Zephaniah 2
1 Assemble yourselves, yes, assemble, O nation not desired;
Be ye gathered and closely joined together, O unchastened nation;
2 Before the decree bringeth forth, [before] the day passeth as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD cometh upon you, before the day of the LORD'S anger cometh upon you.
before ye 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 meek of the earth, who have performed his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye will be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger.
Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth; do judgment, and seek justice, and answer accordingly; that ye 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 noon day, 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 to the inhabitants of the sea coasts, 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, neighbours 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 dwellings [and] cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.
And Crete shall be a pasture of flocks, and a fold of sheep.
7 And the coasts shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed upon them: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their God will visit them, and turn away 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 reproach of Moab, and the revilings of the children of Ammon, by which they have reproached my people, and magnified [themselves] against 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 of nettles, and salt-pits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall lay them waste, and the remnant of my people shall possess them.
Therefore, [as] I live, saith 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 reproached and magnified [themselves] 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 to them: for he will famish all the gods of the earth; and [men] shall worship him, every one from his place, [even] all the isles of the heathen.
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 Cushites also, ye [shall be] slain by my sword.
Ye 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 a 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 flocks shall lie down in the midst of her, all the beasts of the nations: both the cormorant and the bittern shall lodge in the upper lintels of it; [their] voice shall sing in the windows; desolation [shall be] in the threshholds: for he shall uncover the cedar work.
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 rejoicing city that dwelt in security, that said in her heart, I [am], and [there is] none besides 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.
