English Standard Version
Zephaniah 1:3
3"I will sweep away man and beast; I will sweep away the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, and the rubble with the wicked. I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth," declares the Lord.
Zephaniah 1:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I 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.
- New International Version (NIV)“I will sweep away both man and beast; I will sweep away the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea— and the idols that cause the wicked to stumble.” “When I destroy all mankind on the face of the earth,” declares the Lord,
- New King James Version (NKJV)“I will consume man and beast; I will consume the birds of the heavens, The fish of the sea, And the stumbling blocks along with the wicked. I will cut off man from the face of the land,” Says the Lord.
- New Living Translation (NLT)“I will sweep away people and animals alike. I will sweep away the birds of the sky and the fish in the sea. I will reduce the wicked to heaps of rubble, and I will wipe humanity from the face of the earth,” says the Lord.
Context of Zephaniah 1:3
1The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah. 2"I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth," declares the Lord. "I will sweep away man and beast; I will sweep away the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, and the rubble with the wicked. I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth," declares the Lord. 4"I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests, 5those who bow down on the roofs to the host of the heavens, those who bow down and swear to the Lord and yet swear by Milcom,
Read all of Zephaniah 1Zephaniah 1:3 word by word
אָסֵ֨ף אָדָ֜ם וּבְהֵמָ֗ה אָסֵ֤ף עוֹף־הַשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ וּדְגֵ֣י הַיָּ֔ם וְהַמַּכְשֵׁל֖וֹת אֶת־הָרְשָׁעִ֑ים וְהִכְרַתִּ֣י אֶת־הָאָדָ֗ם מֵעַ֛ל פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָ֖ה נְאֻם־יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- I will consumeסוּףsûph · to ceaseH5486
- manאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
- and beastבְּהֵמָהbehêmâh · animalH929
- the fowlsעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
- of the heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
- and the fishesדָּגdâg dâ'g · fishH1709
- of the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- and the stumblingblocksמַכְשֵׁלָהmakshêlâh · ruinsH4384
- with the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
- and I will cut offכָּרַתkârath · to cut: eliminateH3772
- from offפָּנֶהpânîym · face: surfaceH6440
- the landאֲדָמָה'ădâmâh · land: planetH127
- saithנְאֻםne'ûm · utteranceH5002
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
Cross-references for Zephaniah 1:3
- Jeremiah 4:23I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.
- Jeremiah 12:4How long will the land mourn and the grass of every field wither? For the evil of those who dwell in it the beasts and the birds are swept away, because they said, "He will not see our latter end."
- Hosea 4:3Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it languish, and also the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens, and even the fish of the sea are taken away.
- Isaiah 27:9Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be atoned for, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: when he makes all the stones of the altars like chalkstones crushed to pieces, no Asherim or incense altars will remain standing.
- Ezekiel 7:19They cast their silver into the streets, and their gold is like an unclean thing. Their silver and gold are not able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord. They cannot satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs with it. For it was the stumbling block of their iniquity.
- Ezekiel 14:3"Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. Should I indeed let myself be consulted by them?
- Ezekiel 44:12Because they ministered to them before their idols and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, therefore I have sworn concerning them, declares the Lord God, and they shall bear their punishment.
- Hosea 14:3Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, 'Our God,' to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy."
- Micah 5:11and I will cut off the cities of your land and throw down all your strongholds;
- Zechariah 13:2"And on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness.
- Matthew 23:39For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'"
- Revelation 2:14But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality.
- Ezekiel 14:13"Son of man, when a land sins against me by acting faithlessly, and I stretch out my hand against it and break its supply of bread and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man and beast,
- Ezekiel 15:6Therefore thus says the Lord God: Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so have I given up the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Commentaries on Zephaniah 1:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3I will consume man and beast - By war, and by pestilence. Even the waters shall he infected, and the fish destroyed; the air become contaminated, and the fowls die.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The stumbling-blocks with the wicked - Not only shall the wicked be utterly brought to an end, or, in the other meaning of the word, “gathered into bundles to be taken away,” but all causes of stumbling too; everything, through which others can fall, which will not be until the end of all things. Then, he repeats, yet more emphatically, “I will cut off the whole race of man from the face of the earth,” and then he closes the verse, like the foregoing…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-3God's judgment will remove things in the reverse order of their creation (Genesis 1:20–26). People and animals are mentioned first, then birds, and finally fish. This order shows that judgment is a reversal of creation, moving backward through what God originally made.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. Enumeration in detail of the "all things" (Zep 1:2; compare Jr 9:10; Ho 4:3). the stumbling-blocks--idols which cause Judah to offend or stumble (Eze 14:3, 4, 7). with the wicked--The idols and their worshippers shall be involved in a common destruction.Read the comment
Topics related to Zephaniah 1:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Zephaniah 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries