The Meaning of Zephaniah 1:6 Explained

Zephaniah 1:6

KJV: And them that are turned back from the LORD; and those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired for him.

YLT: And those removing from after Jehovah, And who have not sought Jehovah, nor besought Him.

Darby: and them that turn back from after Jehovah, and that do not seek Jehovah, nor inquire for him.

ASV: and them that are turned back from following Jehovah; and those that have not sought Jehovah, nor inquired after him.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And them that are turned back  from  the LORD;  and [those] that have not sought  the LORD,  nor enquired  for him. 

What does Zephaniah 1:6 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Judgment would come, too, on all God"s people who had apostatized, namely, departed from loving and following Yahweh, and had stopped praying to Him. They might not have participated in pagan idolatry, but if their love had grown cold, they were still guilty (cf. Revelation 2:1-7). The Lord commanded His people to love Him wholeheartedly (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5). They may have forgotten Him, but He had not forgotten them.
"Sometimes it is the apathetic and indifferent who are more responsible for a nation"s moral collapse than those who are actively engaged in evil, or those who have failed in the responsibilities of leadership." [1]
In this pericope the prophet identified three types of idolatry: "the overtly pagan, the syncretistic, and the religiously indifferent." [2] Practitioners of all three would draw punishment from Yahweh.
How does this promise to judge the Israelites harmonize with the earlier prophecy that God would destroy the whole earth ( Zephaniah 1:2-3)? This is an example of a prophet"s foreshortened view of the future in which he could not see the difference in time between some events that he predicted (cf. Isaiah 61:1-3; Daniel 11:35-36; et al.). God judged Israel when the Babylonians overran Judah and destroyed Jerusalem in586 B.C. He will also judge the Israelites in the Tribulation (cf. Jeremiah 30:7; Revelation 6-18; et al.). Zephaniah described God"s judgment of the people of Judah without specifying exactly when He would judge them. Most of what Zephaniah prophesied in this pericope found fulfillment, at least initially, in586 B.C.

Context Summary

Zephaniah 1:1-18 - "the Great Day Of The Lord"
Zephaniah means hidden of the Lord. He lived in Josiah's reign, and cooperated with that king in his efforts to put down idolatry. His prophecy deals with the sins that were rife in Judah and the fearful retribution that would be inflicted through the Chaldeans.
Approaching destruction, Zephaniah 1:2-6. The Chemarim, r.v., were idolatrous priests dressed in black garments. Malcam is Milcom or Moloch. Notice the successive classes of those who were to suffer in the overthrow. They constitute a series of concentric circles, narrowing down at last to those who had turned back, and to those who had never sought the Lord.
The invaders, Zephaniah 1:7-18. The guests whom God invited to the banquet were Nebuchadnezzar and his soldiers! They marched in through the Fish Gate; and, as they advanced, cry after cry arose from the affrighted populace, driven from quarter to quarter. Maktesh, Zephaniah 1:11, was probably the Vale of Siloam, where the merchant princes dwelt or pursued their business. None would be able to elude the coming vengeance. Those that affected foreign attire, or leaped across the threshold in superstition, or practiced deceit, would have to pay dearly for their sins. Fulfilled in the overthrow of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, and afterward by Titus, these words will always stand for the inevitable national sufferings which follow national crimes. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zephaniah 1

1  The time when Zephaniah prophesied
2  God's severe judgments against Judah

What do the individual words in Zephaniah 1:6 mean?

and Those who have turned back from [following] Yahweh and not have sought - Yahweh nor inquired of Him
וְאֶת־ הַנְּסוֹגִ֖ים מֵאַחֲרֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה וַאֲשֶׁ֛ר לֹֽא־ בִקְשׁ֥וּ אֶת־ יְהוָ֖ה וְלֹ֥א דְרָשֻֽׁהוּ

הַנְּסוֹגִ֖ים  Those  who  have  turned  back 
Parse: Article, Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: סוּג  
Sense: to move, go, turn back, move away, backslide.
מֵאַחֲרֵ֣י  from  [following] 
Parse: Preposition-m
Root: אַחַר 
Sense: after the following part, behind (of place), hinder, afterwards (of time).
יְהוָ֑ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
בִקְשׁ֥וּ  have  sought 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: בָּקַשׁ  
Sense: to seek, require, desire, exact, request.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
יְהוָ֖ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
וְלֹ֥א  nor 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
דְרָשֻֽׁהוּ  inquired  of  Him 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural, third person masculine singular
Root: דַּרְיׄושׁ 
Sense: to resort to, seek, seek with care, enquire, require.