Zephaniah 1:17

17 I will bring trouble on the people. They will trip and fall as if they were blind. They have sinned against me. Their blood will be poured out like dust. Their bodies will lie rotting on the ground.

Zephaniah 1:17 Meaning and Commentary

Zephaniah 1:17

And I will bring distress upon men
Not upon men in general, but particularly on the men of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; and especially those that were in the fenced cities and high towers; and who might think themselves safe and secure; but, being besieged, should be distressed with famine and pestilence, and with the enemy; and more especially when stormed, and a breach made, and the enemy just entering: that they shall walk like blind men;
not knowing which way to go, where to turn themselves, what methods to take, or course to steer, no more than a blind man. The phrase is expressive of their being at their wits' ends, void of all thought and consultation: because they have sinned against the Lord;
and therefore he gives them up, not only into the hand of the enemy, but unto an infatuation of spirit, and a judicial blindness of mind: and their blood shall be poured out as dust;
in great quantities, like that, without any regard to it, without showing any mercy, and as if it was of no more value than the dust of the earth. The Targum is,

``their blood shall be poured out into the dust;''
or on it, and be drunk up by it: and their flesh as the dung;
or their carcasses, as the same paraphrase; that is, their dead bodies shall lie unburied, and rot, and putrefy, and shall be cast upon fields like dung, to fatten them. The word for "flesh", in the Hebrew language, signifies bread or food; because dead bodies are food for worms; but in the Arabic language, as Aben Ezra and Jarchi observe, it signifies "flesh".

Zephaniah 1:17 In-Context

15 At that time I will pour out my anger. There will be great suffering and pain. It will be a day of horrible trouble. It will be a time of darkness and gloom. It will be filled with the blackest clouds.
16 Trumpet blasts and battle cries will be heard. Soldiers will attack cities that have forts and corner towers.
17 I will bring trouble on the people. They will trip and fall as if they were blind. They have sinned against me. Their blood will be poured out like dust. Their bodies will lie rotting on the ground.
18 Their silver and gold will not be able to save them on the day I pour out my anger. The whole world will be burned up when my jealous anger blazes out. Everyone who lives on earth will come to a sudden end."
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