Zephaniah 3:1-20

1) Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,
The tyrannical city!
2) She heeded no voice,
She accepted no instruction
She did not trust in the LORD,
She did not draw near to her God.
3) Her princes within her are roaring lions,
Her judges are wolves at evening;
They leave nothing for the morning.
4) Her prophets are reckless, treacherous men;
Her priests have profaned the sanctuary.
They have done violence to the law.
5) The LORD is righteous within her;
He will do no injustice
Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He does not fail
But the unjust knows no shame.
6) "I have cut off nations;
Their corner towers are in ruins.
I have made their streets desolate,
With no one passing by;
Their cities are laid waste,
Without a man, without an inhabitant.
7) "I said, 'Surely you will revere Me,
Accept instruction.'
So her dwelling will not be cut off
According to all that I have appointed concerning her
But they were eager to corrupt all their deeds.

8) "Therefore wait for Me," declares the LORD,
"For the day when I rise up as a witness
Indeed, My decision is to gather nations,
To assemble 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.
9) "For then I will give to the peoples purified lips,
That all of them may call on the name of the LORD,
To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
10) "From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia
My worshipers, My dispersed ones,
Will bring My offerings.
11) "In that day you will feel no shame
Because of all your deeds
By which you have rebelled against Me;
For then I will remove from your midst
Your proud, exulting ones,
And you will never again be haughty
On My holy mountain.
12) "But I will leave among you
A humble and lowly people,
And they will take refuge in the name of the LORD.
13) "The remnant of Israel will do no wrong
And tell no lies,
Nor will a deceitful tongue
Be found in their mouths;
For they will feed and lie down
With no one to make them tremble."

14) Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15) The LORD has taken away His judgments against you,
He has cleared away your enemies
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
You will fear disaster no more.
16) In that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
"Do not be afraid, O Zion;
Do not let your hands fall limp.
17) "The LORD your God is in your midst,
A victorious warrior
He will exult over you with joy,
He will be quiet in His love,
He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
18) "I will gather those who grieve about the appointed feasts--
They came from you, O Zion;
The reproach of exile is a burden on them.
19) "Behold, I am going to deal at that time
With all your oppressors,
I will save the lame
And gather the outcast,
And I will turn their shame into praise and renown
In all the earth.
20) "At that time I will bring you in,
Even at the time when I gather you together;
Indeed, I will give you renown and praise
Among all the peoples of the earth,
When I restore your fortunes before your eyes,"
Says the LORD.

These Bible verses are for use within Helpmewithbiblestudy.org. Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible ®, Copyright © The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)