Zephaniah 3
3
The Future of Jerusalem
1Jerusalem, your people fought against God. They hurt other people, and you have been stained with sin. 2They didn’t listen to me or accept my teachings. Jerusalem didn’t trust the Lord. Jerusalem didn’t go to her God. 3Jerusalem’s leaders are like roaring lions. Her judges are like hungry wolves that come in the evening to attack the sheep—and in the morning nothing is left. 4Her prophets are always making secret plans to get more and more. Her priests have treated holy things as if they were not holy. They have done bad things to God’s teachings. 5But the Lord is still in that city, and he continues to be good. He does not do anything wrong. He continues to help his people. Morning after morning he makes good decisions for them. Not a day passes without his justice. He never gives a decision that is crooked or is something to be ashamed of.
6The Lord says, “I have destroyed whole nations and their defense towers. I destroyed their streets and now no one goes there anymore. Their cities are empty—no one lives there anymore. 7I tell you this so that you will learn a lesson. I want you to fear and respect me. If you do this, your home will not be destroyed, and I will not have to punish you the way I planned.” But those evil people only wanted to do more of the same evil things they had already done!
8The Lord said, “So just wait! Wait for me to stand and judge you. I have the right to bring people from many nations and use them to punish you. I will use them to show my anger against you. I will use them to show how upset I am—and the whole country will be destroyed. 9Then I will change people from other nations so that they can speak the language clearly and call out the name of the Lord. They will all worship me together, shoulder to shoulder, as one people. 10People will come all the way from the other side of the river in Ethiopia. My scattered people will come to me. My worshipers will come and bring their gifts to me.
11“Then, Jerusalem, you will no longer be ashamed of the wrong things your people do against me. That is because I will remove all the bad people from Jerusalem. I will take away all the proud people. There will not be any of them on my holy mountain.#3:11 holy mountain Mount Zion, one of the mountains Jerusalem was built on. 12I will let only meek and humble people stay in my city, and they will trust the Lord’s name. 13The survivors of Israel will not do bad things or tell lies. They will not try to trick people with lies. They will be like sheep that eat and lie down in peace—and no one will bother them.”
A Happy Song
14Jerusalem, sing and be happy!
Israel, shout for joy!
Jerusalem, be happy and have fun!
15The Lord stopped your punishment.
He destroyed your enemies’ strong towers.
King of Israel, the Lord is with you.
You don’t need to worry about anything bad happening.
16At that time Jerusalem will be told,
“Be strong, don’t be afraid!
17The Lord your God is with you.
He is like a powerful soldier.
He will save you.
He will show how much he loves you
and how happy he is with you.
He will laugh and be happy about you,
18like people at a party.
I will take away your shame.
I will make them stop hurting you.#3:18 The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
19At that time I will punish those who hurt you.
I will save my hurt people
and bring back those who were forced to leave.
I will give them praise and honor everywhere,
even in places where they suffered shame.
20At that time I will lead you back home.
I will bring your people back together.
I will cause people everywhere to honor and praise you.
You will see me bring back all the blessings you once had.”
This is what the Lord said.
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Zephaniah 3: ERV
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Zephaniah 3
3
1Woe [to] the rebellious and polluted, The oppressing city!
2She hath not hearkened to the voice, She hath not accepted instruction, In Jehovah she hath not trusted, Unto her God she hath not drawn near.
3Her heads in her midst [are] roaring lions, Her judges [are] evening wolves, They have not gnawn the bone in the morning.
4Her prophets unstable — men of treachery, Her priests have polluted the sanctuary, They have violated the law.
5 Jehovah [is] righteous in her midst, He doth not do perverseness, Morning by morning His judgment he giveth to the light, It hath not been lacking, And the perverse doth not know shame.
6I have cut off nations, Desolated have been their chief ones, I have laid waste their out-places without any passing by, Destroyed have been their cities, Without man, without inhabitant.
7I have said: Only, ye do fear Me, Ye do accept instruction, And her habitation is not cut off, All that I have appointed for her, But they have risen early, They have corrupted all their doings.
8Therefore, wait for Me — an affirmation of Jehovah, For the day of My rising for prey, For My judgment [is] to gather nations, To assemble kingdoms, To pour out on them Mine indignation, All the heat of Mine anger, For by the fire of My jealousy consumed is all the earth.
9For then do I turn unto peoples a pure lip, To call all of them by the name of Jehovah, To serve Him [with] one shoulder.
10From beyond the rivers of Cush, my supplicants, The daughter of My scattered ones, Do bring My present.
11In that day thou art not ashamed because of any of thine actions, Wherewith thou hast transgressed against Me, For then do I turn aside from thy midst The exulting ones of thine excellency, And thou dost add no more to be haughty, In My holy mountain.
12And I have left in thy midst a people humble and poor, And they have trusted in the name of Jehovah.
13The remnant of Israel do no perversity, nor speak lies, Nor found in their mouth is a deceitful tongue, For they have delight, and have lain down, And there is none troubling.
14Cry aloud, O daughter of Zion, shout, O Israel, Rejoice and exult with the whole heart, O daughter of Jerusalem.
15 Jehovah hath turned aside thy judgments, He hath faced thine enemy, The king of Israel, Jehovah, [is] in thy midst, Thou seest evil no more.
16In that day it is said to Jerusalem, ‘Fear not, O Zion, let not thy hands be feeble.
17 Jehovah thy God [is] in thy midst, A mighty one doth save, He rejoiceth over thee with joy, He doth work in His love, He joyeth over thee with singing.’
18Mine afflicted from the appointed place I have gathered, from thee they have been, Bearing for her sake reproach.
19Lo, I am dealing with all afflicting thee at that time, And I have saved the halting one, And the driven out ones I do gather, And have set them for a praise and for a name, In all the land of their shame.
20At that time I bring you in, Even at the time of My assembling you, For I give you for a name, and for a praise, Among all peoples of the land, In My turning back [to] your captivity before your eyes, said Jehovah!
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