Zephaniah 1:13 (DBY)

Passage

And their wealth shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation; and they shall build houses, and not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and not drink the wine thereof.

Nearby Context

Zephaniah 1:11 Howl, ye inhabitants of Maktesh; for all the people of Canaan are cut down, all they that are laden with silver are cut off.

Zephaniah 1:12 And it shall come to pass at that time, [that] I will search Jerusalem with lamps, and punish the men that are settled on their lees, that say in their heart, Jehovah will not do good, neither will he do evil.

Zephaniah 1:13 And their wealth shall become a booty, and their houses a desolation; and they shall build houses, and not inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and not drink the wine thereof.

Zephaniah 1:14 The great day of Jehovah is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly. The voice of the day of Jehovah: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly.

Zephaniah 1:15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of ruin and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and gross darkness,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wealth", "shall", "become", "booty", "houses", "desolation", and "build". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wealth" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "And it shall come to pass at..." into verse 14's "The great day of Jehovah is near...", so "wealth" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Zephaniah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "wealth" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.