Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation that hath no shame;
before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of Jehovah come upon you, before the day of Jehovah's anger come upon you.
Seek ye Jehovah, all ye meek of the earth, that have kept his ordinances; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye will be hid in the day of Jehovah's anger.
For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation; they shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, and Ekron shall be rooted up.
Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea-coast, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of Jehovah is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; I will destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.
And the sea-coast shall be pastures, with cottages for shepherds and folds for flocks.
And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed their flocks thereupon; in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening; for Jehovah their God will visit them, and bring back their captivity.
I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the revilings of the children of Ammon, wherewith they have reproached my people, and magnified themselves against their border.
Therefore as I live, saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall make a prey of them, and the remnant of my nation shall inherit them.
This shall they have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of Jehovah of hosts.
Jehovah will be terrible unto them; for he will famish all the gods of the earth; and men shall worship him, every one from his place, even all the isles of the nations.
Ye Ethiopians also, ye shall be slain by my sword.
And he will stretch out his hand against the north, and destroy Assyria, and will make Nineveh a desolation, and dry like the wilderness.
And herds shall lie down in the midst of her, all the beasts of the nations: both the pelican and the porcupine shall lodge in the capitals thereof; their voice shall sing in the windows; desolation shall be in the thresholds: for he hath laid bare the cedar-work.
This is the joyous city that dwelt carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none besides me: how is she become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down in! every one that passeth by her shall hiss, and wag his hand.
Canonical academic citations for Zephaniah 2 (ASV) — copy in your preferred format.
Zephaniah 2 (ASV). Prime Bible, accessed September 17, 2026. https://primebible.com/asv/zephaniah/2.
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Before that day strikes, Zephaniah urges the humble to seek the LORD that they may be sheltered. Oracles follow against Israel’s neighbors: Philistia’s coastal cities (Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron) will become pastures for Judah; Moab and Ammon will end like Sodom for mocking God’s people; Cushites will be slain by His sword; proud Assyria and its capital Nineveh will be left a desolate desert, hosting owls and wild beasts.
Warning of coming Day of the Lord and hope for a purified remnant.
Zephaniah 2 is presented with the full Hebrew interlinear, Strong's numbers, and verse-by-verse cross-references on Prime Bible — a free, nonprofit Bible study platform.