Zephaniah 2
1 Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O shameless nation;
Be you gathered and closely joined together, O unchastened nation;
2 Before the decree bring forth the day when one passeth as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD'S anger come upon you.
before you become as the flower that passes away, before the anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the wrath of the Lord come upon you.
3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye humble of the earth, that have executed His ordinance; seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger.
Seek you the Lord, all you meek of the earth; do judgment, and seek justice, and answer accordingly; that you may be hid in the day of the wrath of the Lord.
4 For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation; they shall drive out Ashdod at the noonday, and Ekron shall be rooted up.
For Gaza shall be utterly spoiled, and Ascalon shall be destroyed; and Azotus shall be cast forth at noon-day, and Accaron 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.
Woe to them that dwell on the border of the sea, neighbors of the Cretans! the word of the Lord is against you, O Chanaan, land of the Philistines, and I will destroy you out of [your] dwelling-place.
6 And the sea-coast shall be pastures, even meadows for shepherds, and folds for flocks.
And Crete shall be a pasture of flocks, and a fold of sheep.
7 And it shall be a portion for the remnant of the house of Judah, whereon they shall feed; in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening; for the LORD their God will remember them, and turn their captivity.
And the sea cost shall be for the remnant of the house of Juda; they shall pasture upon them in the houses of Ascalon; they shall rest in the evening because of the children of Juda; for the Lord their God has visited them, and he will turn away their captivity.
8 I have heard the taunt of Moab, and the revilings of the children of Ammon, wherewith they have taunted My people, and spoken boastfully concerning their border.
I have heard the revilings of Moab, and the insults of the children of Ammon, wherewith they have reviled my people, and magnified themselves against my coasts.
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-place of nettles, and saltpits, and a desolation, for ever; the residue of My people shall spoil them, and the remnant of My nation shall inherit them.
Therefore, [as] I live, says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Moab shall be as Sodoma, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrha; and Damascus [shall be] left as a heap of the threshing floor, and desolate for ever: and the remnant of my people shall plunder them, and the remnant of my nations shall inherit them.
10 This shall they have for their pride, because they have taunted and spoken boastfully against the people of the LORD of hosts.
This is their punishment in return for their haughtiness, because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the Lord Almighty.
11 The LORD will be terrible unto them; for He will famish all the gods of the earth; then shall all the isles of the nations worship Him, every one from its place.
The Lord shall appear against them, and shall utterly destroy all the gods of the nations of the earth; and they shall worship him every one from his place, [even] all the islands of the nations.
12 Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by My sword.
You Ethiopians also are the slain of 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 the wilderness.
And he shall stretch forth his hand against the north and destroy the Assyrian, and make Nineve a dry wilderness, [even] as a desert.
14 And all beasts of every kind shall lie down in the midst of her in herds; both the pelican and the bittern shall lodge in the capitals thereof; voices shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the posts; for the cedar-work thereof shall be uncovered.
And flocks, and all the wild beasts of the land, and chameleons shall feed in the midst thereof: and hedgehogs shall lodge in the ceilings thereof; and wild beasts shall cry in the breaches thereof, and ravens in her porches, whereas her loftiness was [as] as cedar.
15 This is the joyous city that dwelt without care, that said in her heart: 'I am, and there is none else 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.
