New King James Version
Zephaniah 3:5
5The Lord is righteous in her midst, He will do no unrighteousness. Every morning He brings His justice to light; He never fails, But the unjust knows no shame.
Zephaniah 3:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The just Lord is in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame.
- New International Version (NIV)The Lord within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The Lord within her is righteous; he does no injustice; every morning he shows forth his justice; each dawn he does not fail; but the unjust knows no shame.
- New Living Translation (NLT)But the Lord is still there in the city, and he does no wrong. Day by day he hands down justice, and he does not fail. But the wicked know no shame.
Context of Zephaniah 3:5
3Her princes in her midst are roaring lions; Her judges are evening wolves That leave not a bone till morning. 4Her prophets are insolent, treacherous people; Her priests have polluted the sanctuary, They have done violence to the law. The Lord is righteous in her midst, He will do no unrighteousness. Every morning He brings His justice to light; He never fails, But the unjust knows no shame. 6“I have cut off nations, Their fortresses are devastated; I have made their streets desolate, With none passing by. Their cities are destroyed; There is no one, no inhabitant. 7I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me, You will receive instruction’— So that her dwelling would not be cut off, Despite everything for which I punished her. But they rose early and corrupted all their deeds.
Read all of Zephaniah 3Zephaniah 3:5 word by word
יְהוָ֤ה צַדִּיק֙ בְּקִרְבָּ֔הּ לֹ֥א יַעֲשֶׂ֖ה עַוְלָ֑ה בַּבֹּ֨קֶר בַּבֹּ֜קֶר מִשְׁפָּט֨וֹ יִתֵּ֤ן לָאוֹר֙ לֹ֣א נֶעְדָּ֔ר וְלֹֽא־יוֹדֵ֥עַ עַוָּ֖ל בֹּֽשֶׁת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The justצַדִּיקtsaddîyq · righteousH6662
- Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- in the midstקֶ֫רֶבqereb · entrails: amongH7130
- thereof; he will not doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
- iniquityעַוְלָה‛evel ‛âvel ‛avlâh ‛ôlâh ‛ôlâh · injusticeH5766
- everyבֹּ֫קֶרbôqer · morningH1242
- doth he bringנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- his judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941
- to lightאוֹר'ôr · lightH216
- he failethעָדַר‛âdar · to lackH5737
- not; but the unjustעַוָּל‛avvâl · unjustH5767
- knowethיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
- no shameבֹּ֫שֶׁתbôsheth · shameH1322
Cross-references for Zephaniah 3:5
- Deuteronomy 32:4He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.
- Psalms 99:3Let them praise Your great and awesome name— He is holy.
- Psalms 145:17The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works.
- Ecclesiastes 3:16Moreover I saw under the sun: In the place of judgment, Wickedness was there; And in the place of righteousness, Iniquity was there.
- Isaiah 45:21Tell and bring forth your case; Yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, A just God and a Savior; There is none besides Me.
- Habakkuk 1:3Why do You show me iniquity, And cause me to see trouble? For plundering and violence are before me; There is strife, and contention arises.
- Zechariah 9:9“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.
- Romans 3:26to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
- 1 Peter 1:17And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;
- Zephaniah 3:15The Lord has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more.
- Deuteronomy 23:14For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and give your enemies over to you; therefore your camp shall be holy, that He may see no unclean thing among you, and turn away from you.
- Isaiah 12:6Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion, For great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”
- Ezekiel 48:35All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE.”
- Micah 3:11Her heads judge for a bribe, Her priests teach for pay, And her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us.”
- Zechariah 2:5For I,’ says the Lord, ‘will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ”
- Genesis 18:25Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”
Commentaries on Zephaniah 3:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5The just Lord is in the midst thereof - He sees, marks down, and will punish all these wickednesses. Every morning doth he bring his judgment to light - The sense is, says Bp. Newcome, "Not a day passes but we see instances of his goodness to righteous men, and of his vengeance on the wicked."Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5But, beside these “evening wolves in the midst of her,” there standeth Another “in the midst of her,” whom they knew not, and so, very near to them although they would not draw near to Him. But He was near, to behold all the iniquities which they did in the very city and place called by His Name and in His very presence; He was in her to protect, foster her with a father‘s love, but she, presuming on His mercy, had cast it off. And so He was near to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5He does nothing wrong, unlike those mentioned in Zephaniah 3:3–4.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-75-7. The Jews regard not God's justice manifested in the midst of them, nor His judgments on the guilty nations around. The just Lord--Why then are ye so unjust? is in the midst thereof--He retorts on them their own boast, "Is not the Lord among us" (Mi 3:11)? True He is, but it is for another end from what ye think [Calvin]; namely, to lead you by the example of His righteousness to be righteous. Le 19:2, "Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am…Read the comment
Topics related to Zephaniah 3:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Zephaniah 3
- 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
- Darby Translation 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries