Zephaniah 1

1 [I am] Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the grandson of Gedaliah, and the great-grandson of Amariah, whose father was [King] Hezekiah. Yahweh gave this message to me during the time when [King] Amon’s son Josiah was the King of Judah.

The Lord’s message, which came to Zephaniah, son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the time of Josiah of Judah who was son of Amon.

2 Yahweh says, “I will (sweep away/destroy) everything [HYP] that is on the earth.

I will utterly destroy everything from off the face of the earth, says the Lord.

3 I will sweep away people and animals. I will sweep away birds and fish. I will get rid of wicked people; there will be no more [wicked] [HYP] people on the earth.”

I will sweep away human and animal, the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea. I will cause the wicked to stumble, and I will cut off humanity from the face of the earth, says the Lord.

4 “[These are some of the things that I will do]: I will punish the people who live in Jerusalem and [other places in] Judah. I will destroy everything that has been used in the worship of Baal. I will cause [people] to no longer remember the names of the pagan priests or the [other] priests [who have turned away from me].

I will stretch out my hand over Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and I will cut off from this place the last remnant of Baal and the name of the heathen priests,

5 [I will get rid of] those who go up on the roofs [of their houses] and worship the sun and moon and stars, those who claim that they worship me but [also] worship [their god] Molech.

and those who worship on the housetops to the stars in the sky, and those worshippers of the Lord who also pay homage to Milcom,

6 I will get rid of all those who previously worshiped me but no longer do, those who no [longer] seek my [help or ask me to tell them what they should do.”]

and those who turn back from following the Lord, And those who do not seek the Lord nor strive to find him.

7 Be silent in front of Yahweh the Lord, because it will soon be the time/day when Yahweh [will judge and punish people]. Yahweh has prepared to get rid of [the people of Judah]; they will be like [MET] animals that are slaughtered for sacrifices, and he has chosen [their enemies] to be the ones who will get rid of them.

Be silent before the Lord God, for near is the day of the Lord, for the Lord has prepared a sacrifice, he has sanctified his guests.

8 Yahweh says, “On that day when I will get rid of [the people of Judah], [I will punish] their officials and the king’s sons, and [I will punish] all those who worship foreign gods [MTY].

On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice: I will punish the officers and the royal princes, and all those who clothe themselves in foreign apparel.

9 I will punish those who [show that they revere their god Dagan] by avoiding stepping on the threshold [of his temple], and those who do violent things and tell lies in the temples of their gods.”

On that day: I will punish all who leap over the threshold, who fill the house of their lord with violence and deceit.

10 Yahweh [also] says, “On that day, people will cry [out] at the Fish Gate [of Jerusalem]. People will wail in the newer part of the city, and [people will hear] a loud crash [of buildings collapsing] in the hills.

Listen on that day, says the Lord: A cry will be heard from the Fish Gate, and a wailing from the New Quarter, and a great din from the hills.

11 [So, all you] people who live in the market area [of Jerusalem] should wail, because all those who sell goods and weigh out silver will be slaughtered.

Those who live in the Mortar wail, for all the traders are silenced, the money counters wiped out.

12 [It will be as though] I will light lanterns to search in [dark places in] Jerusalem for those who have become very satisfied with their behavior and complacent [about their sins]. They think that [I], Yahweh, will do nothing to them, neither good things nor bad things.

I will search Jerusalem with a lamp, I will punish those who are at ease, who sit comfortably with their wine, who say to themselves, “the Lord brings neither prosperity nor calamity.”

13 [But I say that] their valuable possessions will be plundered/stolen [by their enemies], and their houses will be destroyed. They will build [new] homes, but they will not live in them; they will plant vineyards, but they will never drink [any] wine [made from grapes that grow there].”

Their wealth will become a prey and their houses a desolation. Though they build houses, they will not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, they will not drink wine from them.

14 It will soon be the day/time when Yahweh [will punish people]. It will be here quickly. It will be a time [when people cry] bitterly, a time when [even] brave soldiers will cry loudly.

Near is the day of the Lord! Near and rapidly approaching! Near is the bitter day of the Lord, and the scream of the warrior.

15 It will be a time when [God shows that he is] very angry, a time when [people experience much] distress/suffering and trouble. [It will be] a time [when many things are] ruined and destroyed [DOU]. It will be a time when it is very gloomy and dark [DOU], when the clouds are very black.

That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

16 It will be a time when [soldiers] will blow trumpets [to call other soldiers] to battle. [Your enemies] will tear down the walls around your cities and the high towers [at the corners of those walls].

a day of the trumpet and battle-cry, against the fortified cities and against the high battlements.

17 Because you sinned against Yahweh, he will cause you to experience great distress; you will walk [around groping] like [SIM] blind people do. Your blood will flow [from your bodies] like [SIM] water, and your corpses will lie on the ground and rot [SIM].

And I will bring distress upon the people and they will walk as the blind, because they have sinned against the Lord, and their blood will be poured out as dust and their flesh as dung.

18 At the time that [Yahweh shows that he] is very angry [with you], you will not be able to save yourselves by [giving] silver or gold [to your enemies]. Because Yahweh (is very jealous/does not want people to worship any other god), he will send a fire to burn up the entire world, and he will suddenly get rid of all the [wicked] people who live on the earth.

Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them. For in the day of the wrath of the Lord and in the fire of his fury the whole earth will be consumed. For he will make a speedy end of all the inhabitants of the earth.