Zephaniah 1

1The word of Jehovah which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.

1The Lord gave this message to Zephaniah, who was the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah. This happened while Josiah, the son of Amon, was king of Judah.

2I will utterly consume all things from off the face of the ground, saith Jehovah.

2'I will completely sweep everything away from the surface of the earth,' says the Lord.

3I will consume man and beast; I will consume the birds of the heavens, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the face of the ground, saith Jehovah.

3'I will sweep away humans and animals; I will sweep away the birds of the sky and the fish of the sea. I will destroy the wicked along with the things that make them sin, and I will erase mankind from the face of the earth,' says the Lord.

4And I will stretch out my hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarim with the priests;

4'I will raise my hand to strike Judah and everyone living in Jerusalem. I will remove every trace of the god Baal from this place, and I will wipe out the names of both the pagan priests and the regular priests.'

5and them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship, that swear to Jehovah and swear by Malcam;

5'I will destroy those who go up on their roofs to worship the stars of heaven, and those who claim to worship the Lord and swear by him, while also swearing by the god Malcam.'

6and them that are turned back from following Jehovah; and those that have not sought Jehovah, nor inquired after him.

6'I will punish those who have stopped following the Lord, and those who do not look for him or ask for his guidance.'

7Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord Jehovah; for the day of Jehovah is at hand: for Jehovah hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath consecrated his guests.

7Be silent in the presence of the Sovereign Lord, for the day of the Lord is near. The Lord has prepared a sacrifice and has set apart his invited guests for the slaughter.

8And it shall come to pass in the day of Jehovah’s sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king’s sons, and all such as are clothed with foreign apparel.

8'On the day of the Lord’s sacrifice, I will punish the leaders, the king's sons, and everyone who wears foreign clothes for worship.'

9And in that day I will punish all those that leap over the threshold, that fill their master’s house with violence and deceit.

9'On that day, I will punish those who participate in pagan rituals by leaping over the threshold, and those who fill their master’s house with violence and lies.'

10And in that day, saith Jehovah, there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and a wailing from the second quarter, and a great crashing from the hills.

10'On that day,' says the Lord, 'a cry will be heard from the Fish Gate, a scream from the new district of the city, and a loud crashing sound from the hills.'

11Wail, ye inhabitants of Maktesh; for all the people of Canaan are undone; all they that were laden with silver are cut off.

11'Cry out in grief, you people living in the Market District! For all your merchants will be destroyed, and all who weigh out silver will be wiped out.'

12And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with lamps; and I will punish the men that are settled on their lees, that say in their heart, Jehovah will not do good, neither will he do evil.

12'At that time, I will search every corner of Jerusalem with lamps. I will punish those who are satisfied with their sins—those who think to themselves, "The Lord won't do anything, either good or bad."'

13And their wealth shall become a spoil, and their houses a desolation: yea, they shall build houses, but shall not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, but shall not drink the wine thereof.

13'Their wealth will be stolen, and their homes will be ruined. Even if they build houses, they will not live in them. Even if they plant vineyards, they will not drink the wine.'

14The great day of Jehovah is near, it is near and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of Jehovah; the mighty man crieth there bitterly.

14The great day of the Lord is near—it is near and coming very fast. The sound of the day of the Lord will be bitter; even the bravest soldiers will cry out.

15That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

15That day will be a day of fury, a day of trouble and suffering, a day of ruin and destruction, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick blackness.

16a day of the trumpet and alarm, against the fortified cities, and against the high battlements.

16It will be a day of trumpet blasts and battle cries against the walled cities and their high corner towers.

17And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against Jehovah; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as dung.

17'I will bring such distress on the people that they will walk around like the blind, because they have sinned against the Lord. Their blood will be poured out like dust, and their bodies will rot like dung on the ground.'

18Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah’s wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he will make an end, yea, a terrible end, of all them that dwell in the land.

18'Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the Lord’s anger. The whole earth will be consumed by the fire of his passion, for he will bring a sudden and terrifying end to everyone living on the earth.'