Zephaniah 3
1 Woe [to] the rebelling and defiling, The oppressing city!
Woe to her that is rebellious and polluted, to the oppressing city!
2 She has not listened to the voice, She has not accepted instruction, In YHWH she has not trusted, She has not drawn near to her God.
She hearkened not to any voice; she accepted no correction; in the Lord she did not trust; to her God she drew not near.
3 Her heads in her midst [are] roaring lions, Her judges [are] wolves [as in] evening, They have not gnawn the bone in the morning.
Her princes in her midst are roaring lions: her judges are evening wolves, they leave not a bone for the morning.
4 Her prophets unstable—men of treachery, Her priests have defiled the sanctuary, They have violated the Law.
Her prophets are thoughtless men of treachery: her priests have profaned the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.
5 YHWH [is] righteous in her midst, He does not do perverseness, Morning by morning His judgment He gives to the light, It has not been lacking, And the perverse do not know shame.
The just Lord is in her midst, he will not do wrong; morning after morning doth he bring his justice to the light [of day], it never faileth; but the unjust knoweth no shame.
6 “I have cut off nations, Desolated have been their chief ones, I have laid waste their out-places without any passing by, Destroyed have been their cities, Without man, without inhabitant.
I have cut off nations; destroyed are their battlements; I have laid in ruins their streets, so that none passeth through; their cities are wasted, without a man, without an inhabitant.
7 I have said: Only, you fear Me, You accept instruction, And her habitation is not cut off, All that I have appointed for her, But they have risen early, They have corrupted all their doings.
I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt accept correction; so that her dwelling should not be cut off, all that I had decreed to bring over her; but they rose up early, they acted corruptly in all their doings.
8 Therefore, wait for Me,” A declaration of YHWH, “For the day of My rising for prey, For My judgment [is] to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation, All the heat of My anger, For by the fire of My jealousy all the earth is consumed.
Therefore wait but for me, saith the Lord, for the day that I rise up to the prey; for my judgment [cometh] to gather the nations, for me to assemble the kingdoms, to pour over them my indignation, all the fierceness of my anger; for through the fire of my jealousy shall all the earth be devoured.
9 For then I turn a pure lip to peoples, To call all of them by the Name of YHWH, To serve Him [with] one shoulder.
Yea then will I change unto the people a pure language, that they may all call on the name of the Lord, to serve him with one accord.
10 From beyond the rivers of Cush, My supplicants, The daughter of My scattered ones, Bring My present.
From beyond the rivers of Cush shall they bring my suppliants, even the assembly of my dispersed, as an offering unto me.
11 In that day you are not ashamed because of any of your actions, With which you have transgressed against Me, For then I turn aside from your midst The exulting ones of your excellence, And you are to be haughty no longer, In My holy mountain.
On that day shalt thou not be ashamed because of all thy doings, whereby thou hast transgressed against me; for then will I remove out of the midst of thee those that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt never more be haughty again on my holy mount.
12 And I have left in your midst a people humble and poor, And they have trusted in the Name of YHWH.
And I will leave remaining in the midst of thee a humble and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord.
13 The remnant of Israel does no perversity, nor speaks lies, Nor is a deceitful tongue found in their mouth, For they have delight, and have lain down, And there is none troubling.”
The remnant of Israel shall not do injustice, nor speak lies; and there shall not be found in their mouth a deceitful tongue; for they shall feed and lie down, with none to make them afraid.
14 Cry aloud, O daughter of Zion, shout, O Israel, Rejoice and exult with the whole heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.
Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; rejoice and be glad with all thy heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
15 YHWH has turned aside your judgments, He has faced your enemy, The King of Israel, YHWH, [is] in your midst, You see evil no more.
The Lord hath removed thy punishment, he hath cleared away thy enemy: the king of Israel, the Lord, is in the midst of thee; thou shalt not see evil any more.
16 In that day it is said to Jerusalem, “Do not fear, O Zion, Do not let your hands be feeble.
On that day shall it be said to Jerusalem, Fear thou not: [to] Zion, Let not thy hands become weak.
17 Your God YHWH [is] in your midst, A mighty one [to] save, He rejoices over you with joy, He works in His love, He delights over you with singing.”
The Lord thy God is in the midst of thee, the mighty one who will save; he will be glad over thee with rejoicing; he will be silent in his love, he will exult over thee with song.
18 “I have gathered My afflicted from the appointed place, They have been bearing reproach from you for her sake.
Those that mourn far away from the festive assembly do I gather, those that were separated from thee, [that have borne] for thee the burden of reproach.
19 Behold, I am dealing with all afflicting you at that time, And I have saved the halting one, And I gather the ones driven out, And have set them for a praise and for a name, In all the land of their shame.
Behold, I will deal [severely] with all that afflict thee at that time: and I will save her that halteth, and her that was driven off will I gather; and I will render them a praise and a famous name on all the earth where they have been put to shame.
20 At that time I bring you in, Even at the time of My assembling you, For I give you for a name, and for a praise, Among all peoples of the land, In My turning back [to] your captivity before your eyes,” said YHWH!
At that time will I bring you back, even in the time that I gather you; for I will make you for a name and for a praise among all people of the earth, when I bring back again your captives before your eyes, saith the Lord.
