1. This is the message that the Lord gave to Zephaniah. He received this message during the time that Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah. Zephaniah was the son of Cushi, who was the son of Gedaliah. Gedaliah was the son of Amariah, who was the son of Hezekiah.
2. The Lord says, “I will destroy everything on earth.
3. I will destroy all the people and all the animals. I will destroy the birds in the air and the fish in the sea. I will destroy the evil people and everything that makes them sin. I will remove all people from the earth.” This is what the Lord said.
4. “I will punish Judah and the people living in Jerusalem. I will remove from this place any signs of Baal worship. No one will remember the priests who serve the idols there.
5. And those who go up on their roofs to worship the stars will be forgotten. They worship me, the Lord, but they also use the name of the false god Milcom to make promises.
6. They have turned away from me, the Lord. They have stopped following me. They no longer ask me, the Lord, for help.”