Zephaniah
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Source: Sefaria (sefaria.org). Zephaniah, Prophets, source: Sefaria (merged), sefaria.org. License: Public Domain or CC-BY (per Sefaria source data).
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Zephaniah / צפניה

1:1	The word of GOD that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi son of Gedaliah son of Amariah son of Hezekiah, during the reign of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah.
1:2	I will sweep everything awayFrom the face of the earth—declares GOD.
1:3	I will sweep away human and animal;I will sweep away the birds of the skyAnd the fish of the sea.I will make the wicked stumble,aI will make the wicked stumble Meaning of Heb. uncertain. And I will destroy humankindFrom the face of the earth—declares GOD.
1:4	I will stretch out My arm against JudahAnd against all who dwell in Jerusalem;And I will wipe out from this placeEvery vestige of Baal,And the name of the priestlingsbpriestlings Heb. kemarim, a term used only of priests of heathen gods. along with the priests;
1:5	And those who bow down on the roofsTo the host of heaven;And those who bow down and swear to GOD But also swear by Malcam;cMalcam Apparently identical with “Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites”; cf. 1 Kings 11.5.
1:6	And those who have forsaken GOD,And those who have not sought GOD And have not made inquiry.
1:7	Be silent before my Sovereign GOD,For the day of GOD is approaching;For GOD has prepared a sacrificial feast,dsacrificial feast I.e., a slaughter of sinners. Has bidden the guests purify themselves.ebidden the guests purify themselves I.e., invitations have already been issued in anticipation; cf. 1 Sam. 16.5.
1:8	And on the day of GOD’s sacrificeI will punish the officialsAnd the king’s sons,fking’s sons Apparently brothers of King Amon, who exercised influence during the minority of King Josiah (2 Kings 22.1). And all who don a foreign vestment.
1:9	I will also punish on that dayEveryone who steps over the threshold,gdon a foreign vestment … steps over the threshold Apparently two customs of heathen worship; cf. 2 Kings 10.22 and 1 Sam. 5.5. Who fill their master’shtheir master’s I.e., King Josiah’s. palaceWith lawlessness and fraud.
1:10	In that day there shall be—declares GOD—A loud outcry from the Fish Gate,And howling from the Mishneh,iMishneh A quarter of Jerusalem; cf. 2 Kings 22.14. And a sound of great anguish from the hills.
1:11	The dwellers of the MachteshjMachtesh Another quarter of Jerusalem. howl;For all the traders have perished,All who weigh silver are wiped out.
1:12	At that time,I will search Jerusalem with lamps;And I will punish all thoseWho rest untroubled on their lees,Who say to themselves,“ GOD will do nothing, good or bad.”
1:13	Their wealth shall be plunderedAnd their homes laid waste.They shall build houses and not dwell in them,Plant vineyards and not drink their wine.
1:14	The great day of GOD is approaching,Approaching most swiftly.Hark, the day of GOD!It is bitter:There a warrior shrieks!kHark, the day of GOD! / It is bitter: / There a warrior shrieks! Emendation yields: “The day of GOD is faster than a runner, / Fleeter than a warrior”; cf. Ps. 19.6.
1:15	That day shall be a day of wrath,A day of trouble and distress,A day of calamity and desolation,A day of darkness and deep gloom,A day of densest clouds,
1:16	A day of horn blasts and alarms—Against the fortified townsAnd the lofty corner towers.
1:17	I will bring distress on the people,And they shall walk like the blind,Because they sinned against GOD;Their blood shall be spilled like dust,And their fatlfat Or “marrow”; meaning of Heb. uncertain. like dung.
1:18	Moreover, their silver and goldShall not avail to save them.On the day of GOD’s wrath,In the fire of such passion,The whole land shall be consumed;For [God] will make a terrible endOf all who dwell in the land.
2:1	Gather together, gather,O nation without shame,
2:2	Before the day the decree is born—The day flies by like chaffaO nation … chaff Meaning of Heb. uncertain. Emendation yields: “O straw [Aramaic gel] not gathered in, / Before you are driven like flying chaff”; cf. Ps. 35.5.—Before GOD’s fierce anger Overtakes you,Before the day GOD’s anger Overtakes you.
2:3	Seek GOD,All you humble of the landWho have fulfilled God’s law;Seek righteousness,Seek humility.Perhaps you will find shelterOn the day of GOD’s anger.
2:4	Indeed, Gaza shall be desertedAnd Ashkelon desolate;Ashdod’s people shall be expelled in broad daylight,And Ekron shall be uprooted.
2:5	Ah, nation of CherethitesWho inhabit the seacoast!There is a word of GOD against you,O Canaan,bCanaan Or “Phoenicia,” of which Philistia is regarded as an extension southward. land of the Philistines:I will lay you wasteWithout inhabitants.
2:6	The seacoast CherothcCheroth Meaning of Heb. uncertain. shall becomeAn abode for shepherds and folds for flocks,
2:7	And shall be a portion for the remnant of the House of Judah;On these [pastures] they shall graze [their flocks],They shall lie downdlie down Change of vocalization yields “rest [them]”; cf. Song 1.7. at eventideIn the houses of Ashkelon.For the ETERNAL their God will take note of themAnd restore their fortunes.
