Zephaniah 1:18

18 Neither * their 1silver nor their gold Will be able to deliver them On the day of the LORD'S wrath; And 2all the earth will be devoured In the fire of His jealousy, For He will 3make a complete end, Indeed a terrifying one, Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Zephaniah 1:18 Meaning and Commentary

Zephaniah 1:18

Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver
them in the day of the Lord's wrath
Which they have gotten in an unjust way, and have hoarded up, and put their confidence in; these were the lees on which they were settled; but now, as they would be disregarded by the Lord, as insufficient to atone for their sins, and appease his wrath, and procure his favour; see ( Job 36:18 Job 36:19 ) ( Proverbs 11:4 ) so they would be of no avail to them, to deliver from their enemies, who would not be bribed therewith to save their lives; the same is said of the Medes at the taking of Babylon, ( Isaiah 13:17 ) : but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy;
his zeal against sin, and for his own glory, shall burn like fire; which shall consume the whole land, and all the inhabitants of it, and was not to be stopped by anything that could be done by them; so furious and raging would it be: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in
the land;
burn up at once all the briers and thorns, even all that offend, and do iniquity, and spare neither root nor branch; or, as when a field is cleared of the stubble on it, after the wheat is gathered in; or a grain floor of its chaff, after the wheat is separated from it; thus with the besom of destruction would the Lord sweep away the sinful inhabitants of Judea, and clear it of them, as he did by the sword, by famine, by pestilence, and by captivity.

Zephaniah 1:18 In-Context

16 A day of trumpet and battle cry Against the fortified cities And the high corner towers.
17 I will bring distress on men So that they will walk like the blind, Because they have sinned against the LORD ; And their blood will be poured out like dust And their flesh like dung.
18 Neither their silver nor their gold Will be able to deliver them On the day of the LORD'S wrath; And all the earth will be devoured In the fire of His jealousy, For He will make a complete end, Indeed a terrifying one, Of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Cross References 3

  • 1. Ezekiel 7:19
  • 2. Zephaniah 3:8
  • 3. Genesis 6:7; Ezekiel 7:5-7
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