Zephaniah 2

1 Come together, yes, gather together, you worthless nation—

Assemble, be gathered together, O people not worthy to be loved.

2 before the decree is issued, before you wither and die like a flower, before the burning anger of the Lord falls on you, before the day of the Lord's anger comes on you.

Until the decree settles accounts, the day like dust is passing away, before which the wrath of the fury of the Lord may overcome you, before which the day of the anger of the Lord may overcome you.

3 Look to the Lord, all you people of the land who are humble and who follow his commands. Look to do what is right; look to live in humility. Perhaps you will be protected on the day of the Lord's anger.

Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth; you who have been working are his judgment. Seek the just, seek the meek. So then, in some way, you might be hidden in the day of the fury of the Lord.

4 Gaza will be abandoned, Ashkelon will become desolate, Ashdod will be emptied by noon, Ekron will be ripped up.

For Gaza will be destroyed, and Ashkelon will be in the desert; they will expel Ashdod at midday, and Ekron will be eradicated.

5 What disaster is coming to you Philistines, you sea-people who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan! The Lord has passed judgment on you. I will destroy you—there will be no survivors.

Woe to you who inhabit the coast of the sea, you people of perdition. The word of the Lord is over you, Canaan, the land of the Philistines, and I will disperse you, so that not one inhabitant will be left.

6 Your seacoast will become pastures, with meadows for shepherds and sheep pens for flocks.

And the coastline of the sea will be a resting place for shepherds and a fence line for cattle.

7 It will belong to those who remain of the people of Judah. They will graze their flocks there, and the shepherds will sleep in the abandoned houses of Ashkelon. For the Lord their God will be with them and make them prosperous again.

And it will be the line of him who will remain from the house of Judah. There they will pasture. In the houses of Ashkelon, they will rest towards evening. For the Lord their God will visit them, and he will turn away their captivity.

8 I have heard the mocking taunts of the Moabites and the scornful derision of the Ammonites who have insulted my people and made threats against their territory.

I have heard about the disgrace of Moab and the blasphemies of the sons of Ammon, by which they have defamed my people and have been magnified beyond their borders.

9 Consequently, as I live, declares the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, the Moabites will become like Sodom, and the Ammonites like Gomorrah. Their land will become a place of weeds and salt pits and ruins forever. Those who remain of my people will plunder them and occupy their land.

Because of this, as I live, says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Moab will be like Sodom, and the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah, like the dryness of thorns, and piles of salt, and a desert, all the way to eternity. The remnant of my people will despoil them, and the residue of my nation will possess them.

10 This is what they will receive for their pride because they mocked and threatened the people of the Lord Almighty.

This will come upon them for their arrogance, because they have blasphemed and have been magnified over the people of the Lord of hosts.

11 The Lord will make them terribly afraid as he starves to death all the gods of the land. Every nation will worship the Lord wherever they are—all around the world.

The Lord will be a horror over them, and he will reduce all the gods of the earth. And they will adore him, each man from his own place, all the islands of the Gentiles.

12 You Ethiopians will be killed by the sword.

Even so, you Ethiopians, you will be executed by my sword.

13 The Lord will strike the Assyrians in the north and destroy them. He will make Nineveh desolate, a dry wasteland like the desert.

And he will extend his hand over the North, and he will destroy Assur. And he will set the Beautiful in the wilderness, and in an impassable place, and like a desert.

14 Herds will lie down in the middle of the city. It will become the home for every kind of wild animal. Eagle owls and screech owls will roost on its columns. Their calls will echo through the windows. Rubble will block the doors, and the cedar woodwork will be exposed.

And flocks will lie down in its midst, all the beasts of the Gentiles. And the pelican and the hedgehog will stay at its threshold; the voice of the singing bird will be at the window, with the crow above its threshold, for I will diminish her strength.

15 This is what will happen to this triumphant city that thought it was so secure. “Look at me!” it said proudly to itself. “There is no city as great as me!” But it has become a desolate place—just a home for wild animals. Everyone who passes by will point their finger and laugh in derision.

This is the glorious city, dwelling in trust, which said in her heart, “I am and there is no one other than me.” How has she become a lair for beasts in the desert? All who pass through her will hiss and wag their hand.