnant of My nation inherits them.”

10 This will be their fate because of their pride, because they have said evil, lifting themselves up against the people of the Lord of armies.

This [is] to them for their arrogancy, Because they have reproached, And they magnify [themselves] against the people of YHWH of Hosts.

11 The Lord will let himself be seen by them: for he will make all the gods of the earth feeble; and men will go down before him in worship, everyone from his place, even all the sea-lands of the nations.

Fearful [is] YHWH against them, For He made all gods of the land bare, And all islanders of the nations bow themselves to Him, Each from his place.

12 And you Ethiopians will be put to death by my sword.

“Also you, O Cushim, they [are] pierced of My sword.”

13 And his hand will be stretched out against the north, for the destruction of Assyria; and he will make Nineveh unpeopled and dry like the waste land.

And He stretches His hand against the north, And destroys Asshur, And He sets Nineveh for a desolation, A dry land like a wilderness.

14 And herds will take their rest in the middle of her, all the beasts of the valley: the pelican and the porcupine will make their living-places on the tops of its pillars; the owl will be crying in the window; the raven will be seen on the doorstep.

And droves have crouched in her midst, Every beast of the nation, Both pelican and hedgehog lodge in her knobs, A voice sings at the window, “Destruction [is] at the threshold, For the cedar-work is exposed.”

15 This is the town which was full of joy, living without fear of danger, saying in her heart, I am, and there is no other: how has she been made waste, a place for beasts to take their rest in! everyone who goes by her will make hisses, waving his hand.

This [is] the exulting city that is dwelling confidently, That is saying in her heart, “I [am], and there is none beside me,” How she has been for a desolation, A crouching-place for beasts, Everyone passing by her hisses, He shakes his hand!