Zephaniah 1

1 This is the word of Yahweh that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi son of Gedaliah son of Amariah son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, 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 “I will utterly destroy everything from off the surface of the earth—this is Yahweh's declaration.

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

3 I will destroy man and beast; I will destroy the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, the ruins along with the wicked. For I will cut off man from the surface of the earth—this is Yahweh's declaration.

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 I will reach out with my hand over Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off every remnant of Baal from this place and the names of the idolatrous people among the priests,

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 the people who on the housetops worship the heavenly bodies, and the people who worship and swear to Yahweh but who also swear by their king.

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 also cut off those who have turned away from following Yahweh, those who neither seek Yahweh nor ask for his guidance.”

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 before the Lord Yahweh! For the day of Yahweh is near; Yahweh has prepared the sacrifice and set apart his guests.

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 “It will come about on the day of Yahweh's sacrifice, that I will punish the princes and the king's sons, and everyone dressed in foreign clothes.

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 On that day I will punish all those who leap over the threshold, those who fill their master's house with violence and deceit.

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

10 So it will be on that day—this is Yahweh's declaration— that a cry of distress will come from the Fish Gate, wailing from the Second District, and a great crashing sound from 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 Wail, inhabitants of the Market District, for all the merchants will be ruined; all those who weigh out silver will be cut off.

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

12 It will come about at that time that I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish the men who have settled into their wine and say in their heart, 'Yahweh will not do anything, either good or evil.'

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 Their wealth will become plunder, and their houses will be an abandoned devastation! They will build houses but not live in them, and plant vineyards but not drink their wine.

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 The great day of Yahweh is near, near and hurrying quickly! The sound of the day of Yahweh will be that of a warrior crying bitterly!

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 That day will be a day of fury, a day of distress and anguish, a day of storm and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness.

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 day of trumpets and alarms against the fortified cities and the high battlements.

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

17 For I will bring distress upon mankind, so that they will walk about like blind men since they have sinned against Yahweh. Their blood will be poured out like dust, and their inner parts like dung.

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 Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of Yahweh's fury. In the fire of his jealousy the whole earth will be consumed, for he will bring a complete, a terrible end of all the inhabitants of 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.