Zephaniah 3
3
The Wickedness of Jerusalem
1Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted,
To the oppressing city!
2She has not obeyed His voice,
She has not received correction;
She has not trusted in the Lord,
She has not drawn near to her God.
3#Ezek. 22:27Her princes in her midst are roaring lions;
Her judges are #Jer. 5:6; Hab. 1:8evening wolves
That leave not a bone till morning.
4Her #Hos. 9:7prophets are insolent, treacherous people;
Her priests have polluted the sanctuary,
They have done #Ezek. 22:26; Mal. 2:7, 8violence to the law.
5The Lord is righteous in her midst,
He will do no unrighteousness.
Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He never fails,
But #Jer. 3:3the unjust knows no shame.
6“I have cut off nations,
Their fortresses are devastated;
I have made their streets desolate,
With none passing by.
Their cities are destroyed;
There is no one, no inhabitant.
7#Jer. 8:6I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me,
You will receive instruction’—
So that her dwelling would not be cut off,
Despite everything for which I punished her.
But they rose early and #Gen. 6:12corrupted all their deeds.
A Faithful Remnant
8“Therefore #Prov. 20:22; Mic. 7:7; Hab. 2:3wait for Me,” says the Lord,
“Until the day I rise up for plunder;
My determination is to #Is. 66:18; Ezek. 38:14–23; Joel 3:2; Mic. 4:12; Matt. 25:32gather the nations
To My assembly of kingdoms,
To pour on them My indignation,
All My fierce anger;
All the earth #Zeph. 1:18shall be devoured
With the fire of My jealousy.
9“For then I will restore to the peoples #Is. 19:18; 57:19a pure language,
That they all may call on the name of the Lord,
To serve Him with one accord.
10#Ps. 68:31; Is. 18:1; Acts 8:27From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia
My worshipers,
The daughter of My dispersed ones,
Shall bring My offering.
11In that day you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds
In which you transgress against Me;
For then I will take away from your midst
Those who #Is. 2:12; 5:15; Matt. 3:9rejoice in your pride,
And you shall no longer be haughty
In My holy mountain.
12I will leave in your midst
#Is. 14:32; Zech. 13:8, 9A meek and humble people,
And they shall trust in the name of the Lord.
13#Is. 10:20–22; (Mic. 4:7)The remnant of Israel #Is. 60:21shall do no unrighteousness
#Zech. 8:3, 16; Rev. 14:5And speak no lies,
Nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth;
For #Ezek. 34:13–15, 28they shall feed their flocks and lie down,
And no one shall make them afraid.”
Joy in God’s Faithfulness
14#Is. 12:6Sing, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15The Lord has taken away your judgments,
He has cast out your enemy.
#(John 1:49)The King of Israel, the Lord, #Ezek. 48:35; (Rev. 7:15)is in your midst;
You shall see disaster no more.
16In that day #Is. 35:3, 4it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not fear;
Zion, #Job 4:3; Heb. 12:12let not your hands be weak.
17The Lord your God #Zeph. 3:5, 15in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
#Deut. 30:9; Is. 62:5; 65:19; Jer. 32:41He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.”
18“I will gather those who #Lam. 2:6sorrow over the appointed assembly,
Who are among you,
To whom its reproach is a burden.
19Behold, at that time
I will deal with all who afflict you;
I will save the #(Ezek. 34:16; Mic. 4:6, 7)lame,
And gather those who were driven out;
I will appoint them for praise and fame
In every land where they were put to shame.
20At that time #Is. 11:12; Ezek. 28:25; Amos 9:14I will bring you back,
Even at the time I gather you;
For I will give you fame and praise
Among all the peoples of the earth,
When I return your captives before your eyes,”
Says the Lord.
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Zephaniah 3: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Zephaniah 3
3
Judgment against Jerusalem
1Doom, obstinate one,
the defiled one,
the violent city.
2She listened to no voice;
she accepted no discipline.
She didn’t trust in the LORD,
nor did she draw near to her God.
3The princes in her midst are roaring lions.
Her judges are wolves of the evening;
they leave nothing for the morning.
4Her prophets are reckless, men of treachery.
Her priests pollute that which is holy;
they do violence to the Instruction.
5The LORD is righteous in her midst.
He does nothing unjust.
Morning by morning he renders justice,
but the unrighteous one knows no shame.
6I will cut off nations;
their towers will be destroyed;
I will devastate their streets.
No one will pass through.
Their cities will be laid waste.
There will be no person, no inhabitant left.
7I said, “Surely, she will fear me;
she will take instruction
so that her habitation won’t be cut off#3.7 Heb uncertain
because of everything I did to her.”
However, they rose early to corrupt their deeds.
8Therefore, wait for me, says the LORD,
wait for the day when I rise up as a witness,#3.8 LXX; MT it
when I decide to gather nations,
to collect kingdoms,
to pour out my indignation upon them,
all the heat of my anger.
In the fire of my jealousy,
all the earth will be devoured.
Restoration of the nations and Jerusalem
9Then I will change the speech of the peoples into pure speech,
that all of them will call on the name of the LORD
and will serve him as one.#3.9 Or with one shoulder
10From beyond the rivers of Cush,
my daughter, my dispersed ones, will bring me offerings.
11On that day, you won’t be ashamed of all your deeds
with which you sinned against me;
then I will remove from your midst those boasting with pride.
No longer will you be haughty on my holy mountain,
12but I will cause a humble and powerless people to remain in your midst;
they will seek refuge in the name of the LORD.
13The few remaining from Israel won’t commit injustice;
they won’t tell lies;
a deceitful tongue won’t be found on their lips.
They will graze and lie down;
no one will make them afraid.
14Rejoice, Daughter Zion! Shout, Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem.
15The LORD has removed your judgment;
he has turned away your enemy.
The LORD, the king of Israel, is in your midst;
you will no longer fear evil.
16On that day, it will be said to Jerusalem:
Don’t fear, Zion.
Don’t let your hands fall.
17The LORD your God is in your midst—a warrior bringing victory.
He will create calm with his love;
he will rejoice over you with singing.
18I will remove from you those worried about the appointed feasts.#3.18 Heb uncertain
They have been a burden for her, a reproach.
19Watch what I am about to do to all your oppressors at that time.
I will deliver the lame;
I will gather the outcast.
I will change their shame into praise and fame throughout the earth.
20At that time, I will bring all of you back,
at the time when I gather you.
I will give you fame and praise among all the neighboring peoples
when I restore your possessions and you can see them#3.20 Or before your eyes—says the LORD.
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