1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah the
son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amoriah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah
son of Amon, king of Judah.
2 Let there be
an utter cutting off from the face of the land, says the Lord.
3 Let man and
cattle be cut off; let the birds of the air and the fishes of the sea be cut off; and the ungodly
shall fail, and I will take away the transgressors from the face of the land, says the Lord.
4 And I will
stretch out My hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will remove the
names of Baal out of this place, and the names of the priests;
5 and them
that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and swear by the Lord, and
them that swear by their king;
6 and them
that turn aside from the Lord, and them that seek not the Lord, and them that cleave not to the
Lord.
7 Be fearful before the Lord God; for the day of the
Lord is near; for the Lord has prepared His sacrifice, and has sanctified His guests.
8 And it shall
come to pass in the day of the Lord’s sacrifice, that I will take vengeance on the princes, and on
the king’s house, and upon all that wear strange apparel.
9 And I will
openly take vengeance on the porches in that day, on the men that fill the house of the Lord their God with ungodliness and deceit.
10 And there
shall be in that day, says the Lord, the sound of a cry from the gate of men slaying, and a howling
from the second gate, and a great crashing from the hills.
11 Lament, you
that inhabit the city that has been broken down, for all
the people have become like Canaan; and all that were exalted by silver have been utterly destroyed.
12 And it
shall come to pass in that day, that I will search Jerusalem with a candle, and I will take vengeance
on the men that despise the things committed to them; but they say in their hearts, The Lord will
not do any good, neither will He do any evil.
13 And their
power shall be for a spoil, and their houses for utter desolation; and they shall build houses, but
shall not dwell in them; and they shall plant vineyards, but shall not drink the wine of them.
14 For the great day of the Lord is near, it is near,
and very speedy; the sound of the day of the Lord is made bitter and harsh.
15 A mighty
day of wrath is that day, a day of affliction and distress, a day of desolation and destruction, a
day of gloominess and darkness, a day of cloud and vapor,
16 a day of
the trumpet and cry against the strong cities, and against the high towers.
17 And I will
greatly afflict the men, and they shall walk as blind men, because they have sinned against the
Lord; therefore He shall pour out their blood as dust, and their flesh as dung.
18 And their
silver and their gold shall by no means be able to rescue them in the day of the Lord’s wrath; but
the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealously; for He will bring a speedy
destruction on all them that inhabit the land.