1 Die woord van die HERE wat gekom het tot Sef nja, die seun van Kusi, die seun van Ged lja, die seun van Am rja, die seun van Hisk¡a, in die dae van Jos¡a, die seun van Amon, koning van Juda.
2 Saamskraap, wegraap sal Ek alles van die aardbodem af weg, spreek die HERE.
3 Ek sal wegraap mense en diere, Ek sal wegraap die voëls van die hemel en die visse van die see en die struikelblokke saam met die goddelose, ja, Ek sal die mense uitroei van die aardbodem af weg, spreek die HERE.
4 En Ek sal my hand uitstrek teen Juda en teen al die inwoners van Jerusalem; Ek sal ook uit hierdie plek uitroei wat van Ba„l oorgebly het, die naam van die afgodsdienaars saam met die priesters;
5 en die wat op die dakke die leër van die hemel aanbid; en die aanbidders wat by die HERE sweer en sweer by Milkom.
6 Ook die wat van die HERE afvallig word en wat die HERE nie soek en Hom nie raadpleeg nie.
7 Swyg voor die Here HERE! Want die dag van die HERE is naby; want die HERE het 'n offer berei, sy gaste geheilig.
8 En op die dag van die offer van die HERE sal Ek besoeking doen oor die vorste en die prinse en oor almal wat uitlandse klere dra.
9 Ek sal ook op die dag besoeking doen oor almal wat oor die drumpel spring, wat die huis van hulle here vul met geweld en bedrog.
10 En op die dag, spreek die HERE -- hoor! 'n geskreeu van die Vispoort af en 'n gehuil van die Nuwe Stad af en 'n groot gekraak van die heuwels af!
11 Huil, o inwoners van die Vysel! want al die koopmans gaan te gronde, almal wat geld afweeg, word uitgeroei.
12 En in die tyd sal Ek Jerusalem met lanterns deursoek en besoeking doen oor die manne wat dik geword het op hulle afsaksel, wat in hulle hart sê: Die HERE doen geen goed en Hy doen geen kwaad nie.
13 En hulle rykdom sal geplunder word, en hulle huise verwoes word; en as hulle huise bou, sal hulle dit nie bewoon nie; en as hulle wingerde plant, sal hulle die wyn daarvan nie drink nie.
14 Naby is die groot dag van die HERE, naby en baie haastig. Hoor! die dag van die HERE! Bitterlik skreeu die held daar.
15 Di, dag is 'n dag van grimmigheid, 'n dag van benoudheid en angs, 'n dag van woestheid en verwoesting, 'n dag van duisternis en donkerheid, 'n dag van wolke en wolkenag,
16 'n dag van basuingeklank en krygsgeskreeu teen die versterkte stede en teen die hoë hoekvestings.
17 En Ek sal die mense in benoudheid bring, en hulle sal rondloop soos blindes, omdat hulle teen die HERE gesondig het; en hulle bloed sal vergiet word soos stof en hulle ingewande soos drek.
18 Hulle silwer of hulle goud sal nie in staat wees om hulle op die dag van die grimmigheid van die HERE te red nie, maar deur die vuur van sy ywer sal die hele aarde verteer word; want Hy bring vernietiging, ja, 'n verskriklike, oor die inwoners van die aarde.
1 The word of the Lord which came to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah.
2 I will take away everything from the face of the earth, says the Lord.
3 I will take away man and beast; I will take away the birds of the heaven and the fishes of the sea; causing the downfall of the evil-doers, and cutting man off from the face of the earth, says the Lord.
4 And my hand will be stretched out on Judah and on all the people of Jerusalem, cutting off the name of the Baal from this place, and the name of the false priests,
5 And the worshippers of the army of heaven on the house-tops, and the Lord's worshippers who take oaths by Milcom,
6 And those who are turned back from going after the Lord, and those who have not made prayer to the Lord or got directions from him.
7 Let there be no sound before the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is near: for the Lord has made ready an offering, he has made his guests holy.
8 And it will come about in the day of the Lord's offering, that I will send punishment on the rulers and the king's sons and all who are clothed in robes from strange lands.
9 And in that day I will send punishment on all those who come jumping over the doorstep and make their master's house full of violent behaviour and deceit.
10 And in that day, says the Lord, there will be the sound of a cry from the fish doorway, and an outcry from the new town, and a great thundering from the hills, and cries of grief from the people of the Hollow;
11 Because of the downfall of all the people of Canaan: all those who were weighted down with silver have been cut off.
12 And it will come about at that time, that I will go searching through Jerusalem with lights; and I will send punishment on the men who have become like wine stored over-long, who say to themselves, The Lord will not do good and will not do evil.
13 And their wealth will be violently taken away, and their houses will be made waste: they will go on building houses and never living in them, and planting vine-gardens but not drinking the wine from them.
14 The great day of the Lord is near, it is near and coming very quickly; the bitter day of the Lord is near, coming on more quickly than a man of war.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and sorrow, a day of wasting and destruction, a day of dark night and deep shade, a day of cloud and thick dark.
16 A day of sounding the horn and the war-cry against the walled towns and the high towers.
17 And I will send trouble on men so that they will go about like the blind, because they have done evil against the Lord: and their blood will be drained out like dust, and their strength like waste.
18 Even their silver and their gold will not be able to keep them safe in the day of the Lord's wrath; but all the land will be burned up in the fire of his bitter wrath: for he will put an end, even suddenly, to all who are living in the land.