Zephaniah 3 New International Version

Jerusalem

3 Woe to the city of oppressors,^(A)
    rebellious^(B) and defiled!^(C)
²She obeys^(D) no one,
    she accepts no correction.^(E)
She does not trust^(F) in the Lord,
    she does not draw near^(G) to her God.
³Her officials within her
    are roaring lions;^(H)
her rulers are evening wolves,^(I)
    who leave nothing for the morning.^(J)
⁴Her prophets are unprincipled;
    they are treacherous people.^(K)
Her priests profane the sanctuary
    and do violence to the law.^(L)
⁵The Lord within her is righteous;^(M)
    he does no wrong.^(N)
Morning by morning^(O) he dispenses his justice,
    and every new day he does not fail,^(P)
    yet the unrighteous know no shame.^(Q)

Jerusalem Remains Unrepentant

⁶“I have destroyed nations;
    their strongholds are demolished.
I have left their streets deserted,
    with no one passing through.
Their cities are laid waste;^(R)
    they are deserted and empty.
⁷Of Jerusalem I thought,
    ‘Surely you will fear me
    and accept correction!’^(S)
Then her place of refuge^[a] would not be destroyed,
    nor all my punishments come upon^[b] her.
But they were still eager
    to act corruptly^(T) in all they did.
⁸Therefore wait^(U) for me,”
    declares the Lord,
    “for the day I will stand up to testify.^[c]
I have decided to assemble^(V) the nations,^(W)
    to gather the kingdoms
and to pour out my wrath^(X) on them—
    all my fierce anger.^(Y)
The whole world will be consumed^(Z)
    by the fire of my jealous anger.

Restoration of Israel’s Remnant

⁹“Then I will purify the lips of the peoples,
    that all of them may call^(AA) on the name of the Lord^(AB)
    and serve^(AC) him shoulder to shoulder.
¹⁰From beyond the rivers of Cush^[d]^(AD)
    my worshipers, my scattered people,
    will bring me offerings.^(AE)
¹¹On that day you, Jerusalem, will not be put to shame^(AF)
    for all the wrongs you have done to me,^(AG)
because I will remove from you
    your arrogant boasters.^(AH)
Never again will you be haughty
    on my holy hill.^(AI)
¹²But I will leave within you
    the meek^(AJ) and humble.
The remnant of Israel
    will trust^(AK) in the name of the Lord.
¹³They^(AL) will do no wrong;^(AM)
    they will tell no lies.^(AN)
A deceitful tongue
    will not be found in their mouths.^(AO)
They will eat and lie down^(AP)
    and no one will make them afraid.^(AQ)”

¹⁴Sing, Daughter Zion;^(AR)
    shout aloud,^(AS) Israel!
Be glad and rejoice^(AT) with all your heart,
    Daughter Jerusalem!
¹⁵The Lord has taken away your punishment,
    he has turned back your enemy.
The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;^(AU)
    never again will you fear^(AV) any harm.^(AW)
¹⁶On that day
    they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
    do not let your hands hang limp.^(AX)
¹⁷The Lord your God is with you,
    the Mighty Warrior who saves.^(AY)
He will take great delight^(AZ) in you;
    in his love he will no longer rebuke you,^(BA)
    but will rejoice over you with singing.”^(BB)

¹⁸“I will remove from you
    all who mourn over the loss of your appointed festivals,
    which is a burden and reproach for you.
¹⁹At that time I will deal
    with all who oppressed^(BC) you.
I will rescue the lame;
    I will gather the exiles.^(BD)
I will give them praise^(BE) and honor
    in every land where they have suffered shame.
²⁰At that time I will gather you;
    at that time I will bring^(BF) you home.
I will give you honor^(BG) and praise^(BH)
    among all the peoples of the earth
when I restore your fortunes^[e]^(BI)
    before your very eyes,”
says the Lord.

Footnotes

Zephaniah 3:7 Or her sanctuary
Zephaniah 3:7 Or all those I appointed over
Zephaniah 3:8 Septuagint and Syriac; Hebrew will rise up to plunder
Zephaniah 3:10 That is, the upper Nile region
Zephaniah 3:20 Or I bring back your captives

Cross references

New International Version (NIV)