the vines; the work of the olive tree shall fail, and the fields shall yield no food; and the sheep shall be plucked out of the folds, and there shall be no oxen in the stalls.

But I will rejoice in the LORD, and be glad in GOD my salvation.

For the LORD GOD is my strength, and shall make my feet as the feet of a deer, and shall lead me on high to sing with my strings.
Text of the unrevised Luther Bible 1545:
DeepL English Translation
[Processed by BackToLuther. German text published here.]
The Prophet Zephaniah (Zephaniah) ^
Chapter 1
Of the fall of the kingdom of Judah.

This is the word of the LORD, which came unto Zephaniah the son of Chushiah, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah:

I will take all out of the land, saith the LORD.

And I will take away both man and beast, both the fowls of the air, and the fishes of the sea, and the offenders, and the wicked: yea, I will purge the people out of the land, saith the LORD.

I will stretch out my hand upon Judah, and upon all that dwell in Jerusalem; and I will purge out the remnant of Baal, and the name of the camarim, and the priests of this place.

And they that worship the host on the housetops of heaven, who worship it, and swear by the LORD, and by Malchom,

And they that fall away from the LORD, and ask nothing of the LORD, and esteem him not.

Be still before the LORD GOD: for the day of the LORD is at hand. For the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice, and hath invited his guests unto it.

And in the day of the LORD’S sacrifice I will visit the princes, and the king’s children, and all that ask a strange garment.

And in that day will I punish them that leap over the threshold, that fill their masters’ houses with spoil and deceit.

In that day, saith the LORD, there shall be a shout from the fish gate, and a howling from the other gate, and a great lamentation in the hills.

Hay ye that dwell in the mill. For all the merchants are gone, and all that gather money are cut off.

In that day will I search Jerusalem with lanterns, and will visit the people that lie on their heels, and say in their hearts, The LORD will do neither good nor evil.

And their goods shall become a spoil, and their houses a desolation. They shall build houses, and not dwell therein: they shall plant vineyards, and not drink wine of them.

For the great day of the LORD is at hand; it is near, and hasteth greatly. When the cry of the day of the LORD shall come, then shall the mighty cry bitterly.

For this day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and anguish, a day of weather and tempest, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and fog,

A day of trumpets and trumpets against the strong cities and high castles.

I will make men afraid, that they may go about as the blind, because they have sinned against the LORD. Their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their bodies as dung.

Their silver and their gold shall not deliver them in the day of the LORD’S wrath: but all the land shall be consumed in the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make a sudden end of all them that dwell in the land.
(Zephaniah)
Chapter 2
Exhortation to repentance. Punishment of the neighboring nations.

Gather yourselves together, and come hither, ye hostile people, 2. Before the judgment go forth, that ye perish as the chaff of the day, before the fierce wrath of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD’S wrath come upon you.
Seek ye the LORD, all ye wretched of the earth, that keep his statutes. Seek righteousness, seek humility, that ye may be hid in the day of the LORD’S wrath.

For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ascalon shall be desolate; Ashdod shall be driven out in the south, and Acaron shall be rooted up.

Woe to them that dwell by the sea, to the warriors! The word of the LORD shall come upon you. Thou, Canaan, the land of the Philistines, I will destroy thee, and none shall dwell there.

There shall be shepherds’ houses and flocks of sheep by the sea.

And the same shall be to the remnant of the house of Judah, that they may feed thereon. And in the evening they shall lie down in the houses of Ascalon, when the LORD their God hath visited them again, and turned their captivity.

I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the blasphemy of the children of Ammon, to reproach my people, and to boast in their borders.

Therefore, as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Moab shall become as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrha; yea, as a nettle bush, and a salt pit, and a perpetual desolation. The remnant of my people shall rob them, and the remnant of my people shall inherit them.

This shall be a reward unto them for their pride, because they have reproached the people of the LORD of hosts, and have boasted.

Terrible shall the LORD be upon them: for he shall destroy all the gods of the earth. And all the isles of the Gentiles shall worship him, every one in his place.

Ye also shall be slain with my sword;

And he shall stretch out his hand upon the north, and destroy Assyria. Nineveh shall he make desolate, barren as a wilderness,

And in it shall lodge all manner of beasts among the heathen: bitterns also and hedgehogs shall dwell in their towers, and shall sing in the windows, and the ravens in the beams: for the cedar boards shall be taken down.

This is the joyful city, which dwelt so securely, saying in her heart, It is I, and none more!
How is it become desolate, that beasts dwell therein! And they that pass by whistle at it, and wave their hand over it.
(Zephaniah)
Chapter 3
Lament and threat against the disobedient Jerusalem. Comfort of the faithful in the Messiah.

woe to the vile, foul, tyrannical city!

She will not obey, nor be disciplined; she will not trust in the LORD, nor cleave unto her God.

Their princes are lions roaring among them, and their judges are wolves in the evening, leaving nothing until the morning.

Their prophets are reckless and scornful. Their priests profane the sanctuary and interpret the law sacrilegiously.

But the LORD that is among them teacheth right, and doeth no evil. He teacheth all the mornings his statutes openly, and desisteth not: but the wicked men will not learn to be ashamed.

Therefore will I cut off these people, and will make their castles desolate, and will make their streets empty, that no man shall walk therein: and their cities shall be destroyed, and there shall be no man there.

And I said unto thee, Fear me, and be thou chastened; and their habitation shall not be cut off, neither shall it come to pass, that I may visit them. But they are diligent to do all manner of wickedness.

Therefore again, saith the LORD, ye also must wait upon me, until I arise in his day, when I also will judge, and gather the nations together, and bring the kingdoms in multitude, to pour out my wrath upon them, even all the wrath of my fury. For all the earth shall be consumed by the fire of my zeal.

Then will I preach otherwise unto the nations with kind lips, that they all may call upon the name of the LORD, and serve him with one accord.

They shall bring me my worshippers, even the scattered ones from beyond the waters of the land of the Moors, for a present.

In that day thou shalt no more be ashamed of all thy doings, because thou hast transgressed against me: for I will put away the proud saints from thee, and thou shalt no more exalt thyself because of my holy mountain.

I will leave in thee a poor and few people: they shall trust in the name of the LORD.

The remnant of Israel shall do no evil, nor speak falsely; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: but they shall feed and rest, without all fear.

Rejoice, O daughter of Zion! Shout, Israel! Rejoice and be glad with all your heart, O
daughter of Jerusalem!

For the LORD hath taken away thy punishment, and hath turned away thine enemies. The LORD king of Israel is with thee, that thou shalt fear no evil.

And it shall be said in that day unto Jerusalem, Fear not: and unto Zion, Let not thine hands be loosed.

For the LORD thy God is with thee, a strong Saviour: he will rejoice over thee, and be kind unto thee, and forgive thee, and will be glad over thee with sound.

I will remove them that were oppressed with statutes, and they shall come out of thee, whose statutes were their burden, whereof they were reproached.

Behold, I will deal with all them that offend thee in that day; and I will help the limping, and gather the outcast; and I will make them to be praised and honoured in all countries where they are despised.

In that day will I bring you in, and gather you together in that day. For I will make you to be praised and honoured among all the nations of the earth, when I shall turn away your prison from before your