1 The worde of the Lord which came vnto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the sonne of Amariah, the sonne of Hizkiah, in the dayes of Iosiah, the sonne of Amon king of Iudah.
2 I will vtterly consume all things from off the land, saith the Lord.
3 I will consume man and beast: I will consume the foules of the heauen and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling blocks with the wicked, and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the Lord.
4 I will also stretch out mine hand vpon Iudah, and vpon all the inhabitants of Ierusalem, and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests:
5 And them that worship the hoste of heauen vpon the house tops, & them that worship, and that sweare by the Lord, and that sweare by Malcham:
6 And them that are turned backe from the Lord, & those that haue not sought þe Lord, nor enquired for him.
7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice: he hath bid his ghests.
8 And it shall come to passe in the day of the Lords Sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the kings children, and al such as are clothed with strange apparell.
9 In the same day also wil I punish all those that leape on the threshold, which fill their masters houses with violence and deceit.
10 And it shall come to passe in that day, saith the Lord, that there shall be the noise of a cry from the fish gate, and an howling from the second, and a great crashing from the hils.
11 Howle yee inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut downe: all they that beare siluer are cut off.
12 And it shall come to passe at that time, that I wil search Ierusalem with candles, and punish the men that are setled on their lees, that say in their heart, The Lord will not doe good, neither will he doe euill.
13 Therefore their goods shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation: they shall also build houses, but not inhabite them, and they shall plant Uineyards, but not drinke the wine thereof.
14 The great day of the Lord is neere, it is neere, and hasteth greatly, euen the voice of the day of the Lord: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.
15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distresse, a day of wastenesse and desolation, a day of darknesse and gloominesse, a day of cloudes and thicke darkenesse;
16 A day of the trumpet and alarme against the fenced cities, and against the high towres.
17 And I will bring distresse vpon men, that they shall walke like blinde men, because they haue sinned against the Lord, and their blood shall bee powred out as dust, and their flesh as the doung.
18 Neither their siluer nor their golde shall be able to deliuer them in the day of the Lords wrath; but the whole land shall bee deuoured by the fire of his iealousie: for hee shall make euen a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
Zephaniah excites to repentance, foretells the destruction of the enemies of the Jews, and comforts the pious among them with promises of future blessings, the restoration of their nation, and the prosperity of the church in the latter days.Threatenings against sinners. (1-6) More threatenings. (7-13) Distress from the approaching judgments. (14-18)1-6 Ruin is coming, utter ruin; destruction from the Almighty. The servants of God all proclaim, There is no peace for the wicked. The expressions are figurative, speaking every where desolation; the land shall be left without inhabitants. The sinners to be consumed are, the professed idolaters, and those that worship Jehovah and idols, or swear to the Lord, and to Malcham. Those that think to divide their affections and worship between God and idols, will come short of acceptance with God; for what communion can there be between light and darkness? If Satan have half, he will have all; if the Lord have but half, he will have none. Neglect of God shows impiety and contempt. May none of us be among those who draw back unto perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.
7-13 God's day is at hand; the punishment of presumptuous sinners is a sacrifice to the justice of God. The Jewish royal family shall be reckoned with for their pride and vanity; and those that leap on the threshold, invading their neighbours' rights, and seizing their possessions. The trading people and the rich merchants are called to account. Secure and careless people are reckoned with. They are secure and easy; they say in their heart, the Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil; that is, they deny his dispensing rewards and punishments. But in the day of the Lord's judgment, it will clearly appear that those who perish, fall a sacrifice to Divine justice for breaking God's law, and because they have no interest by faith in the Redeemer's atoning sacrifice.
14-18 This warning of approaching destruction, is enough to make the sinners in Zion tremble; it refers to the great day of the Lord, the day in which he will show himself by taking vengeance on them. This day of the Lord is very near; it is a day of God's wrath, wrath to the utmost. It will be a day of trouble and distress to sinners. Let them not be laid asleep by the patience of God. What is a man profited if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? And what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Let us flee from the wrath to come, and choose the good part that shall never be taken from us; then we shall be prepared for every event; nothing shall separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.