Zephaniah 2:4-15

Zephaniah 2:4-15

[4] For Gaza  shall be forsaken,  and Ashkelon  a desolation:  they shall drive out  Ashdod  at the noon day,  and Ekron  shall be rooted up.  [5] Woe  unto the inhabitants  of the sea  coast,  the nation  of the Cherethites!  the word  of the LORD  is against you; O Canaan,  the land  of the Philistines,  I will even destroy  thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.  [6] And the sea  coast  shall be dwellings  and cottages  for shepherds,  and folds  for flocks.  [7] And the coast  shall be for the remnant  of the house  of Judah;  they shall feed  thereupon: in the houses  of Ashkelon  shall they lie down  in the evening:  for the LORD  their God  shall visit  them, and turn away  their captivity.  [8] I have heard  the reproach  of Moab,  and the revilings  of the children  of Ammon,  whereby they have reproached  my people,  and magnified  themselves against their border.  [9] Therefore as I live,  saith  the LORD  of hosts,  the God  of Israel,  Surely Moab  shall be as Sodom,  and the children  of Ammon  as Gomorrah,  even the breeding  of nettles,  and a perpetual  desolation:  the residue  of my people  shall spoil  them, and the remnant  of my people  shall possess  them. [10] This shall they have for their pride,  because they have reproached  and magnified  themselves against the people  of hosts.  [11] The LORD  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 heathen.  [12] Ye Ethiopians  also, ye  shall be slain  by my sword.  [13] And he will stretch out  his hand  against the north,  and destroy  Assyria;  and will make  Nineveh  a desolation,  and dry  like a wilderness.  [14] And flocks  shall lie down  in the midst  of her, all the beasts  of the nations:  both the cormorant  and the bittern  shall lodge  in the upper lintels  of it; their voice  shall sing  in the windows;  desolation  shall be in the thresholds:  for he shall uncover  the cedar work.  [15] This is the rejoicing  city  that dwelt  carelessly,  that said  in her heart,  I am, and there is none beside  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. 

What does Zephaniah 2:4-15 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Since all people need to seek the Lord ( Zephaniah 2:3), Zephaniah revealed that judgment was headed for the nations around Judah as well as for Judah. He selected nations that lived in four directions from Judah to represent all the nations. Philistia lay west of Judah, Moab and Ammon east, Ethiopia south, and Assyria north.
"He [1] would also judge nations that were near as well as nations that were far away. Those near would be plundered and possessed by Judah. Those far away would simply be destroyed by the Lord." [2]
Zephaniah prophesied to the people of Judah about these nations rather than to these nations themselves, though they might have heard about Zephaniah"s prophecies. His prophecies about the nations reminded the Judeans that Yahweh was sovereign over all the earth and that He was not just singling out Judah for punishment.