2:8	I have heard the insults of MoabAnd the jeers of the Ammonites,Who have insulted My peopleAnd gloated over their country.
2:9	Assuredly, as I live—declares GOD of Hosts, the God of Israel—Moab shall become like SodomAnd the Ammonites like Gomorrah:ClumpseClumps Meaning of Heb. uncertain. of weeds and patchesfpatches Meaning of Heb. uncertain. of salt,And desolation evermore.The remnant of My people shall plunder them,The remainder of My nation shall possess them.
2:10	That is what they’ll get for their haughtiness,For insulting and jeeringAt the people of GOD of Hosts.
2:11	GOD will appear terrible against them,Causing all the gods on earth to shrivel;gshrivel Meaning of Heb. uncertain. And all the coastlands of the nationsShall bow in homage—Everyone in their own home.
2:12	You Cushites too—They shall be slain by My sword.
2:13	[God] will reach out against the northAnd destroy Assyria—Making Nineveh a desolation,Arid as the desert.
2:14	In it flocks shall lie down,Every species of beast,While jackdaws and owls roost on its capitals,The great owl hoots in the window,And the raven [croaks] on the threshold.For its cedarwork is laid bare.hspecies of beast … laid bare Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
2:15	Is this the exultant cityThat dwelt secure,That thought in her heart,“I am, and there is none but me”?Alas, she is become a waste,A lair of wild beasts!Everyone who passes by herHisses and makes a hand gesture.iHisses and makes a hand gesture To ward off a like fate from themselves; cf. Jer. 18.16 and note.
3:1	Ah, sullied, polluted,OverbearingaOverbearing Meaning of Heb. uncertain. Emendation yields “Whore”; cf. Isa. 1.21. city!
3:2	She heeds no call,Has learned no lesson;She has not trusted in GOD,Has not drawn near to her God.
3:3	The officials within herAre roaring lions;Her judges are wolves of the steppe,They leave no bone until morning.bof the steppe, / They leave no bone until morning Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
3:4	Her prophets are reckless,Totally faithless;Her priests profane what is holy,They give perverse rulings.
3:5	But GOD in her midst is righteous,And does no wrong;[God] issues judgment every morning,As unfailing as the light.The wrongdoer knows no shame!
3:6	I wiped out nations:Their corner towers are desolate;I turned their thoroughfares into ruins,With none passing by;Their towns lie waste with nobody around,Without inhabitants.
3:7	And I thought that shecshe Heb. “you.” would fear Me,Would learn a lesson,And that the punishment I brought on themdthem Heb. “her.” Would not be lost on her.elost on her Lit. “cut off [from] her vision.” Instead, all the more eagerlyThey have practiced corruption in all their deeds.
3:8	But wait for Me—says GOD—For the day when I arise as an accuser;faccuser Understanding ʻad as equivalent to ʻed, with Septuagint and Syriac. When I decide to gather nations,To bring kingdoms together,To pour out My indignation on them,All My blazing anger.Indeed, by the fire of My passionAll the earth shall be consumed.
3:9	For then I will make the peoples pure of speech,gI will make the peoples pure of speech Thus reversing the primeval confounding of speech in Babel; cf. Abravanel and Gen. 11.9. So that they all invoke GOD by nameAnd render service with one accord.haccord Lit. “back,” i.e., like working animals.
3:10	From beyond the rivers of Cush, My suppliantsiMy suppliants Meaning of Heb. uncertain. Shall bring offerings to Me in Fair Puzai.jPuzai Emendation yields “Zion.” For the thought, cf. Isa. 18.1, 7.
3:11	In that day,You will no longer be shamed for all the deedsBy which you have defied Me.For then I will removeThe proud and exultant within you,And you will be haughty no moreOn My sacred mount.kOn My sacred mount I.e., in My holy land; cf. Isa. 11.9; 57.13; 65.25.
3:12	But I will leave within youA poor, humble folk,And they shall find refugeIn the name of GOD.
3:13	The remnant of IsraelShall do no wrongAnd speak no falsehood;A deceitful tongueShall not be in their mouths.Only such as these shall graze and lie down,With none to trouble them.
3:14	Shout for joy, Fair Zion,Cry aloud, O Israel!Rejoice and be glad with all your heart,Fair Jerusalem!
3:15	GOD has annulled the judgment against you,And swept away your foes.Israel’s Sovereign GOD is within you;You need fear misfortune no more.
3:16	In that day,This shall be said to Jerusalem:Have no fear, O Zion;Let not your hands droop!
3:17	Your God the ETERNAL One is in your midst—A warrior who brings triumph—Who will rejoice over you and be glad,Who will shout over you with jubilationWho will lovingly soothe
3:18	Those long disconsolate.llovingly … disconsolate Meaning of Heb. uncertain. I will take away from you the woeOver which you endured mockery.mthe woe … mockery Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
3:19	At that time I will make [an end]Of all who afflicted you.And I will rescue the lame [sheep]And gather the strayed;And I will exchange their disgraceFor fame and renown in all the earth.
3:20	At that time I will gather you,And at [that] time I will bring you [home];For I will make you renowned and famousAmong all the peoples on earth,When I restore your fortunesBefore theirntheir Heb. “your.” very eyes—said GOD.
-- Zephaniah — (Sefaria merged English versions) (Public Domain or CC-BY (per Sefaria source data))