1The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hizkiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah. 2I will surely destroy all things from off the land, saith the Lorde. 3I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD. 4I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, [and] the name of the Chemarims with the priests; 5And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship [and] that swear by the LORD, and that swear by Malcham; 6And them that are turned backe from the Lord, and those that haue not sought the Lorde, nor inquired for him. 7Be stil at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, and hath sanctified his ghests. 8And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice, that I will punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed with strange apparel. 9In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit. 10And it shall come to pass 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 hills. 11Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the merchant people are cut down; all they that bear silver are cut off. 12And it shall come to pass at that time, [that] I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil. 13Therefore their goods shall be spoyled, and their houses waste: they shall also build houses, but not inhabite them, and they shall plant vineyards, but not drinke the wine thereof. 14The great day of the LORD [is] near, [it is] near, and hasteth greatly, [even] the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. 15That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and heauinesse, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of obscuritie and darkenesse, a day of cloudes and blackenesse, 16A day of the trumpet and alarme against the strong cities, and against the hie towres. 17And I will bring distresse vpon men, that they shall walke like blind men, because they haue sinned against the Lorde, and their blood shall be powred out as dust, and their flesh as the dongue. 18Neither their siluer nor their golde shalbe able to deliuer them in ye day of the Lords wrath, but the whole lande shalbe deuoured by the fire of his ielousie: for hee shall make euen a speedie riddance of all them that dwell in the land.