Judah's Impending Judgment
1 A word of Jehovah that hath been unto Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezikiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amoz, king of Judah:
1 The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of (A)Josiah son of (B)Amon, king of Judah:
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah(A) son of Amon, king of Judah.
1 This message from the Lord came to Cushi's son Zephaniah, the grandson of Gedaliah and great-grandson of Hezekiah's son Amariah, during the reign of Amon's son Josiah, king of Judah:
The Great Day Of The Lord
2 I utterly consume all from off the face of the ground, An affirmation of Jehovah.
2 I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.
2 I will completely sweep away everythingfrom the face of the earth(B)—this is the Lord’s declaration.
2 "I'll utterly sweep away everything from the land," declares the LORD.
3 I consume man and beast, I consume fowl of the heavens, and fishes of the sea, And the stumbling-blocks -- the wicked, And I have cut off man from the face of the ground, An affirmation of Jehovah,
3 I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.
3 “I will remove (D)man and beast;I will remove the (E)birds of the skyAnd the fish of the sea,And the (b)(F)ruins along with the wicked;And I will cut off man from the face of the (c)earth,” declares the Lord.
3 I will sweep away man and animal;(C)I will sweep away the birds of the skyand the fish of the sea,and the ruins(a) along with the wicked.(D)I will cut off mankindfrom the face of the earth.This is the Lord’s declaration.
3 "I'll consume both human beings and animals I'll consume the birds of the sky, the fish in the sea, and the wicked along with their sin, when I eliminate human beings from the land," declares the LORD.
The Lord Will Judge Judah
4 And stretched out My hand against Judah, And against all inhabiting Jerusalem, And cut off from this place the remnant of Baal, The name of the idolatrous priests, with the priests,
4 I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;
4 “So I will (G)stretch out My hand against JudahAnd against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.And I will (H)cut off the remnant of Baal from this place,And the names of the (I)idolatrous priests along with the priests.
4 I will stretch out My hand(E) against Judahand against all the residents of Jerusalem.I will cut off every vestige of Baal(F)from this place,the names of the pagan priests(G)along with the priests;
4 "I will also stretch out my hand against Judah, and upon all inhabitants of Jerusalem. I'll wipe out every trace of Baal from this place, and the name of the pagan priests, along with my own priests.
5 And those bowing themselves On the roofs to the host of the heavens, And those bowing themselves, Swearing to Jehovah, and swearing by Malcham,
5 And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham;
5 “And those who bow down on the (J)housetops to the host of heaven,And those who bow down and (K)swear to the Lord and yet swear by (d)(L)Milcom,
5 those who bow in worship on the rooftops(H)to the heavenly host;those who bow and pledge loyalty to the Lord(I)but also pledge loyalty to Milcom;(b)(J)
5 I'll wipe out those who worship the stars that they view from their housetops, those who bow down and swear to the LORD and who also swear by Milcom,
6 And those removing from after Jehovah, And who have not sought Jehovah, nor besought Him.
6 And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired for him.
6 And those who have (M)turned back from following the Lord,And those who have (N)not sought the Lord or inquired of Him.”
6 and those who turn back from following the Lord,who do not seek the Lord or inquire of Him.
6 those who turn away from the LORD, don't seek the LORD, and never ask for his help."
7 Hush! because of the Lord Jehovah, For near is a day of Jehovah, For prepared hath Jehovah a sacrifice, He hath sanctified His invited ones.
7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand: for the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.
7 (e)(O)Be silent before the Lord (f)God!For the (P)day of the Lord is near,For the Lord has prepared a (Q)sacrifice,He has (R)consecrated His guests.
7 Be silent in the presence of the Lord God,(K)for the Day of the Lord is near.(L)Indeed, the Lord has prepared a sacrifice;(M)He has consecrated His guests.(N)
7 Remain silent in the presence of the Lord GOD, because the Day of the LORD approaches, and because the LORD has prepared a sacrifice for those whom he has invited to be consecrated.
8 And it hath come to pass, In the day of the sacrifice of Jehovah, That I have laid a charge on the heads, And on sons of the king, And on all putting on strange clothing.
8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel.
8 “Then it will come about on the day of the Lord’s sacrificeThat I will (S)punish the princes, the king’s sonsAnd all who clothe themselves with (T)foreign garments.
8 On the day of the Lord’s sacrificeI will punish the officials, the king’s sons,and all who are dressed in foreign clothing.
8 "It will come about during the LORD's sacrifice that I'll punish the officials, the royal descendants, and all who wear foreign clothing.
9 And I have laid a charge on every one Who is leaping over the threshold in that day, Who are filling the house of their masters With violence and deceit.
9 In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit.
9 “And I will punish on that day all who leap on the temple threshold,Who fill the house of their (g)lord with (U)violence and deceit.
9 On that day(O) I will punishall who skip over the threshold,(c)(P)who fill their master’s housewith violence and deceit.
9 At the same time, I'll punish every idol worshipper, especially those who are filling their master's temple with violence and deceit.
10 And there hath been in that day, An affirmation of Jehovah, The noise of a cry from the fish-gate, And of a howling from the Second, And of great destruction from the hills.
10 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hills.
