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Zephaniah 3

Woe to Jerusalem and the Nations

1Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled,

The oppressive city!

2She obeyed no voice,

She accepted no discipline.

She did not trust in the Lord,

She did not approach her God.

3Her leaders within her are roaring lions,

Her judges are wolves at evening;

They have no bones to gnaw in the morning.

4Her prophets are insolent, treacherous men;

Her priests have profaned the sanctuary.

They have done violence to the Law.

5The Lord is righteous within her;

He will do no injustice.

Every morning He brings His justice to light;

He does not fail.

But the criminal knows no shame.

6“I have eliminated nations;

Their corner towers are deserted.

I have laid waste their streets,

With no one passing by;

Their cities have been laid waste,

Without a person, without an inhabitant.

7“I said, ‘You will certainly revere Me,

You will accept discipline.’

So her dwelling will not be eliminated

In accordance with everything that I have stipulated for her.

Instead, 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 restore to the peoples pure lips,

So 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“On 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, arrogant ones,

And you will never again be haughty

On My holy mountain.

A Remnant of Israel

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 frighten them.”

14Shout for joy, daughter of Zion!

Shout in triumph, Israel!

Rejoice and triumph with all your heart,

Daughter of Jerusalem!

15The 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 no longer fear disaster.

16On that day it will be said to Jerusalem:

“Do not be afraid, Zion;

Do not let your hands fall limp.

17“The Lord your God is in your midst,

A victorious warrior.

He will rejoice 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 are worried about the appointed feasts—

They came from you, Zion;

The disgrace of exile is a burden on them.

19“Behold, I am going to deal at that time

With all your oppressors;

I will save those who limp

And gather the scattered,

And I will turn their shame into praise and fame

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 make you famous and praiseworthy

Among all the peoples of the earth,

When I restore your fortunes before your eyes,”

Zephaniah

Chapter 3

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