Zephaniah 1:4

² “I will completely sweep away everything from the face of the earth,” declares the LORD.

³ “I will sweep away man and beast; I will sweep away the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and the idols with their wicked worshipers. I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth,” declares the LORD.

“I will stretch out My hand against Judah and against all who dwell in Jerusalem. I will cut off from this place every remnant of Baal, the names of the idolatrous and pagan priests—

⁵ those who bow on the rooftops to worship the host of heaven, those who bow down and swear by the LORD but also swear by Milcom,

⁶ and those who turn back from following the LORD, neither seeking the LORD nor inquiring of Him.”

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: “I will stretch out My hand against Judah and against all who dwell in Jerusalem. I will cut off from this place every remnant of Baal, the names of the idolatrous and pagan priests—
KJV: I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests;
WEB: I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place—the name of the idolatrous and pagan priests,
ASV: And I will stretch out my hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, [and] the name of the Chemarim with the priests;
DARBY: And I will stretch forth my hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, the name of the Chemarim with the priests;
BLB: “And I will stretch out My hand against Judah, and against all those dwelling in Jerusalem; I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal, [and] the names of the idolatrous priests, with the priests,

ÅB: Jeg vil rekke min hånd ut mot Juda og mot alle Jerusalems innbyggere, og jeg vil utrydde av dette sted alt som er igjen av Ba'al, avgudsprestenes navn sammen med prestene
OTB: "Jeg vil rekke ut min hånd mot Juda
og mot alle innbyggerne i Jerusalem.
Jeg vil utrydde enhver rest av Baal fra dette stedet,
og navnene på de avgudsdyrkende prestene sammen med de andre prestene.
B1930: Jeg vil rekke min hånd ut mot Juda og mot alle Jerusalems innbyggere, og jeg vil utrydde av dette sted alt som er igjen av Ba'al, avgudsprestenes navn sammen med prestene

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Hosea 10:5
The people of Samaria will fear for the calf of Beth-aven. Indeed, its people will mourn with its idolatrous priests— those who rejoiced in its glory— for it has been taken from them into exile.
Read in context
2 Kings 23:4–5
Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests second in rank, and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the LORD all the articles made for Baal, Asherah, and all the host of heaven. And he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron and carried their ashes to Bethel.
Read in context
Micah 5:13
I will also cut off the carved images and sacred pillars from among you, so that you will no longer bow down to the work of your own hands.
Read in context
2 Kings 21:13
I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line used against Samaria and the plumb line used against the house of Ahab, and I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes out a bowl—wiping it and turning it upside down.
Read in context
Isaiah 14:26–27
This is the plan devised for the whole earth, and this is the hand stretched out over all the nations.
Read in context
Jeremiah 6:12
Their houses will be turned over to others, their fields and wives as well, for I will stretch out My hand against the inhabitants of the land,” declares the LORD.
Read in context
2 Chronicles 34:4
Then in his presence the altars of the Baals were torn down, and he cut to pieces the incense altars that were above them. He shattered the Asherah poles, the carved idols, and the cast images, crushed them to dust, and scattered them over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.
Read in context
Exodus 15:12
You stretched out Your right hand, and the earth swallowed them up.
Read in context