Zephaniah 1:7-16

English Standard Version

The Day of the Lord Is Near

⁷^(A)Be silent before the Lord God!
    For ^(B)the day of the Lord is near;
^(C)the Lord has prepared a sacrifice
    and ^(D)consecrated his guests.
⁸And on the day of the Lord's sacrifice—
^(E)“I will punish the officials and the king's sons
    and ^(F)all who array themselves in foreign attire.
⁹On that day I will punish
    everyone ^(G)who leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master's^[a] house
    with violence and fraud.

¹⁰“On that day,” declares the Lord,
    “a cry will be heard from ^(H)the Fish Gate,
^(I)a wail from ^(J)the Second Quarter,
    a loud crash from the hills.
¹¹^(K)Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
    For all the traders^[b] are no more;
    all who weigh out silver are cut off.
¹²At that time ^(L)I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
    and I will punish the men
^(M)who are complacent,^[c]
    ^(N)those who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
    nor will he do ill.’
¹³Their goods shall be ^(O)plundered,
    and their houses laid waste.
^(P)Though they build houses,
    they shall not inhabit them;
^(Q)though they plant vineyards,
    they shall not drink wine from them.”

¹⁴^(R)The great day of the Lord is near,
    near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
    ^(S)the mighty man cries aloud there.
¹⁵^(T)A day of wrath is that day,
    a day of distress and anguish,
a day of ^(U)ruin and devastation,
    ^(V)a day of darkness and gloom,
^(W)a day of clouds and thick darkness,
¹⁶    ^(X)a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
^(Y)against the fortified cities
    and against the lofty battlements.