Zephaniah 3
3
1 Woe to the provocatrix and the redeemed city, the dove.
2 She has not heeded the voice, nor has she accepted discipline. She has not trusted in the Lord; she did not draw near to her God.
3 Her leaders are in her midst like roaring lions. Her judges are evening wolves; they leave nothing for the morning.
4 Her prophets are crazed; men without faith. Her priests have polluted what is holy; they have acted unjustly against the law.
5 The just Lord is in their midst; he will not do iniquity. In the morning, in the morning, he will bring his judgment into the light, and it will not be hidden. But the impious one has not known shame.
6 I have dispersed the nations, and their towers have been torn down. I have made their ways deserts, until there were none who passed through. Their cities have become desolate, with no man remaining, nor any inhabitant.
7 I said: Nevertheless, you will fear me; you will accept discipline. And her dwelling place will not perish, despite all the things about which I have visited her. Yet truly, they arose with the dawn and corrupted all their thoughts.
8 Because of this, expect me, says the Lord, in the day of my resurrection in the future, for my judgment is to gather together the Gentiles, and to collect the kingdoms, and to pour out over them my indignation, all the fury of my anger. For by the fire of my zeal, all the earth will be devoured.
9 For then I will restore to the people a chosen lip, so that all may invoke the name of the Lord and may serve him with one shoulder.
10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, my supplicants, the sons of my diaspora, will carry a gift to me.
11 In that day, you will not be ashamed over all of your inventions, by which you have transgressed against me. For then I will take away from your midst your arrogant boasters, and you will no longer be exalted on my holy mountain.
12 And I will bequeath into your midst a poor and needy people, and they will hope in the name of the Lord.
13 The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity, nor speak lies, and a deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouth. For they will pasture and will recline, and there will be no one to strike them with terror.
14 Give praise, daughter of Zion. Shout joyfully, Israel. Rejoice and exult with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem.
15 The Lord has taken away your judgment; he has turned aside your foes. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall no longer fear evil.
16 In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem, "Do not be afraid," and to Zion, "Do not let your hands be weakened."
17 The Lord your God is the strength in your midst; he will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. In his love, he will be silent. He will exult over you with praise.
18 The triflers who withdrew from the law, I will gather together, because they were from you, so that you may no longer suffer disgrace over them.
19 Behold, I will execute all who have afflicted you in that time, and I will save those who are lame, and I will gather together her who had been cast out. And I will place them in praise and in renown, in all the land where they had been put to shame,
20 in that time, when I will lead to you, and in the time when I will gather for you. For I will deliver you into renown and into praise, among all the peoples of the earth, when I will have converted your captivity before your very eyes, says the Lord.
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Zephaniah 3: CPDV
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Zephaniah 3
3
Jerusalem Will Be Punished
1How terrible for the wicked, stubborn city of Jerusalem,
which hurts its own people.
2It obeys no voice;
it can’t be taught to do right.
It doesn’t trust the Lord;
it doesn’t worship its God.
3Its officers are like roaring lions.
Its rulers are like hungry wolves that attack in the evening,
and in the morning nothing is left of those they attacked.
4Its prophets are proud;
they are people who cannot be trusted.
Its priests don’t respect holy things;
they break God’s teachings.
5But the Lord is good, and he is there in that city.
He does no wrong.
Every morning he governs the people fairly;
every day he can be trusted.
But evil people are not ashamed of what they do.
6“I have destroyed nations;
their towers were ruined.
I made their streets empty
so no one goes there anymore.
Their cities are ruined;
no one lives there at all.
7I said, ‘Surely now Jerusalem will respect me
and will accept my teaching.’
Then the place where they lived would not be destroyed,
and I would not have to punish them.
But they were still eager
to do evil in everything they did.
8Just wait,” says the Lord.
“Someday I will stand up as a witness.
I have decided that I will gather nations
and assemble kingdoms.
I will pour out my anger on them,
all my strong anger.
My anger will be like fire
that will burn up the whole world.
A New Day for God’s People
9“Then I will give the people of all nations pure speech
so that all of them will speak the name of the Lord
and worship me together.
10People will come from where the Nile River begins;
my scattered people will come with gifts for me.
11Then Jerusalem will not be ashamed
of the wrongs done against me,
because I will remove from this city
those who like to brag;
there will never be any more proud people
on my holy mountain in Jerusalem.
12But I will leave in the city
the humble and those who are not proud,
and they will trust in the Lord.
13Those who are left alive in Israel won’t do wrong or tell lies;
they won’t trick people with their words.
They will eat and lie down
with no one to make them afraid.”
A Happy Song
14Sing, Jerusalem.
Israel, shout for joy!
Jerusalem, be happy
and rejoice with all your heart.
15The Lord has stopped punishing you;
he has sent your enemies away.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is with you;
you will never again be afraid of being harmed.
16On that day Jerusalem will be told,
“Don’t be afraid, city of Jerusalem.
Don’t give up.
17The Lord your God is with you;
the mighty One will save you.
He will rejoice over you.
You will rest in his love;
he will sing and be joyful about you.”
18“I will take away the sadness planned for you,
which would have made you very ashamed.
19At that time I will punish
all those who harmed you.
I will save my people who cannot walk
and gather my people who have been thrown out.
I will give them praise and honor
in every place where they were shamed.
20At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bring you back home.
I will give you honor and praise
from people everywhere
when I make things go well again for you,
as you will see with your own eyes,” says the Lord.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.