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Zephaniah 2
Common English Bible
Zephaniah 2
Common English Bible
2 Gather together and assemble yourselves, shameless nation,
2 before the decision is made—the day vanishes like chaff[a]—
before the burning anger of the Lord comes against you,
before the day of the Lord’s anger comes against you.
3 Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land who practice his justice;
seek righteousness;
seek humility.
Maybe you will be hidden on the day of the Lord’s anger.
Oracles against foreign nations
4 Gaza will certainly be abandoned;
and Ashkelon destroyed.
Ashdod will be driven out at noon;
Ekron will be uprooted.
5 Doom, inhabitants of the seacoast,
nation of Cretans.
The Lord’s word is against you,
Canaan, land of the Philistines.
I will exterminate you, leaving no inhabitant.
6 The seacoast will become pastureland,
with wells for shepherds and pens for the flocks.
7 The coast will belong to the survivors from the house of Judah;
they will pasture beside the sea;[b]
in the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down in the evening.
The Lord their God will visit them and restore their possessions.
8 I have heard the taunting of Moab
and the defamation of the Ammonites;
they taunted my people
and enlarged their borders.
9 Therefore, as I live—
says the Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel—
Moab will become like Sodom
and the Ammonites like Gomorrah:
a plot of weeds, salt pits, and devastation forever.
The few remaining from my people will plunder them;
the rest of my nation will possess them.
10 This will happen on account of their pride,
because they taunted and boasted over the people of the Lord of heavenly forces.
11 The Lord will terrify them;
he will make all the gods of the earth disappear.
All the coastlands of the nations will bow down to the Lord,
each one in its own place.
12 Moreover, you too, Cushites, will be pierced by my sword.
13 He will stretch out his hand against the north
and will cause Assyria to perish.
Let him make Nineveh a desolation,
a desolate place like the wilderness.
14 Flocks will lie down in its midst,
every living thing of the nation.
Moreover, the owl and the porcupine will spend the night on its columns.
A bird’s call will resound from the window.
Desolation will be on the sill,
for the cedar will be stripped bare.
15 This is the jubilant city,
the one dwelling securely,
the one saying in her heart,
I, and no one else, will endure forever.
How she has become a desolation,
a resting place for the wild animals.
All those who pass through her hiss and shake their fist.
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 2:2 Heb uncertain
- Zephaniah 2:7 Or they will pasture by them.
Zephaniah 2
New International Version
Zephaniah 2
New International Version
Judah and Jerusalem Judged Along With the Nations
Judah Summoned to Repent
2 Gather together,(A) gather yourselves together,
you shameful(B) nation,
2 before the decree takes effect
and that day passes like windblown chaff,(C)
before the Lord’s fierce anger(D)
comes upon you,
before the day of the Lord’s wrath(E)
comes upon you.
3 Seek(F) the Lord, all you humble of the land,
you who do what he commands.
Seek righteousness,(G) seek humility;(H)
perhaps you will be sheltered(I)
on the day of the Lord’s anger.
Philistia
4 Gaza(J) will be abandoned
and Ashkelon(K) left in ruins.
At midday Ashdod will be emptied
and Ekron uprooted.
5 Woe to you who live by the sea,
you Kerethite(L) people;
the word of the Lord is against you,(M)
Canaan, land of the Philistines.
He says, “I will destroy you,
and none will be left.”(N)
6 The land by the sea will become pastures
having wells for shepherds
and pens for flocks.(O)
7 That land will belong
to the remnant(P) of the people of Judah;
there they will find pasture.
In the evening they will lie down
in the houses of Ashkelon.
The Lord their God will care for them;
he will restore their fortunes.[a](Q)
Moab and Ammon
8 “I have heard the insults(R) of Moab(S)
and the taunts of the Ammonites,(T)
who insulted(U) my people
and made threats against their land.(V)
9 Therefore, as surely as I live,”
declares the Lord Almighty,
the God of Israel,
“surely Moab(W) will become like Sodom,(X)
the Ammonites(Y) like Gomorrah—
a place of weeds and salt pits,
a wasteland forever.
The remnant of my people will plunder(Z) them;
the survivors(AA) of my nation will inherit their land.(AB)”
10 This is what they will get in return for their pride,(AC)
for insulting(AD) and mocking
the people of the Lord Almighty.(AE)
11 The Lord will be awesome(AF) to them
when he destroys all the gods(AG) of the earth.(AH)
Distant nations will bow down to him,(AI)
all of them in their own lands.
Cush
Assyria
13 He will stretch out his hand against the north
and destroy Assyria,(AL)
leaving Nineveh(AM) utterly desolate
and dry as the desert.(AN)
14 Flocks and herds(AO) will lie down there,
creatures of every kind.
The desert owl(AP) and the screech owl(AQ)
will roost on her columns.
Their hooting will echo through the windows,
rubble will fill the doorways,
the beams of cedar will be exposed.
15 This is the city of revelry(AR)
that lived in safety.(AS)
She said to herself,
“I am the one! And there is none besides me.”(AT)
What a ruin she has become,
a lair for wild beasts!(AU)
All who pass by her scoff(AV)
and shake their fists.(AW)
Footnotes
- Zephaniah 2:7 Or will bring back their captives
- Zephaniah 2:12 That is, people from the upper Nile region
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.