Zephaniah 3

Judgment on Jerusalem and the Nations

1Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,

the oppressing city!

2She listens to no voice;

she accepts no correction.

She does not trust in the Lord ;

she does not draw near to her God.

3Her officials within her[#Ezek. 22:27; Mic. 3:9, 10]

are roaring lions;

her judges are evening wolves

that leave nothing till the morning.

4Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men;[#Jer. 23:11; Hos. 9:7]

her priests profane what is holy;

they do violence to the law.

5The Lord within her is righteous;[#Jer. 12:1]

he does no injustice;

every morning he shows forth his justice;

each dawn he does not fail;

but the unjust knows no shame.

6“I have cut off nations;[#2:4-15]

their battlements are in ruins;

I have laid waste their streets

so that no one walks in them;

their cities have been made desolate,

without a man, without an inhabitant.

7I said, ‘Surely you will fear me;[#Jer. 36:3]

you will accept correction.

Then your dwelling would not be cut off

according to all that I have appointed against you.’

But all the more they were eager

to make all their deeds corrupt.

8“Therefore wait for me,” declares the Lord ,[#Hab. 2:3; Isa. 8:17]

“for the day when I rise up to seize the prey.

For my decision is to gather nations,

to assemble kingdoms,

to pour out upon them my indignation,

all my burning anger;

for in the fire of my jealousy

all the earth shall be consumed.

The Conversion of the Nations

9“For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples

to a pure speech,

that all of them may call upon the name of the Lord

and serve him with one accord.

10From beyond the rivers of Cush[#Ps. 68:31; Isa. 11:11; 60:4; #2:12]

my worshipers, the daughter of my dispersed ones,

shall bring my offering.

11“On that day you shall not be put to shame[#Isa. 2:11; #Isa. 54:4]

because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me;

for then I will remove from your midst

your proudly exultant ones,

and you shall no longer be haughty

in my holy mountain.

12But I will leave in your midst

a people humble and lowly.

They shall seek refuge in the name of the Lord ,

13those who are left in Israel;[#2:7]

they shall do no injustice

and speak no lies,

nor shall there be found in their mouth

a deceitful tongue.

For they shall graze and lie down,

and none shall make them afraid.”

Israel’s Joy and Restoration

14Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;[#Isa. 12:6; 54:1; Zech. 2:10; 9:9]

shout, O Israel!

Rejoice and exult with all your heart,

O daughter of Jerusalem!

15The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;

he has cleared away your enemies.

The King of Israel, the Lord , is in your midst;

you shall never again fear evil.

16On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:[#11]

“Fear not, O Zion;

let not your hands grow weak.

17The Lord your God is in your midst,[#15]

a mighty one who will save;

he will rejoice over you with gladness;

he will quiet you by his love;

he will exult over you with loud singing.

18I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival,[#Lam. 1:4; 2:6]

so that you will no longer suffer reproach.

19Behold, at that time I will deal[#Isa. 60:14]

with all your oppressors.

And I will save the lame

and gather the outcast,

and I will change their shame into praise

and renown in all the earth.

20At that time I will bring you in,[#Isa. 11:12; Jer. 32:37; Ezek. 11:17]

at the time when I gather you together;

for I will make you renowned and praised

among all the peoples of the earth,

when I restore your fortunes

before your eyes,” says the Lord .

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Published by: Crossway / Good News Publishers