The word of Yahweh which came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah:

“I will completely end all things From the face of the ground,” declares Yahweh.

“I will end man and beast; I will end the birds of the sky And the fish of the sea And the ruins along with the wicked; And I will cut off man from the face of the ground,” declares Yahweh.

And those who worship on the housetops the host of heaven, And those who worship and swear to Yahweh and yet swear by Milcom,

And those who have turned back from following Yahweh, And those who have not sought Yahweh or inquired of Him.”

Be silent before Lord Yahweh! For the day of Yahweh is near, For Yahweh has prepared a sacrifice; He has set apart His guests.

“Then it will be on the day of Yahweh’s sacrifice That I will punish the princes, the king’s sons, And all who clothe themselves with foreign garments.

And it will be in that day,” declares Yahweh, “That there will be the sound of a cry from the Fish Gate And a wail from the Second Quarter And a great destruction from the hills.

And it will be at that time That I will search Jerusalem with lamps, And I will punish the men Who are stagnant in spirit, Who say in their hearts, ‘Yahweh will not do good or evil!’

Near is the great day of Yahweh, Near and coming very quickly; O the sound, the day of Yahweh! In it the mighty man cries out bitterly.

I will bring distress on men So that they will walk like the blind Because they have sinned against Yahweh; And their blood will be poured out like dust And their flesh like dung.

Neither their silver nor their gold Will be able to deliver them On the day of the fury of Yahweh; And all the earth will be devoured In the fire of His jealousy, For He will make a complete destruction, Indeed a terrifying one, Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Before the decree takes effect— The day passes like the chaff— Before the burning anger of Yahweh comes upon you, Before the day of Yahweh’s anger comes upon you.

Seek Yahweh, All you humble of the earth Who have worked His justice; Seek righteousness, seek humility. Perhaps you will be hidden In the day of Yahweh’s anger.

Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, The nation of the Cherethites! The word of Yahweh is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines; And I will make you perish So that there will be no inhabitant.

And the coast will be For the remnant of the house of Judah; They will feed upon it. In the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down at evening; For Yahweh their God will care for them And restore their fortune.

Therefore, as I live,” declares Yahweh of hosts, The God of Israel, “Surely Moab will be like Sodom And the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah— A place possessed by nettles and salt pits, And a perpetual desolation. The remnant of My people will plunder them, And the remainder of My nation will inherit them.”

This they will have in return for their pride because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of Yahweh of hosts.

Yahweh will be fearsome to them, for He will starve all the gods of the earth; and all the coastlands of the nations will bow down to Him, everyone from his own place.

She did not listen to any voice; She did not receive discipline. She did not trust in Yahweh; She did not draw near to her God.

Yahweh is righteous in her midst; He will do no injustice. Every morning He brings His justice to light; He does not fail. But the unjust knows no shame.

“Therefore wait for Me,” declares Yahweh, “For the day when I rise up as a witness. Indeed, My judgment is to assemble nations, To gather kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation, All My burning anger; For all the earth will be devoured By the fire of My zeal.

For then I will change them to peoples with purified lips, That all of them may call on the name of Yahweh, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.

But I will cause to remain in your midst A lowly and poor people, And they will take refuge in the name of Yahweh.

Yahweh has taken away His judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is in your midst; You will fear evil no more.

Yahweh your God is in your midst, A mighty one who will save. He will be joyful over you with gladness; He will be quiet in His love; He will rejoice over you with joyful singing.