10 “On that day,” declares the Lord,“There will be the sound of a cry from the (V)Fish Gate,A wail from the (h)(W)Second Quarter,And a loud crash from the (X)hills.
10 On that day—this is the Lord’s declaration—there will be an outcry from the Fish Gate,(Q)a wailing from the Second District,(R)and a loud crashing from the hills.
10 When all of this happens," declares the LORD, "a loud shriek will come from the Fish Gate, and howling from the Mishneh Quarter, along with great destruction from the hills."
11 Howl, ye inhabitants of the hollow place, For cut off hath been all the merchant people, Cut off have been all bearing silver.
11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off.
11 “Wail, O inhabitants of the (i)Mortar,For all the (j)people of (Y)Canaan will be silenced;All who weigh out (Z)silver will be cut off.
11 Wail, you residents of the Hollow,(d)for all the merchants(e) will be silenced;all those loaded with silver will be cut off.
11 "Wail, you who live in the market district, because all of the merchants will be crushed and all of their customers will be eliminated.
12 And it hath come to pass, at that time, I search Jerusalem with lights, And I have laid a charge on the men Who are hardened on their preserved things, Who are saying in their heart: Jehovah doth no good, nor doth He evil.
12 And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.
12 “It will come about at that timeThat I will (AA)search Jerusalem with lamps,And I will punish the menWho are (k)(AB)stagnant in spirit,Who say in their hearts,‘The Lord will (AC)not do good or evil!’
12 And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lampsand punish the men who settle down comfortably,(f)(S)who say to themselves:The Lord will not do good or evil.
12 And it will come about that I will search Jerusalem with candles, punishing the self-satisfied and complacent, who say to themselves, "The LORD will do neither good nor evil.'
13 And their wealth hath been for a spoil, And their houses for desolation, And they have built houses, and do not inhabit, And they have planted vineyards, And they do not drink their wine.
13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but not drink the wine thereof.
13 “Moreover, their wealth will become (AD)plunderAnd their houses desolate;Yes, (AE)they will build houses but not inhabit them,And plant vineyards but not drink their wine.”
13 Their wealth will become plunderand their houses a ruin.They will build houses but never live in them,plant vineyards but never drink their wine.(T)
13 Therefore their possessions will be seized as plunder and their homes left in ruins. They may build houses, but they won't live in them. They may plant vineyards, but they won't drink their wine."
14 Near is the great day of Jehovah, Near, and hasting exceedingly, The noise of the day of Jehovah, Bitterly shriek there doth a mighty one.
14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.
14 Near is the (AF)great (AG)day of the Lord,Near and coming very quickly;Listen, the day of the Lord!(l)In it the warrior (AH)cries out bitterly.
14 The great Day of the Lord is near,(U)near and rapidly approaching.Listen, the Day of the Lord—then the warrior’s cry is bitter.
14 "The great Day of the LORD approaches How it comes, hurrying faster and faster! The sound of the Day of the LORD there includes the bitter cry of the mighty soldier.
15 A day of wrath is that day, A day of adversity and distress, A day of waste and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of cloud and thick darkness.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,
15 A day of wrath is that day,A day of (AI)trouble and distress,A day of destruction and desolation,A day of (AJ)darkness and gloom,A day of clouds and thick darkness,
15 That day is a day of wrath,a day of trouble and distress,a day of destruction and desolation,a day of darkness(V) and gloom,a day of clouds and blackness,(W)
15 That day will be filled with wrath, a day of trouble and tribulation, a day of desolation and devastation, a day of doom and gloom, a day of clouds and shadows,
16 A day of trumpet and shouting against the fenced cities, And against the high corners.
16 A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers.
16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cryagainst the fortified cities,and against the high corner towers.
16 a day of trumpet and battle cry against fortified cites and watch towers.
17 And I have sent distress to men, And they have walked as the blind, For against Jehovah they have sinned, And poured out is their blood as dust, And their flesh is as dung.
17 And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the LORD: and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung.
17 I will bring (AM)distress on menSo that they will walk (AN)like the blind,Because they have sinned against the Lord;And their (AO)blood will be poured out like dustAnd their (AP)flesh like dung.
17 I will bring distress on mankind,and they will walk like the blind(X)because they have sinned against the Lord.Their blood will be poured out like dustand their flesh like dung.
17 "And I'll bring so much distress to people that they will walk around like the blind. Because they have sinned against the LORD, their blood will be poured out like dust and their intestines will spill out like manure.
18 Even their silver, even their gold, Is not able to deliver them in a day of the wrath of Jehovah, And in the fire of His jealousy consumed is the whole land, For only a hastened end doth He make Of all the inhabitants of the land!
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
18 Neither their (AQ)silver nor their goldWill be able to deliver themOn the day of the Lord’s wrath;And (AR)all the earth will be devouredIn the fire of His jealousy,For He will (AS)make a complete end,Indeed a terrifying one,Of all the inhabitants of the earth.
18 Their silver and their goldwill not be able to rescue themon the day of the Lord’s wrath.(Y)The whole earth will be consumedby the fire of His jealousy.(Z)For He will make a complete,yes, a horrifying endof all the inhabitants of the earth.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold will deliver them in the Day of the LORD's wrath; but the entire land will be consumed by the fire of his jealousy, for he will bring the inhabitants of the land to a sudden end."